Learning that Albrecht, her beloved, is in fact a nobleman engaged to be married to a princess, the naive peasant girl Giselle dies. The Queen of the Wilis—the spirits of deceased young virgins—decides that Albrecht should follow Giselle to the grave, and condemns him to dance until he dies of exhaustion. But Giselle’s spirit dances with him and saves him. With music by Adolphe Adam and a libretto by Théophile Gautier and Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges, the ballet touches on the great romantic themes: local colour, a pastoral love affair doomed to end in tragedy, a plunge into fantasy and redemption through the power of love.

George Balanchine's jewel-themed triptych, strikingly choreographed to the music of Faure, Stravinsky and Tchaikovsky. This three act masterpiece is renowned as the world's first full-length abstract ballet. The Russian-born co-founder of the New York City Ballet, Balanchine was inspired by the artistry of jewellery designer Claude Arpels to create a trio of distinct movements revealing the essence of each precious stone. Each part also evokes three different cities: Paris, New York and St. Petersburg. 'Emeralds' was conceived as a tribute to the French romantic school, with music by Gabriel Faure. The fiery and energetic 'Rubies' taps into the rich tradition of Broadway musicals, with music by Stravinsky. 'Diamonds' honours the grandeur of Imperial Russia and the Maryinsky Theater, choreographed to the music of Tchaikovsky. With its jewel-like costumes, this is a celebration of the influences on the choreographer who was described as the father of American ballet.

A masterpiece of classical dance, this Nutcracker is a magical version of the score by Tchaikovsky filmed at the Bolshoi Theatre. Recorded live in December 2010.

Dance, espionage and passion come together in this powerful and exciting docudrama that tells the extraordinary story of how Soviet ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev defected to the West in 1961 and became a living legend.

Marco Spada was created at the Paris Opera in 1857 with choreography from Joseph Mazilier and music adapted from Daniel Auber’s comic opera of Marco Spada. Soon forgotten, the ballet was revived in 1981 with a brand new choreography by Pierre Lacotte for the Rome Opera, with Rudolf Nureyev as the 18th-century Italian bandit pretending to be an aristocrat, and Ghislaine Thesmar as his daughter Angela. At the Bolshoi, Marco Spada was premiered on the historic stage on November 8, 2013. Leading roles were performed by David Hallberg (Marco Spada), Evgenia Obraztsova (Angela), Olga Smirnova (Marchesa Sampietri), Semyon Chudin (Prince Frederici), and Igor Tsvirko (Count Pepinelli). Pierre Lacotte designed sets and costumes.

Inspired by heroic stories of brave knights, Don Quixote of La Mancha and his faithful servant Sancho Panza set out on an adventure to meet his ideal woman, Dulcinea. Cervantes’ hero comes to life in the Bolshoi's critically acclaimed staging of this exalting performance. With panache and sparkling technique, principal dancers Ekaterina Krysanova and Semyon Chudin lead the spectacular cast of toreadors, flamenco dancers, gypsies, and dryads in virtuosic dancing that is quintessential Bolshoi. Captured live on April 10, 2016

In this joyful version, a beautiful mechanical doll interferes with the happiness of two lovers. Original choreography by Marius Petita. New version by Sergei Vikharev. Music by Leo Delibes. Live performance 29 May 2011.

Armand Duval finds himself at the auction of the famous courtesan Marguerite Gautier’s possessions after she passed away. She was Armand’s true love, and the vision of her belongings awakens vivid memories of their turbulent love story. Choreographer John Neumeier adapts Alexandre Dumas fils’s timeless novel The Lady of the Camellias for the stage with great sensitivity and emotional depth in his work of rare beauty. As the troubled courtesan Marguerite, superstar prima Svetlana Zakharova and Hamburg Ballet’s guest star Edvin Revazov as Armand bring the passionate drama to new emotional heights accompanied by Chopin’s fantastic score. Captured live in Moscow on December 6, 2015, for the Bolshoi Ballet's 2015/2016 cinema season. Encore screenings of this recording were released during the 2017/2018 and 2020/2021 cinema seasons.

Inspired by Lord Byron’s epic poem, this jewel of the repertoire boasts a lavish production complete with a shipwreck, pirates, and some of ballet’s most renowned scenes.

Traveling through Egypt in the 19th century, a Englishman falls asleep inside a pyramid and travels back in time to the days of the pharaohs, where he immediately falls in love with the daughter of the ruler.