We recently returned to St. Petersburg and made it...

We recently returned to St. Petersburg and made it a priority to revisit the Mariinskiy Theatre for another ballet performance. On this occasion we watched a performance of Don Quixote and loved every minute of it.

Tickets were reserved directly on the Mariinskiy Theatre, which is a nice resource these days. Ticket confirmations were received shortly after being purchased. You simply print out your tickets which are barcoded and bring them with you for entrance into the theatre.

The building was erected in 1860 by Albert Kavos, the Russian Italian architect who also designed the Bolshoy Theatre in Moscow. The Neo-Renaissance facade was added near the end of the 19th century. The exterior and interior is attractive and impressive, yet what you remember most are the actual performances themselves.

Can't imagine what could have been done to improve the Don Quixote performance. The performers were immaculate, so very impressive in their ability to dance with grace, precision and beauty. The performance was excellent from start to finish, providing nearly 3 hours of real and true enjoyment.

In the end, we left very pleased that we were able to return to the Mariinskiy and have little reason to not seek yet another return when we are next in St. Petersburg.