Moscow , Russia ( CNN ) -- Making it to the top as a prima ballerina takes a lot of work , strength and time -- and , says , Svetlana Zakharova , `` a lot of emotions . '' The 33-year-old Russian has been prima ballerina , or principal dancer , with Moscow 's prestigious Bolshoi theatre company for nearly a decade and her presence on a cast list is guaranteed to fill any theatre in London , New York or Paris . Zakharova 's grace and stage presence belie her difficult , and sometimes lonely , journey to the top . Born in the historic , north-western city of Lutsk in Soviet-era Ukraine , Zakharova 's mother sent her away to train at the age of 10 -- first to Kiev , then at St. Petersburg 's esteemed Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet . `` It took me a few years to get used to the ballet , '' she said . `` My child 's body was not ready to handle such loads , and the legs that were used to walk upright had to be twisted and the back always had to be held straight . It was a huge strain and I did not have the strength . '' It was an unhappy period in the young Zakharova 's life . She says that she would find herself crying `` all the time '' between the conveyor belt of exams and rehearsals . More from Human to Hero : Molecular gastronomy chef Heston Blumenthal . Only when , as a teenager , her body grew tall , strong and athletic did she begin to see how her future might pan out . `` When I was about 13 or 14 ... I really realized that I wanted to become a ballerina , '' she said . From then on she practiced everyday , often for up to eight hours solid . She says she did n't miss out on the usual freedoms of childhood : `` I can not say that it was a sacrifice , '' she said . `` I do not even think about it . '' Revealingly , she would n't wish the same experience for her own daughter , who was born in February 2011 . `` I can not imagine myself giving her away to study in a different town , '' she said . `` I asked my mum , 'Why ? How did it happen ? ' And she said , 'You know , even until now I can not understand what I was led by -- it must have been something from above . ' '' Zakharova graduated from Varganova Academy in 1996 , aged 17 , and immediately joined the Mariinsky Ballet -- one of Russia 's preeminent ballet companies -- and a year later was promoted to principal dancer . In the seven seasons that followed , she learned the bulk of the company 's repertory , including the great classical roles of Giselle , Odette-Odile in `` Swan Lake '' and Aurora in `` The Sleeping Beauty . '' More from Human to Hero : Former piano prodigy Benjamin Grosvenor . Despite growing national acclaim -- she was awarded one of Russia 's highest artistic accolades , the Golden Mask , for two consecutive years at the turn of the millennium -- she was getting itchy feet . `` I worked in the Mariinsky theatre for seven years , and I danced the whole classic repertoire there , and the contemporary repertoire , '' she says . `` But all of a sudden I started to realize that I was not developing any more . Day in , day out it was the same and the same -- and suddenly I wanted to change something . '' That change came in a dramatic move to Mariinky 's main rival , the Bolshoi ballet company in Moscow , known for it 's `` grander , more expansive style , '' according to Britain 's Daily Telegraph newspaper . Zakharova has n't looked back since . With the Bolshoi she has traveled the globe and in 2007 she was awarded the Russian State Prize for outstanding achievement in ballet . Next year she is scheduled to perform at Milan 's renowned La Scala opera house , where she will dance Giselle . Success , though , has not eradicated a persistent grain of self-doubt . Even now , as she enters her 15th year as a professional dancer , Zakharova still regards herself , for the most part , as a student . `` When I 'm in rehearsal I always feel like I 'm a pupil -- and not at all a ballerina '' she reveals . Indeed , it 's only in those comparatively brief moments on stage that Zakharova says she truly believes in herself as a performer . `` This transformation is unique , '' she explains . `` Something from within takes place and you understand sometimes that human abilities are limitless . During the performance you do such things which you completely did not expect from yourself . '' Whatever it is that envelops her on stage , the feeling is addictive . Zarkharova has been dancing almost everyday since the age six and now finds it hard to imagine what the future will hold when , one day , she will have to hang up her ballet shoes for good . `` Ballet is not just my profession , it is my life ... It is horrible for me to think that one day it will all finish . '' Ivana Kottasova contributed to this story .
Ballet star Anna Zakharova has been performing almost everyday since the age of five . Russian prima ##te spent much of her childhood training away from home . Anna : Ballet is not just my profession , it is my life .