Don Quixote will open the 15th World Ballet Festival
| Production and new choreography：Vladimir Vasiliev after Marius Petipa and Alexander Gorsky |
| Music：Léon Minkus |
| Sets：Victor Volsky |
| Costumes：Raphail Volsky |
The World Ballet Festival, held triennially in Tokyo since 1976, is one of the most prestigious and largest international ballet festivals. In every edition, more than 30 leading dancers from around the world have gathered to perform in two main programs consisted of variety of ballet pieces from classic to contemporary, special performances of full-length ballet and a Gala performance for over two weeks.
The 15th World Ballet Festival will be opened with two performances of Don Quixote by The Tokyo Ballet with special guest artists, on Friday 27 and Saturday 28 July 2018.
Two captivating couples will play the main roles. One is Myriam Ould-Braham and Mathias Heymann, two étoiles from Ballet de l'Opéra national de Paris. In their Company's Japan tour in 2017, they displayed elegant virtuosity with their excellent representation, musicality and partnership. It will be their first appearance in Japan in full-length version of Don Quixote.
Scintillating star Alina Cojocaru and rising star Cesar Corrales will be the other couple. As a guest artist with the Hamburg Ballet, Cojocaru once again fascinated the Japanese audience with her Marguerite in Lady of the Camellias on the Company's Japan tour in February 2018. After displaying staggering technique as Ali in Le Corsaire on English National Ballet's Japan tour 2017, Corrales was promoted to Principal on stage at Tokyo Bunka Kaikan. He will join The Royal Ballet from the start of the 2018/19 season. It will be a special opportunity to see such duo's performance. The Tokyo Ballet will perform together with the two couples.
Don Quixote is a colorful and joyful masterpiece set in a pretty Spanish village, based on Miguel de Cervantes's classic novel. The ballet is acclaimed for its constant flow of virtuoso dancing; Spanish and Gipsy dances, classical dance in dream scene and the famous grand pas de deux in the finale. A parade of bravura dancing will take you to new heights of excitement.
Friday 27 July, 2018, 19:00
photo：Kiyonori Hasegawa
Myriam Ould-Braham as Kitri
Étoile, Ballet de l'Opéra national de Paris
Mathias Heymann as Basilio
Étoile, Ballet de l'Opéra national de Paris
Sunday 28 July, 2018, 14:00
photos：Kiyonori Hasegawa
Alina Cojocaru as Kitri
Lead Principal, English National Ballet
Leonid Sarafanov as Basilio
Principal, Mikhailovsky Theatre
*Casting (as of 17 July 2018) is subject to change.
