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Outstanding performances all-around in this special treat for Christmas 

Sir Peter Wright’s festive treat is back – and Covid-secure – as the Royal Opera House stages its first full-length staged performance since the theatre closed in March.

What marks the start of Christmas? For many, it's when the Christmas tree magically grows in The Royal Ballet's Nutcracker...

Sir Peter Wright's version of The Sleeping Beauty has stood the test of time, though this opening night of the tour in Southampton didn't always convince that the work has a place of adoration in the company’s heart.

Peter Wright's evergreen production continues to delight led by a defining performance by Marianela Nuñez in the title role .

Sir Peter Wright's enchanting vision of The Nutcracker continues to delight 

The Royal Ballet's Giselle is classical ballet at its best, paying deep reverence to the original with some of the heavier elements refreshed. Excellently performed by Sarah Lamb and Matthew Golding. 

Peter Wright's excellent version of The Nutcracker returns to The Royal Ballet for a festive run, with several standout performances. 

True to its origin in the Romantic period of the 19th century, this Swan Lake dances the Royal Birmingham Ballet into history because of the beauty of its leading dancer, Céline Gittens, one of the world's first non-white ballerinas.

This is not a story about a prince or princess; there are no fairies, no spells, no swans. And yet it is an entirely enchanting story...

Lambrecht Wessels reviews Dutch National Ballet's Sleeping Beauty at Het Muziektheater, Amsterdam. 

Birmingham Royal Ballet's The Nutcracker, with choreography by Peter Wright, Lev Ivanov and Vincent Redmon, was a magical evening of pure nostalgia.

Frederick Ashton used to say it was like a lesson in choreography every time he watched The Sleeping Beauty. For Kenneth MacMillan too, the ballet was the pinnacle of classicism and technique and a great test of any company’s skills.

Christmas must be nearing when that traditional fare of sparkle, excitement and the surging score of The Nutcracker bursts in full flood onto the world’s ballet stages. Originally created in 1891 by Marius Petipa for the Mariinsky Theatre, the ballet has become the annual bread-winner for most companies (albeit in various versions), guaranteeing full houses and happy customers.

Coppélia is one of the more light-hearted of the full-length classical ballets. Based very loosely on Hoffmann’s more macabre short story Der Sandmann, the plot revolves around the tempestuous relationship of its protagonists, Swanilda and Franz; and the work of the inventor Dr Coppélius, who is both brilliant and barmy.