Paris Opera Ballet principal dancer Park Sae-eun (left) and Mariinsky Ballet principal dancer Kim Ki-min speak to reporters in Seoul on Sunday. (Korean National Ballet)

At the Seoul Arts Center’s Opera Theater on Sunday evening, the Paris Opera Ballet etoile (principal dancer) Park Sae-eun warmly embraced the Mariinsky Ballet principal dancer Kim Ki-min, who had flown in directly from a performance in China. The two shared a wide smile as they hugged patting each other’s shoulders.

Selected for the lead roles of Nikiya and Solor in the Korean National Ballet production of "La Bayadere," Kim and Park are set to go on stage Friday and Sunday.

Kim and Park, principal dancers at two of the most celebrated ballet companies in the world, first performed together as leads in the KNB production of "Swan Lake" in 2009, when they were promising young talents. They last performed together in Universal Ballet’s “La Bayadere” in 2010.

Now, 14 years later, news of the star dancers’ reunion on stage led to tickets selling out in just three minutes.

Kim Ki-min (left) and Park Sae-eun speak to reporters in Seoul on Sunday. (Korean National Ballet)

“It’s such an honor to perform with a global ballet superstar. I was bragging in Paris that I’d be performing with Ki-min Kim,” Park said with a smile.

“I’m thrilled to be performing with you, and I’ll have your back without getting in the way -- promise!” Kim replied, laughing.

Kim and Park have known each other since childhood, having attended Yewon School, which specializes in the arts, and the Korea National University of Arts. Park was also a classmate of Kim's older brother, Kim Ki-wan, a principal dancer at KNB.

“When my brother was at Yewon, I was in elementary school and would follow Sae-eun around, asking her to dance with me,” Kim recalled. “Back then, everyone dreamed of dancing with her, and I finally had the chance in KNB’s ‘Swan Lake’ in 2009. There were a lot of male dancers who were envious.”

Park also reminisced about their childhood, saying, “I was 14, and Ki-min was 11. He was really just a little kid. Now he’s all grown up, and we’re dancing together again. It’s exciting to be reunited on stage.”

Kim and Park embarked on their international careers in 2011, joining the Mariinsky Ballet and the Paris Opera Ballet. Kim became Mariinsky Ballet's first Asian principal in 2015 and Park became Paris Opera Ballet's first Asian principal in 2021. They have both won best dancer awards at the prestigious Benois de la Danse -- Kim in 2016 and Park in 2019.

Park Sae-eun performs as Nikiya in "La Bayadere" in 2022. (Julien Benhamou/Paris Opera Ballet)

Set in a temple in India, “La Bayadere,” which translates to “temple dancer” in French, centers around a tragic love triangle involving the temple dancer Nikiya, the valiant warrior Solor, Princess Gamzatti and the high priest Brahmin.

The KNB production, choreographed by Yury Grigorovich, modified the Bolshoi version by incorporating dance sequences into scenes that are traditionally composed only of mime.

Having performed in “La Bayadere” nearly a hundred times and winning the 2016 Benois de la Danse’s best male dancer award for it, Kim described it as “a fun and accessible performance that can make first-time audiences fall in love with ballet.”

“The more you perform the same dance, the easier it is to fall into a rut, thinking, ‘Oh, I’ll dance it well anyway,’ which can be risky. So, I strive to dig deeper into the work,” added Kim.

Kim Ki-min performs as Solor in "La Bayadere." (The Mariinsky Theatre)

This is Park’s fourth performance of “La Bayadere,” following her shows in Seoul in 2010, St. Petersburg in 2015 and Paris in 2022.

“Ki-min seems to have mastered every version of ‘La Bayadere.’ It’s like dancing with someone who already has the answer sheet. I’m learning a lot from him because (when it comes down to it) dance is all about the performance on stage,” said Park.

The two said that they have been discussing how to portray their characters, exchanging ideas over the phone in advance.

“When I asked Ki-min about Act 2 during a call, he said, ‘I think we have to feel it to know,’ and I was amazed by his understanding and intuition of the dance,” said Park.

Kim added, “What’s important is understanding and sensing what my partner wants.”

An Su-yeon from KNB will play Gamzatti on Friday, with Cho Yeon-jae taking on the role on Sunday. On Saturday, Cho, Heo Seo-myeong and Shim Hyun-hee will perform as Nikiya, Solor and Gamzatti, respectively.