No trip to St. Petersburg is complete without a visit to the Russian ballet. Although the Mariinsky, the most famous theater in St. Petersburg, was closed for reconstruction, the more intimate Hermitage theater adjacent to the museum had several shows playing. We were lucky enough to get tickets (a process much more convoluted than the YesCar rental in Estonia) for a performance of Swan Lake.
At this point there were only four of us and we were probably the youngest people in the theater by about 30 years. Moreover, our combined knowledge of ballet was pretty limited... (Laura, where are you when I need you!) Some more memorable quotes from the evening:
"I'm not sure if that one is a man or a woman; how can you tell them apart?"
"hmm... I think you have to look at the lower half"
"If we hadn't Wikipediad this, I don't think I would know they were supposed to be swans"
"Wait, I'm confused, is she supposed to be a swan or a woman now?"
"So when in Russia, is it appropriate to bring vodka into the theater at intermission"
Truthfully, we all really enjoyed the show. My only basis of comparison is ballet at the Met, which I imagine must be close to--if not on par--with this. I would definitely recommend it to anyone visiting. And for future reference, you are not allowed to bring vodka shots into the theater after intermission.
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