“Once in a lifetime to the Bolshoi” is the dream of millions of Russians. The Bolshoi Theatre, founded in 1776, is a symbol of tradition and the epitome of a specifically Russian high culture. As an imperial flagship, as Russia’s dream factory, the stage was both an instrument of politics and a temple of the highest artistic achievements. With romantic ballet fairy tales such as “Swan Lake” and “The Nutcracker”, the theater rose to become the largest stage in the world in the 19th century. This tradition continued into the Soviet era. What’s more, Stalin turned the theater into a “cult site” where everything had to be magnificent and beautiful on command. As the darling of the cultural bureaucracy, the “country’s most important stage” never lived according to the laws of the land.

It was an empire in its own right with direct access to the Kremlin. The film documents the dramatic stages and developments of the last 30 years of the Bolshoi Ballet. Stars of world renown such as the new artistic director Vladimir Vasilyev, the ballet diva Maya Plissetskaya, the new ballet director Gordeyev and the new stars such as Nina Ananiashvili, Vladimir Derevyanko and Gediminas Taranda reflect the legend and reality of the Bolshoi Ballet.