Natalia Osipova is sitting in her dressing room surrounded by fan mail. The Russian ballet dancer – ex-Bolshoi prodigy and current principal of the Royal Ballet – is starring in Swan Lake at London’s Royal Opera House, and where she goes, those adoring messages go with her. To her fans, she is not only a superlative ballerina – known for high-springing jumps that make it look as though she’s flying through the air – but an actor who brings depth and drama to every role. Her Swan Lake performance is no different. She’s mesmerising as Odette/Odile, switching from fragile to fiery in a flash. It’s like watching a silent movie star who is doubling as a virtuoso ballerina.
But off stage, the Moscow-born star can’t help but think about what’s going on in her home country, whose leader Vladimir Putin recently launched an invasion of Ukraine. “It’s so sad – so sad,” says the 35-year-old with a thick Russian accent. “I try not to listen to the news. I don’t want to be political. I just want to be a dancer and give my art to make people happy. I don’t want to be around negativity.”
