Tandem

Moscow's Bolshoi Theatre is embroiled in a high-profile row with an ice-cream-loving ballerina it says is too heavy for ballet partners to lift.

Anastasia Volochkova, one of Russia's best-known ballerinas, says the theatre telephoned her 12 hours before she was due to perform in Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake last week telling her not to turn up.

She says she has been sacked.

But the prestigious theatre denies dismissing her.

It says it has offered her a new contract but cannot find her a partner for ballets that require lifting.

"None of the male soloists at the Bolshoi Theatre agrees to dance with her, particularly in her current physical state," Bolshoi Theatre director Anatoly Iskanov said.

Volochkova, who is taller than most ballerinas, admits being partial to ice-cream although she opts for the lower-fat option of frozen yoghurt.

"I love ice cream so much that I can't imagine life without it," she said.

-- Reuters