Ballet by John Neumeier after Homer | The Odyssey
Sat, Apr. 26, 2025, 7.30 pm - 9.45 pm
Cast

Odysseus
Alexandr Trusch

Principal
Alexandr Trusch
BORN
26.6.89 in Dnipropetrovsk. Ukrainian
EDUCATION
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Kevin Haigen, Marianne Kruuse, Christian Schön, Irina Jacobson
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2007, Soloist in 2010, Principal since 2014
CREATIONS
Vaslav Nijinsky as a student in "Le Pavillon d'Armide"
Hermes' Attendant in "Orpheus"
A Shy Young Man in "Liliom"
Angel in "Christmas Oratorio I-VI"
Vladimir Lensky in "Tatiana"
The Soldier (Luciano Nicastro) in "Duse"
Prince Désiré in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
A Mystic in "Dona Nobis Pacem"
and solos in
Purgatorio
Beethoven Project II
Epilogue
The Rain (Miljana Vracaric)
Let's Keep it Black (Orkan Dann)
Zozula (Edvin Revazov)
Renku (Yuka Oishi/Orkan Dann)
Into this Wild Abyss (Braulio Alvarez)
Solo for Two (Konstantin Tselikov)
Vesna (Edvin Revazov)
REPERTORY
Joseph in "The Legend of Joseph"
A Young Man (Daphnis) in "Daphnis and Chloe"
Vaslav Nijinsky and Leonid Massine in "Nijinsky"
Günter and Fritz in "The Nutcracker"
The King, Count Alexander and Quadrille in "Illusions - like Swan Lake"
Vaslav Nijinsky in "Le Pavillon d'Armide"
Des Grieux and Count N. in "Lady of the Camellias"
Philostrat/Puck and Lysander in "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Allan Gray in "A Streetcar Named Desire"
Bohort in "Parzival – Episodes and Echo"
Louis in "Liliom"
Arlequin in "Carnaval" and The Spirit of the rose in "Le Spectre de la rose" in "Nijinsky"
Romeo in "Romeo and Juliet"
Ler Beau in "As You Like It"
Cassio in "Othello"
Albrecht in "Giselle"
The Prince in "A Cinderella Story"
Peer's Aspect – Vision in "Peer Gynt"
Man I and Love in "Bernstein Dances"
Hamlet in "Hamlet 21"
Aminta in "Sylvia"
Prince Désiré and Catalabutte in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
Odysseus in *Odyssey"
Alexei Vronsky in "Anna Karenina"
Pas de deux of the Scotts in "La Sylphide" (Pierre Lacotte after Filippo Taglioni)
The Prodigal Son in "The Prodigal Son" (George Balanchine)
Man in Brick and Brown in "Dances at a Gathering" (Jerome Robbins)
The Shy Boy in "The Concert" (Jerome Robbins)
Gennaro in "Napoli" (August Bournonville / Lloyd Riggins)
Basil in "Don Quixote" (Rudolf Nurejev after Marius Petipa)
Prince Florizel in "The Winter's Tale" (Christopher Wheeldon)
Edward Rochester in "Jane Eyre" (Cathy Marston)
and solos in
Fourth Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Seasons – The Colors of Time
Nocturnes from "Songs of the Night"
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Saint Matthew Passion
Vaslav
The Song of the Earth
Soldier Songs (Des Knaben Wunderhorn)
The Fifth Symphony of Gustav Mahler
La Vivandière (Pierre Lacotte after Arthur Saint-Léon)
Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet (George Balanchine)
Variations for Two Couples (Hans van Manen)
The thing with feathers (Demis Volpi)
The Times Are Racing (Justin Peck)
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
AWARD
Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer-Prize 2010
Find further information about Alexandr Trusch here.
Performances

