The Royal Ballet, Swan Lake 2022, ROH

Swan Lake has everything you could possibly want from a classical ballet: love, betrayal, redemption of sorts, moonlight, sumptuous palaces, and above all lots and lots of dazzling dancing to a gorgeous, transporting score by Tchaikovsky.

The current Royal Ballet production, a reimagining of Petipa/Ivanov original by the late Liam Scarlett, has all that in spades, alongside opulent designs by the ever dependable John Macfarlane. Scarlett didn't interfere too much with the original; instead he tweaked some sequences to make them more vivid, introduced a few new characters – Prince Siegfried now has two sisters – and enhanced the role of some figures. such as Siegfried's friend Benno.

As well, Scarlett introduced a prologue that shows the bewitching of Princess Odette turned into a swan by the evil von Rothbart, to whom the choreographer gave a dual role as sorcerer and malevolent chief advisor to the Queen.

Otherwise the story proceeds as we know and love it: Act I, set in the gardens of the royal palace, is packed full of celebrations of Siegfried's birthday; in Act II, set by a moonlit lake. Siegfried meets Odette and her swans, falls in love and swears eternal fidelity, as the only way to break von Rothbart's spell; in Act III, set in the ballroom where Siegfried is expected to pick a bride, he is fooled into breaking his oath by Odette's evil double, the Black Swan Odile – watch out for those famous 32 fouettés in this Act's climactic pas de deux! And finally, in Act IV a despairing Siegfried returns to the lake; alas, too late to save Odette.

In such an extended run, there are plenty of opportunities for different casts, both as the leading pair and in soloist roles. The opening nght will belong to the perfect pairing of Marianela Nuñez and Vadim Muntagirov – see Culture Whisper's five star review of their most recent performance in the roles here.

There will also be an opportunity to see the pairing of Natalia Osipova and Reece Clarke, following their mind-blowing performance in Giselle in the autumn period. Fumi Kaneko, who earlier this autumn dazzled in her debut performances as Juliet in MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet, gets a run at Odette/Odille ably partnered by Royal Ballet stalwart Federico Bonelli. Francesca Hayward (pictured top) will reprise her affecting Odette/Odille with William Bracewell as her Siegfried.

There will be other casts; and throughout The Royal Ballet corps, which are in fine fettle, will most certainly enchant with their coordinated dancing as the massed ranks of swans in the white Acts.

All in all, this is definitely one not to miss.