In March this year, Royal Ballet principal dancer Natalia Osipova put on a well-received evening of dance at the Linbury Theatre*, which lies below ground, under the Royal Opera House.
The first edition of Osipova / Linbury was sold out, and the coming shows that run from 10 – 15 November 2025 are already sold out too.
The programme includes Jo Strømgren’s The Exhibition, which was specially commissioned for the previous run of Osipova/Linbury. Also repeated is the evocative film of Osipova dancing in Five Brahms Waltzes in the Manner of Isadora Duncan by The Royal Ballet’s Founder Choreographer, Frederick Ashton.
New to the November programme is Akram Khan’s Mud of Sorrow, a duet from Khan’s acclaimed collaboration with Sylvie Guillem, Sacred Monsters, which Osipova and Khan performed together in 2021 as part of Sadler’s Wells and BBC Arts Dance Nation.
The evening also features a revised version of Alexei Ratmansky‘s 1998 Middle Duet, set to a new score by Philip Feeney. Osipova will perform both duets with guest dancer Patricio Revé. Cuban dancer Revé is a principal artist with Queensland Ballet and a former principal dancer with the National Ballet of Cuba.
Osipova has now been a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet for more than a decade, having joined the company in 2013. Many at the time doubted that she would remain in London long, especially given her flightiness in the previous years. However, here she is, based in London and speaking the language, with her performances among the most popular with audiences. This revival of Osipova / Linbury presents another opportunity to see one of ballet’s brightest stars in an evening of expressive dance and refined artistry.
* The Linbury Theatre was constructed during the major redevelopment of the Royal Opera House during the 1990s. This 400-seat theatre is named Linbury after the Linbury Trust, which donated funds for its construction. The Linbury Trust was established by Lord Sainsbury and his wife, the former ballerina Anya Linden, in 1973, and the Linbury name is derived from their surnames: Linden and Sainsbury.
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
Ya tebya lyublyu, Natasha!
Ya tebya lyublyu, Natasha! XXX