Penelope
Charlotte Larzelere

Soloist
Charlotte Larzelere
BORN
March 20, 1998 in San Antonio, Texas. American
EDUCATION
Houston Ballet Academy
Houston Ballet II
MAIN TEACHERS
Cheryne Busch, Priscilla Nathan-Murphy, Susan Bryant, Sally Rojas, Andrew Murphy, Claudio Muñoz, Sabrina Lenzi
ENGAGEMENT
National Youth Ballet 2016-2018
Hamburg Ballet since 2018, Soloist since 2023
CREATION
solo in
Beethoven Project II
REPERTORY
Hermia in "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Prudence Duvernoy in "Lady of the Camellias"
Princess Natalia und one of the Big Swan in "Illusions - like Swan Lake"
Mercury in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
Stella in "A Streetcar Named Desire"
Penelope and Eurycleia in "Odyssey"
Esmeralda in "The Nutcracker"
La Barbarina in "Death in Venice"
Mary Rivers in "Jane Eyre" (Cathy Marston)
A Wise Woman in "Slow Burn" (Aszure Barton)
and solos in
Broadway's Pavlova
Beethoven Project II
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Adagio (Pina Bausch)
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
Find further information about Charlotte Larzelere here.
Performances

Telemachos
João Santana

Corps de Ballet
João Santana
BORN
17.06.02 in Barra Bonita (São Paulo), Brazil. Brazilian
EDUCATION
Academia Roda Viva
MAIN TEACHERS
Daniela Dias, Jair Moraes, Erinaldo Conrado, Simone Malta, Ana Maria Campos, Olga Dolganova, Gisele Bellot
ENGAGEMENTS
Junior Company of Centro de Educação em Artes Basileu França in 2018
National Youth Ballet in 2020
Hamburg Ballet since 2023
REPERTORY
A Thorn Creature in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
Telemachos in "Odyssey"
Fritz in "The Nutcracker"
Snug, the lion in "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
and solo in
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
Photo © Silvano Ballone
Performances

He
Florian Pohl

Soloist
Florian Pohl
BORN
19.9.89 in Karlsruhe. German
EDUCATION
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHER
Kevin Haigen
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2009. Soloist since 2019
CREATIONS
A figure from the romantic novels Tatiana loves to read in "Tatiana"
and solos in
Einflüsse (Miljana Vracaric)
Rely on Trust (Florian Pohl)
I Giorni (Florian Pohl)
REPERTORY
The Man in the Shadowand Prince Siegfried in "Illusions - like Swan Lake"
La Fille du Pharaon in "The Nutcracker"
Horvendel in "Hamlet"/"Hamlet 21"
Charles in "As You Like It"
Paris in "Romeo and Juliet"
The three wise men in "Christmas Oratorio I-VI"
Ilya Afanasevich Shamrajev and The Star of the Revue in "The Seagull"
Stiva in "Anna Karenina"
The Wanderer, the Gondolier, a Dance Couple, Dionysos, the Hairdresser, the Guitar Player in "Death in Venice"
King Florestan XXIV and a Russian Prince in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
The Balloon Man in "Liliom"
Monsieur Duval in "Lady of the Camellias"
Allan's Friend in "A Streetcar Named Desire"
He in "Odyssee"
Prince Gremin in "Onegin" (John Cranko)
Antigonus in "The Winter's Tale" (Christopher Wheeldon)
and solos in
Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Préludes CV
Winterreise
Birthday Dances
Saint Matthew Passion
HE CHOREGRAPHED
"Nobody Sees"
Premiere: Young Choreographers, Hamburg, 2012
"Rely on Trust"
Premiere: Young Choreographers, Hamburg, 2015
"I Giorni"
Premiere: Young Choreographers, Hamburg, 2016
"Embrace"
Premiere: Young Choreographers, Hamburg, 2017
"el la"
Premiere: Young Choreographers, Hamburg, 2018
Find further information about Florian Pohl here.
Performances

Calypso
Olivia Betteridge

Soloist
Olivia Betteridge
BORN
21.12.99 in Westmead, Australia. Australian
EDUCATION
Tanya Pearson Classical Coaching Academy
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Gigi Hyatt, Janusz Mazon, Anna Urban, Leslie Hughes, Lucinda Dunn, Paul Boyd, Wim Broeckx
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2017, Soloist in 2023
REPERTORY
Marie in "The Nutcracker”
Olympia in "Lady of the Camellias"
Princess Claire and The Butterfly in "Illusions – like Swan Lake"
Rosalinde in "Romeo and Juliet"
Evening Star in "A Sleeping Beauty" (Neufassung 2021)
Calipso in "Odyssey"
La Barbarina in "Death in Venice"
Diana Rivers in "Jane Eyre" (Cathy Marston)
and solos in
Broadway's Pavlova
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Epilogue
Liebeslieder Walzer (George Balanchine)
Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet (George Balanchine)
Shakespeare Sonnets (Marc Jubete, Aleix Martínez and Edvin Revazov)
Adagio (Pina Bausch)
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
Find further information about Olivia Betteridge here.
Performances

