The Ballet Icons Gala celebrates 20 years

Returning to the London Coliseum on February 15, the always much-anticipated annual Ballet Icons Gala reaches a milestone, the 2026 event marking its 20th anniversary. David Mead talks to founder-director, Olga Balakleets.

Initiated in 2006 by musician and producer Olga Balakleets, the Ballet Icons Gala always brings together an array of world class dancers to the London stage. For one night only, it’s inevitably an evening in which the audience can immerse themselves in the rich heritage of ballet, and look to the future.

The Gala has evolved considerably over the years, Balakleets agrees. For many years, most of the galas had a theme. In 2017, it commemorated Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes. The following year, it was the bicentenary of the birth of Marius Petipa, the great Russian ballet master, with most ballets performed either ‘after Petipa’ or contemporary interpretations of his legacy. Others have considered the heritage of Anna Pavlova, Vaslav Nijinsky and Galina Ulanova. But, as Balakleets explains, it’s not always easy to focus on a particular theme or legend. So, over the years, “It just became an overall celebration of ballet, of dance, of dancers’ excellence.”

Contemporary choreography has also featured increasingly alongside the familiar favourites, with most years now seeing some world and UK premieres. That continues in 2026, when the programme will include two world premieres produced especially for the occasion by Mthuthuzeli November, and by James Pett and Travis Clausen-Knight. “I’m delighted and very proud of that. Both will be special,” she assures.

The premieres, the mix of old and new, and the inclusion of contemporary dance have become totally essential, says Balakleets. “Contemporary choreography is extremely important for every ballet company. And many dancers these days, when it comes to galas, enjoy performing contemporary pieces where they can often express themselves so much more compared to classical dance, which is so often mainly about discipline and technique. It’s also important to have things that have not been seen before in this country.”

Balakleets adds that there are planned to be other contemporary works by the likes of Edwaard Liang, Wayne McGregor, Angelin Preljocaj, Marco Goecke, Jason Kittelberger, and Jean-Christophe Maillot. In collaboration with vildwerk. foundation, which aims to inspire and educate through the performing arts about rewiding and restoring biodiversity, there will also be the UK premiere of Asylum, a piece by Antonia Franceschi emphasising world’s environmental crisis. But with the classical, I really want to be a little more mysterious. “There will be some pleasant surprises when it to classical repertoire as well, though,” she promises. Live music will be provided by the English National Ballet Philharmonic.

Away from the stage, the London Coliseum will also host a photo exhibition featuring Gala highlights over the years.

The Ballet Icons Gala is now firmly established in London’s ballet calendar. But how did it all begin?

Balakleets tells me that, apart from taking ballet classes while very young, for a long time she had no connection to ballet. “Music is what took my time, my interest. I started playing and performing piano at a very young age. But I’ve been always enjoyed organising things, cultural projects and concerts, even when I was a student. When I finished my studies at the Royal College of Music, it was very clear that I would divide my time between playing, performing, and organising, because that was my interest, my passion.”

To begin with, it was just classical music concerts but after two or three years, dance was added to the portfolio. Her first dance project was at the Royal Albert Hall. Not the initial Ballet Icons event but a programme with ballet stars from St. Petersburg. “The dancers found me, approached me and said, ‘Well, you’ve been organising concerts. What about doing a ballet gala?’ I didn’t hesitate too much.

Many other dance projects followed including, in 2004, the first UK showing of Alexei Ratmansky’s choreography with the Nina Ananiashvili at Sadler’s Wells. “At that time, no-one knew Ratmansky. And, here we are, so many years later, with him now one of the most respected choreographers in the world.”

The first of what later became the Ballet Icons Gala came in 2006 at the Royal Opera House and marked the 80th birthday of Maya Plisetskaya. Created with the personal involvement of Plisetskaya herself, Balakleets says, “That was an experience I will never, never forget. We did start discussions about the programme for a 90th birthday celebration but she passed away a few months before.”

Balakleets says she’s always kind of thrown herself at bigger things. “I always want to give the audience lots of pleasure; to have many concerts, many artists. And the Gala is like that. A celebration. We are one of the few galas in the whole world that has so many ballet stars performing on the same night. It’s usually around thirty. It’s crazy. It kills me because obviously it’s incredibly difficult, and it does sometimes feel impossible to finance it. But that’s now what everyone expects, what they are waiting for and I cannot change it.”

Putting each year’s programme together is a complex process. Balakleets explains, “Of course, we listen to suggestions from dancers, but it’s never that simple. We have to look at the gala as a whole, at all the options. Balance is very important, as is bringing in classical and contemporary repertoire that is hardly seen, and new creations.”

But she is equally fully aware she has an audience to please. “We cannot avoid doing certain pieces year after year. The sort of pieces that people have seen thousands of times. But we do make sure that every year it’s danced by a different couple so we give something new.”

Over the years, Balakleets has built a close relationship with many dancers in what she calls the ‘Ballet Icons Gala family.’ That does bring a dilemma, however. “I want to be loyal to them. But of course, it’s equally very important to bring names that ballet lovers in London have not seen or maybe do not know at all. The right balance is sometimes very difficult to achieve. I am really proud that people have discovered so many names as a result of their being part of the Gala, people like the wonderful Margarita Fernandes and Antonio Casalinho. I’m so, so delighted they’re coming back this year.”

Logistically, putting it all together, getting everybody in London for one night, is a very, very difficult task, she says. “The contract we have with everyone is basically only 24 hours. On the day, we have morning class for the dancers, then they start rehearsing on stage. We start with the pieces with recorded music, then move on to those danced with the orchestra. It’s all done in the theatre in 24 hours. Getting in, lights, projections, rehearsing, getting the orchestra, having performance, then getting out.”

While she makes lots of decisions herself, Balakleets is quick to pay tribute to her “wonderful team.” For the last few years, she has enjoyed working with the Brazilian dancer Mariana Gomes, who performed with the Bolshoi Ballet for over 16 years. “She’s been based in this country since 2022, and has been a great help and guide with her incredible knowledge of ballet and the repertoire.”

She also pays credit to production director, Paul Godfrey, with whom she worked all the years since she started, and who she describes as, “Superhero and power and producer in his own right. His knowledge of ballet productions and galas around the world is incredible.”

With Covid and then the political challenges of the last few years, Balakleets admits there have been times when she began to think it might not be possible to continue. “Those doubts caused me great sadness. And they were huge.” Thanks to a fortuitous alignment of dates, and the moving of one gala to the autumn, not a single year was missed during the pandemic, however.

Covid was followed swiftly by the political crisis in 2022, which also played a role in shaping the future of the Gala. “The cultural scene always changes, but artists and producers, certainly at the beginning, could not believe that the political situation would change things as much as it did,” says Balakleets.

But she adds quickly, “You adapt, adjust, make changes, and resolve to keep going. I’ve never really done this for commercial reasons. I’m driven only by my now total dedication for and fascination for dance, ballet, and the wonderful talent that Ballet Icons brings together year after year. And, of course, the audience, who keep coming back. I really cannot imagine me giving up and stopping. And after twenty years, how can you possibly give up just because times become difficult? As the famous phrase says, the show must go on.”

The 20th Anniversary Ballet Icons Gala is at the London Coliseum on February 15, 2026.