Yuhui Choe on what it takes to get to Cinderella’s ball

Korean dancer Yuhui Choe is currently playing Cinderella on the stage of the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden.

I try to speak the emotion from my body — the theatre is very big so I want everyone to sense what I’m saying.”

She talked to today’s Times about her performance days.

EVENING

It is important to eat before I go on stage at 7.30pm, and I’ll usually have chicken with pasta or rice. If there is time I take a nap, before starting my hair and make-up routine. I don’t have a good luck ritual, I just try to stay positive.

When I’m on stage I feel incredible. I love what I do but sometimes I get nervous being in front of more than 2,000 people because things can go wrong — the set doesn’t work or the music’s too quick, anything can happen. I fell over once in front of thousands of people. You just have to get up and pretend it didn’t happen.

Because of the lighting I need a lot of make-up to be seen, so much that people don’t recognise me when I take it off! In the show I have three outfit changes. The costumes are beautiful ballroom dresses. I don’t like wearing new ballet shoes, but I get through about four or five pairs every month. Every shoe is different, they all have their own character — some are wonky, some are frayed, so I have to choose carefully. To make them soft I bang them on the concrete floor of the changing room before the show starts.”