A British ballerina has her sights set on the world stage after she graduates from the world-renowned Bolshoi Ballet Academy.
Rachel Armstrong was only the seventh Brit to be accepted to the ballet school in the past 100 years when she left for Moscow three years ago.
The 20-year-old, from Stocksfield, Northumberland, had to pick up Russian as well as completing the academy’s rigorous training.
Now – just a month from graduating – she is preparing to start auditioning around the world to fulfill her dream of becoming a world class ballerina.
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Rachel, who first decided she was going to become a dancer aged just six, recalled her first day at the dance school.
“I was really nervous and upset but also excited,” she said.
“And then I had my first class and it was surreal... It was a dream.”
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Her parents, both headteachers, said at the time they were “incredibly proud” of her for winning a place at the dance school.
Rachel returned home during the pandemic but continued training over Zoom before returning to Moscow in September.
She said she will never forget the feeling of completing her final ballet exams at the academy.
“I will never forget that feeling when I was finished,” she said. “It was relief and sadness and kind of not knowing what’s coming next.”
Now she only has to take a few exams in general subjects to complete her studies.
Afterwards she plans to spend some time visiting family at home before heading abroad for auditions.
“I am going to audition in different countries because I want to travel and experience different styles of ballet,” she added.
“The fact that I am dancing in another country shows that I am not afraid to take a risk. I think sometimes that’s what people are looking for when they want to hire you.”
In an interview with website Russia Beyond earlier this year, Rachel said: “So I could practice at home my dad turned the garage into a rehearsal room with a mirror and a rail.
“I finished school in 2016 and studied ballet for a year.
“My parents supported me: mum has also danced since childhood and adores ballet.
“And dad has great respect for what dancers do.
“So when my teacher said I had a chance to enter the Moscow State Academy of Choreography, my parents didn’t try to talk me out of it.
“Quite the opposite, they sought out graduates from the school who were living in England to ask about their studies and life in Moscow.”
Rachel’s application to join the Bolshoi consisted of submitting a 15-minute audition video - and she was told she had been accepted a few days later.
The dancer said that Fellow ballerinas from Russia who knew English helped her to overcome the language barrier.
And at the end of her first year she had to sit exams in world culture, ballet and theare - all in Russian.
And she said that making close friends with others on her course - including those from Japan and Korea - helped the dancers become a family far from home.
