Hungarian National Ballet Makes American Debut At Koch Theater This November

Between 1884, when it was formed as part of the newly-established Hungarian State Opera House, and November, 2018 when it makes its American debut at the David H. Koch Theater, the Hungarian National Ballet will have performed in almost every cultural capital and on every continent in the world, except North America.

American audiences will now see what the rest of the world already knows on November 7 when the 130-member company has a week of performances running through November 11 at the Koch. The engagement features the American premieres of Rudi van Danzig's production of "Swan Lake" and Michael Messerer's new look at "Don Quixote," as well as a trio of contemporary classics by Hans van Manen. The ballets will be performed to live music played by the Hungarian National Symphony Orchestra conducted by Balázs Kocsár. Tamás Solymosi is the National Ballet of Hungary's artistic director, a position he's held since 2011.

SWAN LAKE
The dancers' dramatic power, stylistic versatility and impeccable technique (the product of their Russian training) will be front and center in all three New York City programs beginning with Rudi van Dantzig's opulent 1988 production of Swan Lake, which opens the season on November 7. While using the traditional story of the Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov 1895 classic, much of Mr. van Dantzig's choreography (Toer van Schayk choreographed the character dances) is completely original. The new choreography, as well as the spectacular sets created for the Hungarian staging and the flawless dancing and acting, were greeted with great acclaim when the ballet was first performed by the Hungarian National Ballet in 2015. In the van Danzig version of the ballet, the roles of the sweetly innocent Odette and the dark-spirited and wily Odile are played by the same dancer.
Cast:
Odette /Odile: Tatiana Melnik
Siegfried: Gergely Leblanc
Rothbart: Mikalai Radziush
Alexander: Dmitry Diachkov
"Swan Lake" will be performed Wednesday, November 7 at 7:00 p.m.

DON QUIXOTE
The balletic history of "Don Quixote" is almost as old as the art form itself; the first version of the ballet premiered in 1740, and was followed by notable reinterpretations by Marius Petipa (1871) and Alexander Gorsky (1902), among others. The Hungarian National Ballet's newest staging was created in 2012 by Michael Messerer, who sought to preserve elements of the Petipa and Gorsky versions while emphasizing the dramatic narrative of the ballet.
Cast:
Don Quixote: Attila Szakács
Sancho Panza: Maksym Kovtun
Kitri: Tatiana Melnik
Basilio: Igor Tsvirko
Espada: Iurii Kekalo
Mercedes: Sofia Ivanova-Skoblikova
"Don Quixote" will be performed Friday, November 9 at 8:00 p.m.

LOL: TRIO OF WORKS BY HANS VAN MANEN
The trio of Hans van Manen works scheduled for the Koch was performed by the Hungarian National Ballet last year for a celebration of the choreographer's 85th birthday. With each demanding different skills from its performers?"Black Cake," bubbling with giddy froth, "Gnossiennes," austere and starkly modern, and "5 Tangos," a dance of multiple changing moods?the dances showcase the breadth of the performers' dramatic and technical gifts.
Cast:
"Trois Gnossiennes"
Tatiana Melnik
Igor Tsvirko
"5 Tangos"
Minjung Kim
Gerg? Ármin Balázsi
"Black Cake"
Lili Felméry
Gerg? Ármin Balázsi
Karina Sarkissova
Ievgen Lagunov
Lea Földi
Iurii Kekalo
The all-van Manen program will be performed Sunday, November 11 at 2:00 p.m.

The ballet season follows on the heels of the American debut of the Hungarian State Opera at the Koch, October 30-November 2, where the HSO will present a series of Hungarian classics, such as Ferenc Erkel's "Bánk Bán" Karl (Károly) Goldmark's "The Queen of Sheba" and Béla Bartók's "Bluebeard's Castle."

A Gala Evening on November 4 features selections from the Hungarian National Ballet's repertoire such the pas de deux from Petipa's "Le Corsair" (staged by Anna-Marie Holmes); András Lukács' "Whirling " to music by Philip Glass; and Hans van Manen's "Trois Gnossiennes." The music, performed by members of the HSO Symphony Orchestra and members of the HSO includes selections of music by Franz Liszt, Ferenc Erkel, Béla Bartók, Zoltán Kodály and Ern? (Ernst von) Dohnányi, among others. The gala begins at 7pm.