Pallas Athene
Xue Lin

Principal
Xue Lin
BORN
9.11.91 in Beijing. Chinesin
EDUCATION
Beijing Dance Academy
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Yuanmei Cai, Kevin Haigen, Marianne Kruuse
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2011, Soloist since 2016, Principal since 2022
CREATIONS
The Ballerina Istomina as Cleopatra in "Tatiana"
A Mystic in "Dona Nobis Pacem"
and solos in
Meine Vorstellung von der Wirklichkeit (Braulio Alvarez)
3x2 für M&M (Constant Vigier)
Mizaru – Kikazaru – Iwazaru (Miljana Vracaric)
Into this Wild Abyss (Braulio Alvarez)
Meant to Fly (Winnie Dias)
At Asyl-Um (Luca Andrea Tessarini)
Aether (Luca Andrea Tessarini)
REPERTORY
Odette, Princess Claire and Quadrille in "Illusions - like Swan Lake"
Rosalind and Emilia in "Romeo and Juliet"
Silvia in "Préludes CV"
The Little Mermaid in "The Little Mermaid"
La Primavera in "Othello"
Moyna and Zulma in "Giselle"
Manon Lescaut and Olympia in "Lady of the Camellias"
Louise, La Fille du Pharaon, The Chinese Bird and Pas de huit in "The Nutcracker"
La Barbarina and Aschenbach's assistant, his mother and Tadzio's mother in "Death in Venice"
The Ballerina, Tamara Karsavina in "Nijinsky"
Masha in "The Seagull"
Woman I in "Bernstein Dances"
Anna Karenina and Lidia Ivanovna in "Anna Karenina"
Helena in "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Princess Florine, The Rose and Aurora, the Dawn in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
Pallas Athene in "Odyssey"
Pas de six in "Napoli" (August Bournonville / Lloyd Riggins)
Olga in "Onegin" (John Cranko)
Amor and a Friend in "Don Quixote" (Rudolf Nurejev after Marius Petipa)
Princess Perdita in "The Winter's Tale" (Christopher Wheeldon)
and solos in
Préludes CV
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Saint Matthew Passion
Messiah
The Song of the Earth
Turangalîla
Bach Suite 2
Nocturnes
Dialogue
Kinderszenen
Shall we dance?
Soldier Songs (Des Knaben Wunderhorn)
The Fifth Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Broadway's Pavlova
At Midnight
Epilogue
Brahms-Schoenberg Quartet (George Balanchine)
Variations for Two Couples (Hans van Manen)
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
GUESTING
The Little Mermaid in "The Little Mermaid" with the National Ballet of China in Wuhan, China
AWARD
Dr.-Wilhelm-Oberdörffer Prize 2014
Find further information about Xue Lin here.
Performances

Nausicaa
Lormaigne Bockmühl

Corps de Ballet
Lormaigne Bockmühl
BORN
25.10.2001 in Cavite, Philippines. Filipina
EDUCATION
ACTS Manila
School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Kevin Haigen, Raymond Hilbert, Chelo Gemina, Jun Saagundo, Stacey Denhamm, Gigi Hyatt, Leslie Hughes, Anna Urban
ENGAGEMENT
National Youth Ballet in 2021
Hamburg Ballet since 2023
CREATION
The Invisibles (with the National Youth Ballet)
Joy in "Slow Burn" (Aszure Barton)
REPERTORY
Nausicaa in "Odyssey"
Marie and Der chinesische Vogel in "The Nutcracker"
and solo in
Adagio (Pina Bausch)
Performances
photo: Silvano Ballone

