j. von Hettlingen dessin animé

I agree with you. Sometimes balletomanes never have do a ballet class. But they have a nice tong to critic dancers.

@Pauline IV - Don't forget the Mikhailovsky Theatre with some of the best ballet dancers in the world today.

+Paulay K This is Vasily Tkachenko

Tatum Shoptaugh mmkirov ballet m

I think so!

Darrius Legrand It was definitely her! :)

Erin Kristova OMG She's a supermodel!

Darrius Legrand I know right? :D I love watching her dance.

Yes. That was her, walking out at the end with her point shoes.

The Mariinsky is definitely making an error by choosing image over technique and talent but the physical still is very important. There is nothing that can't be done about height but lines and extensions can be achieve. I mean, Osipova isn't the very skinny "weak" looking Russian ballerina with control and technique of Zakharova but her lines and extensions are definitely better than Rojo's and if expression and musicality are the things we are talking about then Osipova beats practically everyone on that even if her technique isn't that clean. Rojo's technique is good and clean but the Royal Ballet makes me fall asleep. I can't even watch one video for a minute and then click on a Russian video.

+aislinn donnelly nonsense! All these arguments make sense only for dilettantish western companies which cannot produce high-quality ballets and therefore try to explain that their ballerinas cannot make ``perfect turnout and 180 degree extensions'' by the fact that they are more ``artistic''. The high-level art is always based on high-level technique. Don't pull our legs!

*facepalm* on theory of "being happy and expressing it like Royal Ballet". Some serious authentic "music and abstract philosophical" dancing enthusiast I smell here! Lol. This is just very typical warming up class before going to their teachers or choreographer for some rehersals or prepings before show. This looks like just a few selected dancers Mariinsky has, this is clearly shoot on tour. You clearly see this teacher (Mr Petrov) giving slight corrections here and there in a very specific, certainly very show/upcoming performance oriented way. This class is just a wake up and stretch thing, however you can see every inch of their moves just screams of Vaganova training. It's classic, it's authentic, it's nice long clean lines. Even Xander Parish is trained into this style now. He is becoming better and better with every ballet he dances. Good that Mariinsky is giving him a lot of chances and he tours with this Russian company a lot world wide. (I think they are still in Japan now - Dec 2015) At least Xander is not "holding a spear" any more, lol, but performing every week 2-3 big ballet in St Petersburg or worldwide. He started receiving some good highly acclaimed reviews. Looks like Russians did a good experiment on him: took Royal Ballet dancer with high jump and nobel nice feet work and married him with some famous Russian fineese and elegance of perfectionism, spiced him with those Vaganova-style "singing hands" (head-torso-hands coordination). Xander has a chance to become very very great soon. We just wait. Soon we will see. For a now he just learning all those old traditional ampluas of prince, lord of famous Mariinsky ballets, which usually considered as graduation exam for any Russian dancer (think Nureyev, Baryshnikov, Godunov - they all receive this training and they all danced the same ballets Xander is doing right now. And it's not Soviet Union any more, so Mariinsky is very open to modern choreography nowdays. Let's just see what happen with Xander, I'm curious myself. However, not "dancing happy-go-lucky", "not expressing their feeling through dance" - is just a big facepalm. Seriously, check your self for being overly romantically fantasizing. ;) In order to be next or another, or even comparable, to Baryshnikov you need to receive this kind of training as these Mariinsky dancers. It's like learning alphabet before you can read and write. There is a good reason why Vaganova audition every year about 1,500 dancers, accepts only 30 and graduates only 15 of them (in 8 years). And mothers of those kids are ready to turn inside out and backwards and pay any money in order to have their kids to be accepted to Vaganova academy in Saint Petersburg. As for your comment about not "happy" dancing of Mariinsky... well, let me be short: you learn this Vaganova technique, you dance through classical repertoire of Mariinsky, you receive multiple good reviews from tough critical Petersburg locals. And only when I will be ready to listen to your criticism about Mariinsky dancers. Lol. Nureyev and Baryshnikov, yes both, bashed Soviet ideology, however they always were higly acclaimed about Vaganova training and Mariinsky style. They both danced it for some time, they basically were not happy with limitations of repertoire and ideology of government and wanted some more different flavour choreography in the west (sadly back in the time it was not easy as it is now). Once again: this particular video is the Mariinsky's warmup / pre-performance at its best. Save your naive Royal Ballet is better" (it's not better. It's different, lol) and "poor and soulless little Russian dancers" to some other time. Russian dancers are always tend to be very high and lean. Baryshnikov was just and exception, because he was darn good, and Nureyev even though just midheight, but cat-like genious per se. Check out Godunov with nobel like coordination and posture, Godunov was 197 cm. ;) Just saying. All are 180cm+, all Russian trained, all become a great dancers. Not a lot of people complained about their "not happy" dancing. Rofl.

Ditto on Royal, making me asleep as well. Although they have some nice ones and their technique has finally improved last 7-10 years, however not consistent. A lot of things depends on the cast you choose to watch live in the theater. Might be hit or miss, I experienced that couple times myslef, and hearheard a lot from my London buddies. Like you I usually switch to Russians or Ratmansky with ABT. Besides, there is a very good reason why Royal Ballet is/was staging few Ratmansky's ballet. ;)

+Alex Zam I saw a class of the royal ballet. I saw many people smoke or laugh off to the side of the camera. I see no body here even moving their jaw muscles.