When Natalia Osipova and Ivan Vasiliev walked out of the Bolshoi one and a half years ago, it was partly to escape being typecast in ballets such as Don Quixote, which showcased their astounding physical skills but limited their stylistic and expressive range.
Yet they're still dancing Don Q with their new company, the Mikhailovsky; and as a noisy Coliseum demonstrated, audiences can't get enough of this couple's fearless jumps and incandescent speeds. So charged was the atmosphere that the two of them looked tempted, at first, to sacrifice choreographic detail for pyrotechnic thrill; instead, they settled into performances that were as exciting for their wit and colour as for any record-breaking effects.
Osipova could almost burn the stage with the flaring trajectory of her chaîné turns, while more impressive still was the aplomb with which she segued into her final balance, punctuating the moment with a flirty snap of her fan. The scale of her jump was jaw-dropping, but equally memorable was the teasing unfolding of her leg in developpé, and the rhythmic variety with which she underpinned Kitri's free and funny spirit.
Vasiliev pushed his body to still more outrageous extremes, but again it was the invention with which he embroidered his leaps mid-air, and varied the dynamics of his multiple pirouettes, that made us hold our breath. We had to love him, too, for the attentiveness with which he partnered Osipova and the sweet comedy of his interactions with the action around him. Vasipova – as the ballet world now dubs the couple – may be a show-stopping phenomenon, but they manage to stay inside the ballet's drama, alert and responsive to the rest of the performance.
With good reason, too: Mikhail Messerer's staging of Don Q is one of the most engaging I've seen. The ensemble dances are colourfully extrovert and musically drilled, and the collective flourishing of cloaks, castanets and fans a star turn in itself. The storytelling is rich in detail, giving touches of narrative depth to the deranged Don and eliciting some fine secondary performances, including Alexey Kuznetsov's droll Sancho Panza and Mariam Ugrekhelidze's duende-fired gypsy solo in the second act.
None of the cast can approach the Vasipova effect, yet still they perform Don Q as though it matters. With the orchestra playing Minkus at a bravura clip, this baggy war horse of a ballet races along like a thoroughbred.
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