Semperoper Ballet celebrates its 200th birthday

This year, everything at the Semperoper revolves around ballet. Because there is a rare anniversary to celebrate. On April 1, 200 years ago, three ladies were engaged exclusively as dancers at the Royal Court Theater in Dresden. Kapellmeister Carl Maria von Weber had been calling for this for some time. April 1, 1825 thus marked the birth of a ballet that today enjoys an exceptionally good international reputation.

Members of the ballet come from 29 nations

Now, exactly 200 years later to the day, the anniversary celebrations have begun in Dresden. They want to offer some special ballet moments with premieres and the current season's repertoire. Under the new ballet director Kinsun Chan, the entire artistic spectrum from classical to modern is to be brought to the stage. The company's 60 or so dancers come from 29 countries.

Premieres for the anniversary

A performance planned for the evening on Theaterplatz was canceled due to bad weather forecasts. The sun was shining in Dresden until late afternoon. The premiere of the first part of a multi-part program entitled "Tag Team" was scheduled for the evening. The first phase of the dance competition, choreographed by Julian Nicosia, kicked things off.

The term "tag team" refers to a form of sporting competition, usually used in wrestling, in which several participants continue the match in changing constellations. "Tag Team - Phase 2" with choreographer Francesca Frassinelli will follow on April 11 and Phase 3 with Giovanni Insaudo on April 23. After each premiere of a phase, the previous choreography will become the starting point for further artistic development.

Ballet shows life as a balancing act

From April 16, Kinsun Chan and Martin Zimmermann will show life as a permanent balancing act in "Wonderful World". The dancers move on an unstable stage, which can tip over at any time, and should ultimately find a redeeming liberation through the surreal chaos. Just in time for the anniversary, the ballet is once again presenting an extraordinary version of the classic "Swan Lake" by Peter Tchaikovsky.