Circe
Ana Torrequebrada

Soloist
Ana Torrequebrada
BORN
3.5.2000 in Burgos, Spain. Spanish
EDUCATION
Escuela Profesional de Danza "Ana Laguna"
Ballet School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Ana González Barca, Juan Carlos Santamaría, Gigi Hyatt, Leslie Hughes, Ann Drower
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2019, Soloist since 2023
REPERTORY
Marie, The Beautiful Girl from Granada and The Chinese Bird in "The Nutcracker"
Cupid's Blessing and the Moon in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
Princess Claire in "Illusions – like Swan Lake"
Stella in "A Streetcar Named Desire"
Prudence Duvernoy in "Lady of the Camellias"
Circe in "Odyssey"
A Shepherdess in "The Winter's Tale" (Christopher Wheeldon)
Young Jane Eyre in "Jane Eyre" (Cathy Marston)
solos in
Broadway's Pavlova
Ghost Light
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Préludes CV
The Times Are Racing (Justin Peck)
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
AWARD
Dr. Wilhelm-Oberdörffer-Prize 2024
Find further information about Ana Torrequebrada here.
Performances

The Sea
Francesca Harvey

Corps de Ballet
Francesca Harvey
BORN
26.3.2000 in Winchester, England. Briton/French/American
EDUCATION
The Royal Ballet School
Elmhurst Ballet School
Ballet School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Vanessa Palmer, Leslie Hughes, Gigi Hyatt, Janusz Mazon, Stacey Denham
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2019
REPERTORY
Nanina in "Lady of the Camellias"
The Sea in "Odyssee"
Find further information about Francesca Harvey here.
Performances

The Suitors / The War
Francesco Cortese

Corps de Ballet
Francesco Cortese
BORN
7.11.2002 in Schio (Vicenza). Italian
EDUCATION
Domus Danza (Schio)
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Kevin Haigen, Janusz Mazon, Stacey Denham, Christian Schön, Anna Urban, Enrica Marcucci, Laura Nardi
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet 2021-2022
REPERTORY
Louis and Elmer in "Liliom"
Cupid's Blessing and a Thorn Creature in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
Benvolio in "Romeo and Juliet"
Fritz in "The Nutcracker"
A Manon Lescaut's Admirer in "Lady of the Camellias"
A Suitor / The War in "Odyssey"
Jaschu in "Death in Venice"
John Reed in "Jane Eyre" (Cathy Marston)
An Ally in "Slow Burn" (Aszure Barton)
and soli in
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Préludes CV
Saint Matthew Passion
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
Performances

The Suitors / The War
Alessandro Frola

Principal
Alessandro Frola
BORN
3.9.2000 in Parma, Italy. Italian
EDUCATION
Profession Dance Parma
Fomento Artístico Cordobés, Córdoba, Veracruz/Mexico
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Lucia Giuffrida, Francesco Frola, Adria Velásquez, Kevin Haigen, Janusz Mazon, Gigi Hyatt
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2019, Soloist in 2022, Principal since 2023
CREATIONS
The Shadow in "Dona Nobis Pacem"
and solos in
Peter and Igor
Epilogue
REPERTORY
Lysander in "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Endymion in "Sylvia"
Prince Désiré, Catalabutte and Cupid's Blessing in "The Sleeping Beauty" (new version 2021)
Wolf Beifeld in "Liliom"
Frederick the Great in "Death in Venice"
Pas de deux in "A Cinderella Story"
The Man in the Shadow, Prince Siegfried and Prince Alexander in "Illusions – like Swan Lake"
Love in "Bernstein Dances"
Mercutio in "Romeo and Juliet"
Allan Gray in "A Streetcar Named Desire"
Arlequin in ‘Carnaval' and The Spirit of the rose in 'Le Spectre de la rose' in "Nijinsky"
Drosselmeier in "The Nutcracker"
Armand in "Lady of the Camellias"
A Suitor / The War in "Odyssey"
Frederick the Great in "Death in Venice"
Mr Brocklehurst in "Jane Eyre" (Cathy Marston)
and solos in
Saint Matthew Passion
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Préludes CV
The thing with feathers (Demis Volpi)
Variations for Two Couples (Hans van Manen)
The Times Are Racing (Justin Peck)
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
AWARD
Dr. Wilhelm Oberdörffer-Prize 2023
Find further information about Alessandro Frola here.
Performances

