Dutch National Opera and Ballet Announces New Online Season

In the new theatre season Dutch National Opera & Ballet will continue presenting full registrations of performances on the online platform. The new online season opens on Saturday 3 October with a selection of choreographies from the most recent ballet programme Dancing Apart Together, followed on Sunday 4 October by the opera FAUST [Working Title]. A week later the ballet Live by Hans van Manen and the opera Ritratto go online. Each production will stay online for a month on the online platform of Dutch National Opera & Ballet.

Moreover, on the first day that the production goes online, the audience has the opportunity to chat with someone from the artistic team. The streams of Dancing Apart Together and FAUST [Working Title] can be viewed for free, the productions Live and Ritratto are offered on demand, for these productions a ticket can be bought online at: operaballet.nl/online.

Since its launch at the end of March this year, the online platform of Dutch National Opera & Ballet has been a great success. Since then, the videos on the platform and social media channels have been viewed more than 10 million times and performances have been streamed more than 800,000 times.

FAUST [Working Title] & Ritratto

Dutch National Opera opened the season on 5 September with the successful music theatre production FAUST [Working Title]. The performance by composer, conductor Manoj Kamps and director Lisenka Heijboer Castañón was warmly received by press and audience. Together with a new generation music theatre makers, orchestra partner the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, the Chorus of Dutch National Opera, children's choir Nieuw Vocaal Amsterdam and soloists they created a large-scale performance inspired by the mythical figure Faust. The performance focuses on the longing for and the limits of knowledge. With a wide range of music; from classics to less well-known and a new perspective on existing repertoire.

The performance Ritratto can also be seen online again. The opera by Willem Jeths (composition) and Marcel Sijm (direction) was to have its live world premiere in March, but due to the lockdown it was cancelled. The performance therefore had its online premiere on 21 March and was watched no less than 75,690 times. On Wednesday the 7th of October Ritratto will finally have its live world premiere. All performances are already out. That's why it has been decided to make the online version of last March available again so that everyone can enjoy the performance on the extravagant socialite Luise Casati (1881-1957). With musical accompaniment of the Residentie Orkest conducted by Geoffrey Patterson and with costumes designed by Jan Taminiau.

Dancing Apart Together & Live

Dutch National Ballet returned on 17 September with the programmes Dancing Apart Together and Live. In Dancing Apart Together, the company presented no less than eight world premieres which, all in their own unique way, are a creative response to the situation in which we now find ourselves. From Saturday 3 October, three of the premieres can be seen online. They are two works by Ted Brandsen; Frolicsome Finale for ten dancers and Slot, in which almost the entire company are on stage. The entire Junior Company of Dutch National Ballet can be seen in the new ballet Largo by choreographer Ernst Meisner.

Of the more than 125 ballets that Van Manen has created so far, Live is without doubt the most legendary. Van Manen created it in 1979 and since then the choreography for one dancer and a cameraman has touched many people to tears. This time Live is danced principals Maia Makhateli and Artur Shesterikov, cameraman is Mathieu Gremillet.

Exclusive interview with the original 1979 cast

Besides the 2020 performance of Live, a brand new and exclusive interview is added with original cast members Coleen Davis and Henk van Dijk, 41 years after its creation and 20 years since their last meeting. They are joined by Hans van Manen and Rachel Beaujean and includes original footage from the creation rehearsals.

Dates & tickets:

Dutch National Ballet - Dancing Apart Together
Saturday 3 to Saturday 31 October 2020
Free viewing via operaballet.nl/online
Live chat with Ernst Meisner, choreographer of Largo on Saturday 3 October at 7 pm.

Dutch National Opera - FAUST [Working Title]
Sunday 4 October to Sunday 1 November 2020
Free viewing via operaballet.nl/online
Live chat with director Lisenka Heijboer Castañón on Sunday 4 October at 7 pm

Dutch National Ballet - Live
Saturday 10 October to Saturday 8 November 2020
On demand. Tickets available from 10 October via operaballet.nl/online
Live chat with ballet mistress for Live, Rachel Beaujean, on Saturday 10 October at 7 pm.
Exclusive interview with original cast members Coleen Davis & Henk van Dijk.

The National Opera - Ritratto
Sunday 11 October to Sunday 9 November 2020
On demand. Tickets available from 11 October via operaballet.nl/online
Live chat with composer Willem Jeths on Sunday 11 October at 7 pm.

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