"Ripples of sorrow traveled in delicate undulations along her spine, her feet beat a terrified flutter. But it was the look of destroyed blankness on Wang's face that was so arresting, suggesting that all memory of being human had been erased from her. For the rest of the evening, Wang performed equally beautifully -- her diminutive body possessing an expected grandeur of scale and power," ran the review after the first night's show on July 28.

The Financial Times dwelled on the repertory. "We are to see not only that the Chinese troupe is a fine classical ensemble in the most sacred of balletic fare, but that the company is also able to make works that reconcile the demands of its national identity and theatrical traditions with the exigencies of the western dance-manner it has embraced," says its reviewer who has reported on the Central Ballet Troupe for decades.

According to the report, "the company is a strong, assured ensemble. These dancers have not put on the academic manner as a convenient disguise: the style is theirs by right, and they speak its language with authority."

The Financial Times critic also picked out Wang Qimin as "an artiste of marvelous gifts, exquisite voice, unerring sensibility, most refined physique. The role lives and flowers in her performance."

"Looking at this first appearance in our national ballet house," says the report, "we have to recall that ballet in China is the fruit of 60 years of aspiration and endeavor. As with so much from China's four millennia of artistic creativity, we marvel and rejoice."

Zhao Ruheng, artistic director of the troupe, could not be more emphatic about the importance of their ROH debut.

"For ballet dancers of my generation, performing at the Royal Opera House is a dream come true."

She said there is great pressure from Chinese audiences now requesting more and more new Chinese productions.

Wu Xun, cultural counselor at the Chinese Embassy in London, said that by presenting a precise and complete interpretation of Swan Lake, which is widely known to western audiences, the Central Ballet Troupe is edging ever closer to becoming one of the world's top-class companies.

Their performances, staged on the eve of the Beijing Olympics as part of the "China Now" celebrations across Britain, presents audiences with an integration of Chinese culture, both traditional and modern, with the western classics, Wu added.

(Xinhua News Agency August 5, 2008)