Eurycleia
Charlotte Kragh

Soloist
Charlotte Kragh
BORN
3.7.1999 in Copenhagen, Danemark. Danish
EDUCATION
Norwegian National Ballet School
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Sandra Wiesner, Gigi Hyatt, Anna Urban, Leslie Hughes, Carolina Praetorius
ENGAGEMENTS
Ballett Dortmund 2018-2020
Ballett am Rhein 2020-2024
Hamburg Ballett seit 2024
REPERTORY IN DORTMUND
A big swan and Spanish Dance in "Swan Lake" (Xin Peng Wang)
and solos in
A Midsummer Night's Dream (Alexander Ekman)
Moto Perpeto (Jacopo Godani)
REPERTORY IN DUSSELDORF
Bathilde in "Giselle" (Demis Volpi)
Pumphutt in "Krabat" (Demis Volpi)
Isabel in "Enemy in the Figure" (William Forsythe)
and solos in
Artifact Suite (William Forsythe)
Rubies (George Balanchine)
Polyphonia (Christopher Wheeldon)
The Four Temperamente (George Balanchine)
Big Blur (Demis Volpi)
Salt Womb (Sharon Eyal)
REPERTORY IN HAMBURG
A Wise Woman in "Slow Burn" (Aszure Barton)
and solos in
Adagio (Pina Bausch)
The thing with feathers (Demis Volpi)
AWARDS
Gold Medal at the 27th Concours international de danse classique de Grasse (2014)
3rd Prize at the Nordic Baltic Ballet Competition (2014)
Photo @ Sigrid Reinichs
Performances
photo: Sigrid Reinichs

Aikinoos
Gabriel Barbosa

Corps de Ballet
Gabriel Barbosa
BORN
19.11.2001 in Cândido Mota. Brazilian
EDUCATION
Balé Isabel Gusman
The School of the Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Fatima Santilli, Kevin Haigen, Janusz Mazon, Konstantin Tselikov
ENGAGEMENT
Hamburg Ballet since 2022
REPERTORY
Solos in
The Times Are Racing (Justin Peck)
Blake Works V – The Barre Project (William Forsythe)
Performances

