The pantomime season may be over but the spirit of telling fairytales continues with the arrival in Brighton of The Russian State Ballet of Siberia with their version of the Cinderella story.

Prokofiev’s score is a luxuriant, vibrant one that moves from brooding overtones through lush lyricism to pulsating rhythms. It is fully realised by the orchestra under the direction of Alexander Yudasin.

Sergei, a former principal dancer with the Bolshoi Ballet, is the Artistic Director of this company and is responsible for the choreography that is a hybrid of classical ballet fused with contemporary dance. His interpretation is not just a fairytale but “a philosophical parable of the force of true love that Time cannot destroy”.

Time appears throughout the production in the form of red and black costumed dancers who move like cogs in a clock. They tick tock themselves through quirky, jerky movements that contort their bodies into un-natural shapes.

This style is used to great comic effect for the two Stepsisters and their mother who is played as a pantomime dame by Daniil Kostylev. He is a truly droll comedian who milks the curtain call for all its worth. Their grotesque dance movements reflect the ugliness of their characters.

Cinderella’s arrival brings with it the grace of classical dance. Elena Svinko is delightful in both her solo work and partnership with the Prince, Ivan Karnaukhov. Together they produce sequences of great charm along with exciting lifts. It is a pity that one of their sequences was marred by the intrusion from the jarring movements of the courtiers around them.

It would be an injustice not to mention the graceful dancing of Anna Fedosova as the Fairy and the support she receives from the Corps de Ballet. Together they counterbalance the un-natural dancing with superb classical movement.