Dancing like there’s no Tamara

Ballet star Tamara Rojo has begun an emotional farewell to the Covent Garden stage where she has dazzled for more than a decade — but said she had no regrets at quitting for the exciting new challenge of running English National Ballet.

Speaking after the first of three final performances with the Royal Ballet, the 38-year-old Spaniard said it was “an amazing present” to be invited to dance there again with the Ukrainian maverick Sergei Polunin, 23.

They are appearing in Marguerite and Armand which has been performed by few other dancers in London.

“I’m very aware it’s an amazing present,” said Rojo. “I’m enjoying every minute, every rehearsal, every giggle. It’s just a beautiful end.

“It would be very sad if I was being pushed out but, since it’s my choice and I’m going to something in my opinion even more wonderful, I’m ecstatic.” This work was also very special, she said — not least in having been created for a couple similar to themselves, Fonteyn and Nureyev. “Sergei is the young one full of all this hunger and power,” said Rojo. “It’s probably good that I’m calmer. I don’t feel I have to prove anything. I can let it crash all over me.” She paid tribute to her much-tattooed partner whose partying once looked at risk of destroying his career. “Sergei is an amazing dancer,” she said.

It was “a very big deal” for him to be back and with his mother watching him there for the first time.

“I hope we can dance again together because we dance well,” said Rojo. “But his career is just starting and he’s going to be a big star.

“Mine is ending. But it’s a celebration. I’m very happy to be artistic director of English National Ballet. I’m very proud. I can start putting other people on stage.”

Royal Ballet director Kevin O’Hare said the company had wanted to thank Rojo, who will still continue to dance with ENB, for being “an amazing principal dancer” who had done so much for it.

He also said it felt right to invite Polunin back as a guest, adding: “I respect him as an artist.” The audience hailed Rojo’s performance. Singer Melanie Sanders, 30, from Brockley, said: “She was absolutely gorgeous, so balanced.”