Natalia Osipova and Vasiliev Ignite the Stage

Photo by Damir (left) and Stas Levshin (right).

Get ready for the dynamic duo that Bachtrack is raving about. Natalia Osipova and Ivan Vasiliev returned to dance with the Bolshoi Ballet, performing The Flames of Paris to close out the company’s three-week season in London. Reviewer Margaret Willis raves, Osipova and Vasiliev “set the stage ablaze with their vitality, energy and sparking virtuoso dancing. Their natural effervescent characters lit the fuse, which fired up the whole company, resulting in an explosion of delighted cheering from the whole auditorium."

Osipova and Vasiliev performing The Flames of Paris

“Like a greyhound let out of the slips, Vasiliev shot across the stage in a series of mind-boggling leaps, putting in triple turns in the air where normally there would be two; pirouetting so fast, it would seem that he would bore through the floor; leaping and hanging horizontally in the air; and concluding with barrel turns and multi-complicated flourishes – and all done with a wide grin. 

Osipova and Vasiliev performing The Flames of Paris

“Not to be outdone, Osipova, showing off her talents, sped across the stage, her twinkling feet barely touching the ground; twizzled in multi pirouettes; jumped with high soaring stretched leaps to end with cyclonic spins. Her expressive face exuded the joy of being on stage and of dancing, and she too won the hearts of the cheering public. Their curtain calls went on and on.” 

In 2009, the pair performed a pas de deux from The Flames of Paris during the Center’s dance extravaganza, Tour de Force. This brilliant couple, the toast of the dance world, are the stars of a special engagement at the Center in 2014. Tickets are available now through a subscription to the International Dance Series. 

To read the full article by Willis, please visit Bachtrack.