Anticlea
Laura Cazzaniga

Ballet Mistress
Laura Cazzaniga
BORN
31.3.70 in Cassano d'Adda. Italian
EDUCATION
In Bergamo
Academie de Danse Princesse Grace, Monte Carlo.
The School of The Hamburg Ballet
MAIN TEACHERS
Marika Besobrasova, Truman Finney
ENGAGEMENET
The Hamburg Ballet since 1988, Soloist in 1993,
Principal in 1998. Ballet Mistress since 2008
CREATIONS
Cinderella's Mother and Princess from Another Country in "A Cinderella Story"
The Sea in "Odyssey"
Revue Star in "The Seagull"
Geruth in "Hamlet" (1997, new version)
Pas de deux "Sheherazade III" (Easter Concert 1999, Munich)
Laura in "Préludes CV"
Aschenbach's assistant, his mother and Tadzio's mother in "Death in Venice"
Orgeluse in "Parzival – Episodes and Echo"
Silver Fairy in "The Sleeping Beauty" (Mats Ek)
and solos in
Time after Time from "Images from Bartók"
Messiah
Winterreise
Nocturnes from "Songs of the Night"
REPERTORY
Lykainion in "Daphnis and Chloe"
Olympia and Prudence in "Lady of the Camellias"
Penelope in "Odyssey"
Diana in "Sylvia"
Cinderella's Mother and a Stepsister in "A Cinderella Story"
Hermia in "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Dulcinea in "Don Quixote"
Bianca in "Othello"
Bäsle and The Music in "Windows on MOZART"
The Good Fairy and The Queen in "The Sleeping Beauty"
Lady Capulet in "Romeo and Juliet"
Olivia in "VIVALDI or What You Will"
The Queen Mother in "Illusions - like Swan Lake"
Myrtha in "Giselle"
Louise, Mrs. Stahlbaum, "La Fille du Pharaon" and Esmeralda and the Clowns" in "The Nutcracker"
Tamara Karsavina in "Nijinsky"
Ygerne in "The Saga of King Arthur"
Aase in "Peer Gynt"
Irina Nikolayevna Arkadina in "The Seagull"
Celia in "As You Like It"
Elizabeth in "Préludes CV"
Anticlea in "Odyssey"
Gamzatti and Hindu Dance in "La Bayadère" (Natalia Makarova after Marius Petipa)
The Old Madge, a witchin "La Sylphide" (Pierre Lacotte after Filippo Taglioni)
Madame Larina in "Onegin" (John Cranko)
Veronica in "Napoli" (August Bournonville / Lloyd Riggins)
and solos in
Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Soldier Songs (Des Knaben Wunderhorn)
Requiem
Kinderszenen
Trilogy M.R.: Secrets
Spring and Fall
Bernstein Dances
Vaslav
Le Sacre
Getting Closer
Bach-Suite 3
Fourth Symphony of Gustav Mahler
Brahms-Waltz
(Frederick Ashton after Isadora Duncan)
Moments Movements Mendelssohn (Kevin Haigen)
Triple Self (Petr Zuska)
Fandango and Sinfonia Concertante (Lar Lubovitch)
Forgotten Land (Jirí Kylián)
Violin Concerto (George Balanchine)
A la Françaix (George Balanchine)
Jewels – Emeralds (George Balanchine)
GUESTING
Cesena, Vicenza, Legnago, Munich and Moscow.
She has been coaching the candidates of the Prix de Lausanne 2008
SHE STAGED NEUMEIER'S BALLETS FOR
The Ballet de l'Opéra National de Paris: "Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler", the Norwegian National Ballet and the Pittsburg Ballet Theatre: "A Streetcar Named Desire", the Het National Ballet: "Sylvia", the National Ballet of Canada: "Nijinsky"
AWARDS
Half final of the "Prix de Lausanne" and Silver Medal in the "Concorso di Danza Viotti"
Performances

Ensemble
Hamburg Ballett

Hamburg Ballett
Hamburg is and has always been a city of dance, with the first ballet performances dating back as early as 1765. In 1963, the leading ensembles of the world, including the New York City Ballet and the London Royal Ballet, performed at the Hamburg State Opera. Just ten years later, a unique ballet history began in 1973 when the then 34-year-old John Neumeier was appointed as Ballet Director. For 51 years, Neumeier would lead the Hamburg company, later also as its Artistic Director, bringing it to worldwide acclaim and making it what it is today: the internationally renowned Hamburg Ballet. Beginning in August 2024, Demis Volpi will be taking over as the new Artistic Director of the 61-member ensemble.
The Hamburg Ballet is inseparably linked to the rich repertory of choreographies by John Neumeier, which often address literary, historical, or religious themes. The ensemble has gained fame far beyond the borders of the Hanseatic city through numerous guest performances, making it Germany’s flagship ballet company. In his first year as the Artistic Director, Demis Volpi will expand the repertoire by presenting works of Pina Bausch, Aszure Barton, William Forsythe and Justin Peck that have never yet been seen in Hamburg. Three of Volpi's own works will also be featured.
In the 2024/25 season, the Hamburg Ballet will present more than 80 performances on the stage of the Hamburg State Opera, in addition to guest appearances in Baden-Baden, Germany, and other European cities. The tradition of lecture demonstrations (Ballett-Werkstatt), providing the audience with fascinating insights into the creative and rehearsal work of a ballet ensemble, will continue under Demis Volpi. The current season marks the 50th anniversary of the dance festival "Hamburg Ballet Days" and, consequently, the 50th edition of the Nijinsky Gala, featuring celebrated stars from around the world alongside the Hamburg ensemble.
The School of the Hamburg Ballet, founded by John Neumeier in 1978, has become an integral part of the company and is housed in the Ballet Center in Hamburg Hamm, including its affiliated boarding school. A significant number of today's ensemble received their training at the ballet school.
Performances

