Mixed Bill with works by Aszure Barton and William Forsythe | SLOW BURN
Tue, May 26, 2026, 7.30 pm - 9.30 pm

Cast

Conductor

Simon Hewett

Conductor

Simon Hewett

Simon Hewett is the Principal Conductor of the Stuttgart Opera, and Principal Conductor of the Hamburg Ballet. In addition to his commitments with these two companies, he has performed regularly in recent seasons with Opera Australia in Sydney and Melbourne, the Komische Oper in Berlin, and the Paris Opera Ballet. His performances are frequently praised for their stylistic fluency, emotional intensity and technical precision.

Simon Hewett studied clarinet and conducting at the University of Queensland, graduating with First Class Honours and a University Medal. At 19 he was the youngest ever finalist in the ABC Young Conductor of the Year Award, and conducted the West Australian Symphony Orchestra in a performance of Hindemith's "Symphonische Metamorphosen". In 1998 he was awarded a German Government Scholarship and studied operatic and symphonic conducting for 3 years at the Franz Liszt Hochschule für Musik in Weimar, Germany.

From 2002-03 Simon Hewett was a member of Opera Australia's Young Artists' Programme, and made his debut at the Sydney Opera house in October 2003, conducting Bizet's "Les Pêcheurs du perles". He was immediately reengaged for performances of "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" in 2004. He has since returned regularly to Opera Australia as a guest conductor, for "Tosca" (2005), "Turandot" (2006), and to lead the revival of Harry Kupfer's critically acclaimed production of "Otello" (2008). He returned to Sydney in 2009 for "Aida" and a new production of "Così fan tutte" with director Jim Sharman. In 2011 he conducted "Macbeth" for Opera Australia and "Falstaff" for the West Australian Opera. In 2012 he led critically acclaimed new productions of "Le Nozze di Figaro" and "Salome" for Opera Australia.

In 2005 Simone Young invited Simon Hewett to join the Hamburg State Opera as Resident Conductor and Assistant Music Director. Since his debut with "La Traviata" in 2005, he has conducted over 200 performances in Hamburg of a large repertoire of opera and ballet. In 2008 he debuted at the Komische Oper with "Il Barbiere di Siviglia", returning in 2010 for "Die Entführung aus dem Serail".

Following successful performances of "Der Fliegende Holländer" for the Stuttgart Opera in 2010, Simon Hewett was invited to become Principal Conductor. In 2012/13 he led revivals of "Die Fledermaus" and "Tosca". He has since conducted new productions of "La Bohème" and "Khovanshchina", and a wide range of other repertoire in Stuttgart including "Die Fledermaus", "Nabucco", "Tosca", "Madama Butterfly", "Eugene Onegin" and "Der Freischütz".

As a symphonic conductor Simon Hewett has appeared with the Melbourne Symphony, Sydney Symphony and West Australian Symphony Orchestras. His interest in contemporary music is documented through his long relationship with the Elision Contemporary Music Ensemble, with whom he has performed frequently since 1996, touring with them to Korea in 1997 and Europe in 1998. He has performed with Elision at all of Australia's major festivals, conducting the world premieres of Richard Barrett's "Opening of the Mouth", and Liza Lim's opera "Moon Spirit Feasting". His CD of Richard Barrett's "Opening of the Mouth" with the Elision Ensemble was reviewed by the BBC Music Magazine upon its release as "Pick of the Month".

Since conducting the premiere of John Neumeier's "Parzival" at the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden in 2006, Simon Hewett has enjoyed a close and productive collaboration with the Hamburg Ballet. He has toured with the Hamburg Ballet to the Salzburg Festival, Australia, the United States of America and Japan. His performances of John Neumeier's production of Mahler's 3rd Symphony at the Paris Opera were broadcast in cinemas worldwide and recorded for DVD release. He led the world premiere of John Neumeier's ballet "Tatiana" (2014), also recorded for DVD release, and the premiere of a new ballet based on the life of the celebrated Italian actress Eleonora Duse (2015). In December 2016 he will lead the German Premiere of "The Song of the Earth", a ballet by John Neumeier to music by Gustav Mahler.

Performances

Ensemble

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

Slow Burn

Orchestra

Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg