Bolshoi Theatre in the context of "Bolshoi Theatre, Saint Petersburg"

Swan Lake (Russian: Лебеди́ное о́зеро, romanized: Lebedínoje ózero, Russian pronunciation: [lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə]), Opus 20, is a ballet composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky between 1875 and 1876. The original production premiered at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow on 4 March 1877 (20 February Old Style), with choreography by Julius Reisinger. The ballet, initially conceived in two acts, is based on Russian and German folk tales and tells the story of Princess Odette, who is transformed into a swan by the sorcerer Von Rothbart.

The initial reception was lukewarm, with criticism directed at various elements of the production. Despite this, Swan Lake has become one of the most frequently performed ballets worldwide.

Julius Wentsel Reisinger (1828 – 1893) was a Czech ballet choreographer. He created more than twenty works on various European stages and directed the Moscow company of the Bolshoi Theatre. Reisinger choreographed the first stage production of Swan Lake as well as the production of the first ballet performance for the opening of the Prague National Theatre in 1884. His work on Swan Lake was considered unsuccessful by contemporary critics, although the ballet was popular enough among the general public that it was kept in the active repertoire of the Bolshoi Theatre for seven years and was performed over thirty times.

Reisinger was born in February 1828 in Prague. He was also known by translations of his name as Vaclav or Jules.

The Bolshoi Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company based at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, Russia. Founded in 1776, the Bolshoi is among the world's oldest ballet companies. In the early 20th century, it came to international prominence as Moscow became the capital of Soviet Russia. The Bolshoi has been recognised as one of the foremost ballet companies in the world. It has a branch at the Bolshoi Ballet Theater School in Joinville, Brazil.

Maly Theatre (Малый театр, literally Small Theatre as opposed to nearby Bolshoi, or Grand, opera theatre) is a theatre in Moscow.

Russia, principally associated with the production of plays. Established in 1806 and operating on its present site on the Theatre Square since 1824, the theatre traces its history to the Moscow University drama company, established in 1756. In the 19th century, Maly was "universally recognized in Russia as the leading dramatic theatre of the century", and was the home stage for Mikhail Shchepkin and Maria Yermolova. 40 of Alexander Ostrovsky's 54 plays premiered at Maly, and the theatre was known as The House of Ostrovsky. The Maly Theatre in Moscow and Alexandrinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg "to a great extent determined the development of Russian theatre during the 19th and 20th century".

Maya Mikhailovna Plisetskaya (Russian: Майя Михайловна Плисецкая; 20 November 1925 – 2 May 2015) was a Soviet and Russian ballet dancer, choreographer, ballet director, and actress. In post-Soviet times, she held both Lithuanian and Spanish citizenship. She danced during the Soviet era at the Bolshoi Theatre under the directorships of Leonid Lavrovsky, then of Yury Grigorovich; later she moved into direct confrontation with him. In 1960, when famed Russian ballerina Galina Ulanova retired, Plisetskaya became prima ballerina assoluta of the company.

Her early years were marked by political repression and loss. Her father, Mikhail Plisetski, a Soviet official, was arrested in 1937 and executed in 1938, during the Great Purge. Her mother, theater and silent film actress Rachel Messerer, was arrested in 1938 and imprisoned for a few years, then held in a concentration camp together with her infant son, Azari. The older children were faced with the threat of being put in an orphanage but were cared for by maternal relatives. Maya was adopted by their aunt Sulamith Messerer, and Alexander was taken into the family of their uncle Asaf Messerer; both Alexander and Azary eventually became solo dancers of the Bolshoi.