The Hungarian State Opera Orchestra makes its Carnegie Hall debut on Monday, November 5 at 8:00 p.m. With 100 musicians on stage, the Orchestra performs Bartók's The Miraculous Mandarin Suite and Dohnányi's Symphonic Minutes, among other works.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

HUNGARIAN STATE OPERA
The Hungarian State Opera was founded in 1884 by the Government of the Kingdom of Hungary, and its first directors were Ferenc Erkel, a Hungarian conductor and composer, and Frigyes Campilli, a dancer, choreographer and ballet master of Italian-German origin, both central figures in Hungarian culture. Its two theaters?the opulent neo-Renaissance-style Opera House and the more modern Erkel Theatre? can accommodate an audience of more than 3,200 people on a single night. The repertoire of the HSO and HNB includes well- and lesser-known Hungarian and international operas and ballets, as well as contemporary and commissioned works. Each year, the HSO presents more than 200 performances of 60-70 operas and more than 100 ballet performances, as well as musicals, and orchestra concerts, making it one of the busiest opera houses in the world. The Hungarian State Opera contracts a roster of 150 singers, and has three ensembles: a 200-member symphony orchestra; the first and largest professional chorus in Hungary, which also has 200 members, including the children's chorus; and the only classical ballet company in Hungary, with 130 members. For more information, visit opera.hu.

HUNGARIAN NATIONAL BALLET
The Hungarian National Ballet, which has been part of the Hungarian State Opera since its creation in 1884, presently gives over 100 performances a year. It repertory, expanded under the direction of Tamás Solymosi, includes classics such as "Romeo and Juliet" and "Swan Lake," along with John Cranko's "Onegin," Ronald Hynd's "The Merry Widow" and Sir Kenneth MacMillan's "Manon" as well as a newly choreographed "Nutcracker" by Wayne Eagling and Tamás Solymosi. Additional examples of its extensive repertoire include Harald Lander's "Etudes," Robert North's parody "Troy," contemporary classics by Jiri Kylián and three-one act works by Hans van Manen.

TAMÁS SOLYMOSI, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, HUNGARIAN NATIONAL BALLET
Tamás Solymosi was appointed artistic director of the Hungarian National Ballet in 2011 after performing as a guest artist and teacher for ballet companies around the world, including American Ballet Theatre in New York City. Solymosi completed his studies at the Hungarian Dance Academy and the Vaganova Ballet Academy in St. Petersburg, as well as in Monte Carlo. In addition to guesting with the Hungarian National Ballet, he performed with companies in Miami and Chicago, as well as the Osaka Ballet, Wiener Staatsoper, Dutch National Opera, and Semeroper Dresden. He also performed with the Bolshoi, the Munich and Berlin Opera Ballet.

He began to refocus his direction in 2006, when he assumed the position of deputy director of the Hungarian Dance Academy in Budapest. In 2011, he was named acting director of the Hungarian National Ballet, and became its director in 2013. Under Solymosi's direction, the Hungarian National Ballet has expanded its repertoire to include almost every great classical ballet, numerous major neoclassical ballets, and many noteworthy contemporary works by some of the most important choreographers working today.

In 2016, he created the Hungarian National Ballet Institute within the Opera House, which "in just two short years has helped develop more than 100 students who have appeared in many of the NHB productions including "The Nutcracker," "Le Corsaire" and "Swan Lake."

In recognition of his contribution to ballet as a dancer and artistic director, Solymosi is the recipient of numerous awards including the Outstanding Artist (Hungarian State award, 2018); Artist of Merit of the Republic of Hungary (2006); Philip Morris Award (2004); Gundel Award (2003); Gyula Haragozó Award (2001); EuroPAS Hungarian Dance Award (1998); Elvira Vécsey Award (1990); and the Award of Excellence (1990).

Tickets for the Hungarian National Ballet at the Koch range between $20.00 and $119.00, and can be purchased online at https://davidhkochtheater.com/Season-Tickets/18-19-Season/Hungarian-State-Opera-New-York-tour-2018, by calling 212-496-0600 , or at the David Koch theater box office.