The next generation, shining bright!
Saison 2024/2025 |
At the heart of every artistic work is the desire to create something that will inspire, move, amaze and change the way we see the world. In addition to the daily classes, rehearsals and learning that provide our students with the foundation to become the dancers who will shape the future of ballet, the artistic work on such a diverse dance repertoire, but also the immersion in creative processes, is an essential part of our training at the Ballet Academy of the Vienna State Opera.
A classic: La Bayadère
Just six months after the 2023/24 matinee, on 15 December 2025, the grand stage at the “Haus am Ring” will once again belong to our students. Following the acclaimed success of the premiere in June 2024, we will present another performance of La Bayadère after Marius Petipa. This will give our students a second opportunity to dance this important work, which has everything that makes a great narrative ballet: differentiated and challenging roles, a moving story, vivid character dances and one of the most beautiful and difficult choreographies in the repertoire with the so-called »Shadow Act«, which demands the utmost precision and ensemble spirit. Ninety per cent of the original cast are returning to the stage today. The continuous work on this piece has allowed the students to further immerse themselves in their roles, to refine the technical challenges of the dance and to discover additional nuances. But we have also integrated everyone who has joined us this term!
Contemporary dance by Martin Schläpfer and a world premiere
In the second part of the programme, we present what we have been working on since September. It is not only a special experience but also a great gift to be able to devote oneself to a work by Martin Schläpfer. I would like to thank him from the bottom of my heart for once again working with the members of the Youth Company for this matinee and entrusting them with his Pas de deux Quartz: a delicate chamber piece that gets under your skin.
For my new ballet Prisma, I was inspired by music and the possibilities of digital visualisation of sound. The first two movements of Philip Glass’ Violin Concerto No. 1 are the basis for a mosaic of movements and formations that refract like rays of light in a prism – a ballet in which I have sought a balance between ensemble work and individuality in the dancers’ expression.
A sign of excellent and professional ballet training
When Martin Schläpfer and I took over the direction of the Ballet Academy five years ago, we did so with the task of fundamentally reforming a training programme that had fallen into crisis and adapting it to today’s standards. In addition, the building at the Hanuschhof has now also been extensively renovated and redesigned. When the curtain rises on our Matinee 2024/25, it will also be a sign of all that we have been able to achieve over the past five years with our team and strong partners, through passionate commitment, professionalism, intense collaboration and a shared vision. During this time, our students have not only grown as dancers, but also as individuals, and in everything they present to us on stage today, they embody what the Vienna State Opera Ballet Academy is all about. It gives me great pleasure to have been able to accompany and support this development together with my entire team.
I wish our audience a beautiful and inspiring performance, which is not only one of the highlights of the school year for our students, but also a springboard for further development with every step and every movement.