A troupe of Russian ballet dancers will bring to life two much-loved romantic tales.

Moscow City Ballet returns to Richmond with full scale ballets of Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty.

The touring dancers will be accompanied by the Moscow City Ballet Orchestra, who will play Tchaikovsky’s scores for the choreography.

Swan Lake is part fairytale, part tragedy and follows the fate of Prince Siegfried and the beautiful Swan Queen, Odette, with a climax where the power of true love conquers the forces of evil.

The enchanting and romantic story of Sleeping Beauty inspired Tchaikovsky to write some of his most glorious music, and the ballet has captivated audiences for well over 100 years.

Accompanying the 75-strong troupe, which was founded by Victor Smirnov-Golovanov in 1988, is the group’s only fluent English speaker company manager Martin Taylor.

He says: “I am just the person on the road to make sure that all that’s been arranged happens and the shows go smoothly.

“It’s an all Russian crew and the thing is that theatres have all English crews so I am always interpreting. You just have to do everything that comes up, its life on the road.

“I hate doing the hospital run. There’s always someone that can take someone’s place in the show but you just feel sympathy for them. It’s not nice being ill or injured when you are away from home and you don’t speak the language.”

Taylor has worked with Russian theatre groups since 1987, having started his career as an interpreter, and says the logistics of moving the troupe round often snowy countries can be a challenge.

He says: “They are all used to the cold. It’s quite heartening because recently in Moscow they had a snowfall and the whole country ground to a halt which makes me feel better about what they see over here.”

Taylor says the groups ages range from 18 to mid 30s and will their UK tour will take them to York, Guildford, Northampton, Nottingham, Poole, Watford, and Scunthorpe before finishing in Bath in March.

Moscow City Ballet; at Richmond Theatre, The Green, Richmond. Swan Lake from February 6 to 7; Sleeping Beauty from February 8 to 10; Tickets £18 to £34; phone 0844 8717651 or visit atgtickets.com/Richmond.