5. The Mariinsky Theater

   This is the Mariinsky Theater in my home city of St. Petersburg, Russia. This picure barley does it justice, for the stage was a beautifully big behemoth in it's own right, and housed and audience of twice that size.  It was opened in 1860, however, my debut in the theater was in 1892, dancing Kalkabrino, one of Petipa's lesser known works.  I will never forget the joy of being promoted to principle dancer in 1900 and performing solos alone on the huge stage for the audience to see.  The copious amounts of audience adoration was nothing to spit at either. Being critically acclaimed for my unseen before pure technique always felt rewarding.

Picture:
"Calvano,Pietro - Vastesi in the World." Vastesi in the World. Web. 11 Dec. 2015. <http://vastesiworld.org/listing/1878/>