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About
The Ballett Zürich is the largest professional ballet company in Switzerland. Based at the Opernhaus Zürich, the ensemble of 36 dancers not only performs a considerable part of the Opernhaus repertoire, but is also celebrated at international guest performances (including appearances in Russia, Israel, Mexico, Colombia, Spain, Australia, Germany and Great Britain).
British-Swiss choreographer Cathy Marston has been the new director of Ballett Zürich since the start of the 2023/24 season. The highlight of her first season as ballet director was the world premiere of her ballet Atonement, based on the novel of the same name by Ian McEwan. Ballett Zürich also danced new pieces by Meryl Tankard and Mthuthuzeli November as well as the legendary choreography Les Noces by Bronislawa Nijinska.
In the 2024/25 season, Cathy Marston will present her new ballet Clara, which centres on the great pianist and composer Clara Schumann. Kim Brandstrup and Bryan Arias will also create new pieces for the company.
The current ensemble arose from the erstwhile Ballet des Stadttheater Zürich. As early as the 1920s, performances with dancers took place here. One of the first milestones was the 1935 premiere of the ballet Der Teufel im Dorf by Pia and Pino Mlaka. However, a company that both dances the classics and embraces tradition did not emerge until after World War II. In 1956, Jaroslav Berger led the Zurich premiere of Schwanensee. The company was subsequently shaped by its directors Nicholas Beriozoff (1964-1971), Patricia Neary (1978-1985), Uwe Scholz (1985-1991), Bernd Bienert (1991-1996), and Heinz Spoerli (1996-2012).
From 2012 to 2023, the Ballett Zürich was directed by German choreographer Christian Spuck. He explored new avenues for the full-length narrative ballet while also devoting himself to genre-spanning forms of expression, among them a staging of the Verdi-Requiem realized as a co-production by the Oper Zürich and the Ballett Zürich. Spuck’s ballet production of Winterreise was awarded with the renowned «Prix Benois de la Danse». His production of Helmut Lachenmann’s Das Mädchen mit den Schwefelhölzern was named the 2020 «Produktion des Jahres» by the «tanz» journal. That same year, the Ballett Zürich was named «Kompanie des Jahres». Choreographers such as Wayne McGregor, Edward Clug, Marco Goecke, Douglas Lee, Marcos Morau, and Crystal Pite created new works for the company. William Forsythe, Jirí Kylián, and Hans van Manen and their works were regular features each season. In 2016, Alexei Ratmansky’s reconstruction of the original 1895 Schwanensee choreography by Petipa/Ivanov received broad international acclaim.
The Junior Ballet was founded in 2001. Fourteen young dancers from all over the world train here together with the members of the Ballett Zürich, dance with them in selected repertoire performances, and regularly present programs put together especially for them. This season, the three-part evening The Butterfly Effect is being produced in collaboration with climate scientists from ETH Zurich.
Since 2012, the Junge Choreografen series has been held every other year, focusing on the promotion of up-and-coming choreographers. The series will now continue under the new name Next Generation.
Performances by Ballett Zürich are accompanied by a comprehensive supporting program including the new ballet discussion series Zurich Talks Dance, introductory matinees before premieres, introductions to works before performances, and a variety of special children’s, youth, and school projects.
