La Scala Principal Dancer Timofej Andrijashenko will dance Romeo at The Royal Opera House in London on 27 April and 4 May alongside Melissa Hamilton.
The director of The Royal Ballet, Kevin O'Hare, was present at La Scala's opening of Wayne McGregor's ballet Woolf Works earlier this month on 7 April and saw Andrijashenko dancing the role of Septimus in the work's first part, I now, I then. Andrijashenko was marvellous in the role – in fact, the entire cast was outstanding – and it is as a direct result of this that O'Hare has invited him to London.
Kenneth MacMillan's production of Romeo and Juliet is in La Scala's repertoire, and Andrijashenko first danced the role with the company at the end of 2016 with his on and offstage partner, Principal Dancer, Nicoletta Manni.
Andrijashenko was born in Riga and trained at the State National Academy, but in 2009, during the international competition Dance City of Spoleto, he won a full scholarship to the Russian Ballet College in Genoa, where he graduated in 2013.
In March 2014 he joined the corps de ballet of the Opera Theatre in Rome, under the direction of Micha von Hoecke, dancing principal and soloist roles in the 2013/14 season, and then in November 2014, he joined the corps de ballet of La Scala Theatre Ballet. He was promoted to principal in February 2018.
Graham Spicer is a writer, director and photographer in Milan, blogging (under the name ‘Gramilano') about dance, opera, music and photography for people “who are a bit like me and like some of the things I like”. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy.
His scribblings have appeared in various publications from Woman's Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the ‘Danza in Italia' column for Dancing Times magazine.
I saw his second performance – quite, quite wonderful. Please ask him back Mr O’Hare. Such a princely line.