Conductor
Markus Lehtinen

Conductor
Markus Lehtinen
Markus Lehtinen absolvierte ein Klavier- und Dirigentenstudium an der Sibelius-Akademie in Helsinki. Zudem studierte er Komposition bei Aulis Sallinen und Einojuhani Rautavaara. 1988 wurde er an die Königliche Oper in Kopenhagen verpflichtet, der er bis 1993 angehörte. Er war Chefdirigent des Jyväskylä Sinfonieorchesters sowie Gastdirigent des Malmö Sinfonieorchesters. 1993 debütierte er an der Hamburgischen Staatsoper, weitere Engagements in Deutschland waren unter anderem an der Deutschen Oper Berlin und an der Bayerischen Staatsoper. Seit 2004 hat Markus Lehtinen eine Professur an der Sibelius-Akademie.
Performances

Orchestra
Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg

Orchestra
Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg
The Philharmonic State Orchestra is Hamburg’s largest and oldest orchestra, looking back on many years of musical history. When the “Philharmonic Orchestra” and the “Orchestra of the Hamburg Municipal Theatre” merged in 1934, two tradition-steeped orchestras combined. Philharmonic concerts have been performed in Hamburg since 1828, artists such as Clara Schumann, Franz Liszt and Johannes Brahms being regular guests of the Philharmonic Society. The history of the opera company goes back even further: Hamburg has been home to musical theatre since 1678, even if a regular opera or theatre orchestra was only formed later. To this day, the Philharmonic State Orchestra has embodied the sound of the Hansa City, a concert and opera orchestra in one.
During its long history, the orchestra encountered great artist personalities. Apart from composers of the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, such as Telemann, Tchaikovsky, Strauss, Mahler, Prokofiev and Stravinsky, since the 20th century chief conductors such as Karl Muck, Joseph Keilberth, Eugen Jochum, Wolfgang Sawallisch, Horst Stein, Aldo Ceccato, Christoph von Dohnányi, Gerd Albrecht, Ingo Metzmacher and Simone Young have shaped the orchestra’s sound. Renowned conductors of the pre-war era such as Otto Klemperer, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Bruno Walter, Karl Böhm and Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt gave brilliant performances, as did outstanding conductors of our times: suffice it to mention Christian Thielemann, Semyon Bychkov, Kirill Petrenko, Adam Fischer and Sir Roger Norrington.
Starting with the 2015/2016 season, Kent Nagano has taken on the position of Hamburg’s General Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Philharmonic State Orchestra and the Hamburg State Opera and since June 2023 also its honorary conductor. In his first season Kent Nagano initiated a new project, the Philharmonic Academy, focusing on experimentation and chamber music. In 2016, Nagano and the Philharmonic toured South America, followed by concert tours to Spain and Japan in 2019, and in the spring of 2023, the Philharmonic State Orchestra made its debut at New York's Carnegie Hall under his direction, which was acclaimed by audiences and the press. Since 2017 Kent Nagano and the Philharmonic State Orchestra have continued the traditional Philharmonic Concerts at the new Elbphilharmonie, for which they commissioned Jörg Widmann to compose the oratorio ARCHE, which was given its world premiere during the hall’s opening festivities. The concert recording has been released by ECM, for which Widmann received the OPUS KLASSIK as Composer of the Year 2019, and ARCHE was performed again in 2023 to great acclaim.
The Philharmonic State Orchestra offers approximately 35 concerts per season and performs more than 240 performances per year at the Hamburg State Opera and the Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier, making it Hamburg’s busiest orchestra. The stylistic bandwidth covered by the 140 musicians, ranging from historically informed performance practice to contemporary works and including concert, opera and ballet repertoire, is unique throughout Germany. Chamber Music has a long tradition at the Philharmonic State Orchestra: what began in 1929 with a concert series for chamber orchestra has been continued since 1968 by a series of chamber music only.
