The Russian ballet theatre Talarium et Lux (Ballet and Light) will stage a special performance of the classic ballet Swan Lake with 3D animated graphics in Hanoi on August 1.

Choreographed by Marina Yurievna Aleksandrova and Yuriy Anatolievich Romashko – former principal dancers of the Bolshoi Theatre – the ballet will feature principal dancers E. Nebesnaya and S. Smirnov with more than 100 other performers.

Nebesnaya will take the lead role of Odette/Odile, the white and black swan, the ultimate role any ballerina would dream to perform.

Legendary dancer Mikhail Leonidovich Lavrovsky – a State Awards laureate of the Soviet Union and People's Artist of the Soviet Union – is the ballet's art director.

According to the vice director of the Talarium et Lux Theatre, Sergey Baturin, the theatre wishes to add more vitality to its classical ballets with the 3D graphics.

"Modern technologies and gadgets have long influenced modern viewers' – and especially children's – perceptions of the world," Baturin said.

"A good production and masterful choreography are no longer enough to draw young people and children to the ballet. That's why, since the theatre's foundation in 2012, we have realised that our most important task is to draw in even those who have never been interested in ballet by producing new shows using multimedia technology."

After its debut in June 23, 2014 in Moscow, the ballet received critical and popular acclaim.

The newspaper Kommersant wrote: "The magical 3D scenery has been presented on five huge screens. Magnific images and scenes were changed in front of the eyes of hundreds of audience members.

"They [the audience] don't need to wear 3D glasses to enjoy those spectacular scenes. Multimedia technology, computer graphics and classical choreography work all together to create a brilliant performance on stage."

Anna Khmelenina, who saw the ballet in the Bolsoi Theatre in Moscow, said she is not very interested in ballet, but still enjoyed the performance.

"The combination of classic ballet and 3D animated graphics is surprising," Khemenina said.

"That's why I decided to bring my two-year-old son with me to see the ballet. It was his first time ever."

Based on a Russian folk tale, Swan Lake tells the story of Odette, a princess who was turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer. Composed in 1875, it is considered one of the most technically and emotionally challenging ballets of all time, but one of the most loved.

In Hanoi, the ballet will be presented at the My Dinh National Convention Hall.-VNA