In 2008 Simone Young and the Philharmonic State Orchestra won the Brahms Award of the Schleswig-Holstein Brahms Society. The orchestra has recorded the complete Ring by Wagner as well as the complete symphonies of Johannes Brahms and Anton Bruckner – the latter in the rarely-performed original versions – as well as works by Mahler, Hindemith and Berg, and has released DVDs of opera and ballet productions by Hosokawa, Offenbach, Reimann, Auerbach, J.S. Bach, Puccini, Poulenc and Weber.
The members of the Philharmonic State Orchestra feel equally beholden to Hamburg’s musical tradition and responsible for the city’s artistic future. Since 1978 the musicians have been participating in education programmes in Hamburg’s schools. Today, the orchestra maintains a broad education programme, including school and kindergarten visits, patronage for music projects, introductory events for children and family concerts. The orchestra’s own academy prepares young musicians for their professional careers. The Philharmonic’s musicians thereby make an equally enjoyable and valuable contribution to tomorrow’s music education in the music metropolis of Hamburg.
Performances
- Rathausmarkt Open Air
- 1st Academy Concert - Program I
- 1st Academy Concert - Program II
- 1st Academy Concert - Program III
- 4th Academy Concert
- Trionfi
- Carmen
- THE TIMES ARE RACING
- 1st Philharmonic Concert
- Kannst du pfeifen, Johanna
- Boris Godunov
- Special chamber concert
- Tosca
- Jubiläumsgala: 30 Jahre Internationales Opernstudio
- La clemenza di Tito
- Orchesterprobenbesuch
- 2nd Philharmonic Concert
- Don Giovanni
- Jane Eyre
- 3rd Philharmonic Concert
- Elektra
- Der Freischütz
- Luisa Miller
- La Bohème
- SLOW BURN
- 4th Philharmonic Concert
- Hänsel und Gretel (Hansel and Gretel)
- Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute)
- The Nutcracker
- New Year's Eve concert
- Der fliegende Holländer
- 5th Philharmonic Concert
- Die Kreide im Mund des Wolfs
- Ariadne auf Naxos
- Manon
- 6th Philharmonic Concert
- Ariadne auf Naxos (concerted)
- Les Contes d'Hoffmann
- Mitridate, re di Ponto
- Eugene Onegin
- Mitridate, re di Ponto (concerted)
- Eugen Onegin (concerted)
- 7th Philharmonic Concert
- PhiSch - das Staatsorchester hautnah...
- Don Pasquale
- Don Pasquale (concerted)
- Rigoletto
- Maria Stuarda
- La Fanciulla del West (The Girl of the West)
- Il trovatore
- Falstaff
- 8th Philharmonic Concert
- La Traviata
- The Odyssey
- Parsifal
- Pique Dame
- Opening concert of the Hamburg International Music Festival
- Das Tagebuch der Anne Frank
- Romeo and Juliet
- Die dunkle Seite des Mondes
- Tristan und Isolde (Tristan and Isolde)
- 9th Philharmonic Concert
- Salome
- NATIONAL YOUTH BALLET: Die Unsichtbaren
- Nijinsky
- Frühlings Erwachen
- Così fan tutte
- Le Nozze di Figaro
- 10th Philharmonic Concert
- Demian
- Nijinsky Gala L
- 1st Philharmonic Concert
- The Seagull
- HOUSE WARMING CONCERT
- Das Paradies und die Peri
- 3. Blaues Konzert
- Schulkonzert
- 2nd Philharmonic Concert
- Kids only #1: Erwachsene verboten
- Ruslan und Ljudmila
- Lady of the Camellias
- 3rd Philharmonic Concert
- Surrogate Cities
- L'elisir d'amore
- 4th Philharmonic Concert
- New Year's Eve concert
- 5th Philharmonic Concert
- Monster´s Paradise
- Kids only #2: Überall doch nirgends zuhause
- 6th Philharmonic Concert
- POINT OF NO RETURN
- The great silence
- Lohengrin
- 7th Philharmonic Concert
- Women's love and death
- Madama Butterfly
- 8th Philharmonic Concert
- Il barbiere di Siviglia
- Special concert music festival
- 9th Philharmonic Concert
- Kids only #3: Ich zieh aus!
- Wonderland
- 10th Philharmonic Concert
- Nijinsky Gala LI
photo: Foto: Felix Broede