Petipa: Paquita + Raymonda
National Dance Company

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  Thursday, September 25
  7:00 p.m.
  €28, €30, and €32*
MUN Theater

* Advance sale: purchase your tickets with a 15% discount before August 31. (discounts cannot be combined)

The MUN stage hosts the premiere of the revivals of two emblematic pieces from the best academic repertoire.

The National Dance Company, under the artistic direction of Muriel Romero, pays tribute to the great figure of Marius Petipa (1818-1910), considered the father of classical ballet. Born in Marseille in 1818, Petipa is perhaps the most important choreographer in the history of dance. 

This legendary French dancer and choreographer, who settled in imperial Russia, is responsible for such fundamental works of dance as Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Paquita, Raymonda, and La Bayadère. These choreographies shaped the canon of Russian ballet in the 19th century, making Petipa the highest authority in this art form. 

The National Dance Company has staged Petipa's works since its inception and throughout its history. Different artistic directors have chosen to stage Raymonda, including Maya Plisetskaya in 1987, José Carlos Martínez in 2013, and now, in 2025, Muriel Romero. The current director has chosen two titles by the great choreographer, directed respectively by Azari Plisetski and José Carlos Martínez, both key figures in the history of the National Dance Company. 

CREDITS Director: Muriel Romero
Assistant Director: Mayda Islas
Assistant Artistic Director: Ana Catalina Román
Manager: Arturo Barral
Technical Director: Ginés Caballero
Production Director: Cristina Redondo
Communications Director: Maite Villanueva 
Principal dancers: Alessandro Riga, Kayoko Everhart, Giada Rossi
Principal dancers: Cristina Casa, Yanier Gómez Noda, Isaac Montllor, Anthony Pina
Soloists: Ion Agirretxe, Elisabet Biosca, Ana María Calderón, Felipe Domingos, Mario Galindo, Elisa Ghisalberti, Thomas Giugovaz, Erez Ilan, Marina Jiménez, Daniel Lozano Martín, Aleix Mañé, Shlomi Shlomo Miara, Gaizka Morales, Natalia Muñoz, Mariavittoria Muscettola, YaeGee Park, Hamin Park, Shani Peretz, Benjamin Poirier, Irene Ureña
Dance troupe: Mar Aguiló, Niccolò Balossini, José Alberto Becerra, Emma Cámara, Juan José Carazo, Margaux Chesnais, Celia Dávila, Joshua Feist, Sara Fernández, Valeria García, Martina Giuffrida, Alba Hellín, Tamara Juárez, Sara Khatiboun, Roberto Lua, Álvaro Madrigal, Clara Maroto, Marcos Montes, Gianmarco Moschino, María Muñoz, Daniella Oropesa, Nora Peinador, Laura Pérez Hierro, Pauline Perraut, Alejandro Polo, Iván Sánchez, Roberto Sánchez, Rodrigo Sanz, Tomás Sanza, Francesca Sari, Rubén Vaquero, Bárbara Verdasco, Samantha Vottari Rehearsal teachers: Catalina Arteaga, Violeta Gastón, Yoko Taira
Pianists: Carlos Faxas, Viktoriia Glushchenko, Mariana Palacios, Ayllín Plá

PROGRAM

PAQUITA – Grand pas Classique
Choreography: Marius Petipa
Duration: 30 minutes

World premiere by the company of the Grand Theater of St. Petersburg (Mariinsky Theater) on December 27, 1881. Premiere by the National Dance Company (Ballet of the National Lyric Theater) at the Teatro de la Zarzuela, Madrid (Spain), on November 19, 1988.

Paquita is about the seemingly impossible romance between a Spanish gypsy and a Napoleonic officer. Although the male lead's involvement leaves its mark on both the variation and the pas de deux, Paquita is above all a female ballet, reflecting the stylistic moment in which it was created and, as such, places special emphasis on the finesse and precision of the most demanding classical figures, both in the soloists' performances and in the ensemble movements that Petipa intersperses throughout his choreography, giving the corps de ballet a certain prominence, a prelude to later trends.

Paquita shares with Don Quixote and other earlier works by Petipa a taste for Spanish culture that the French-Russian choreographer cultivated during his stay in Spain. One of the greatest attractions of this ballet is the subtlety of the choreography, in which Petipa dispenses with character dances and manages to recreate that folkloric spirit through small details. Paquita is a ballet that stands out for its elegance and the grace that permeates even the most complex technical difficulties. The Grand pas Classique is structured with a pas de trois, four solo variations, and a pas de deux which, together with the prologue and coda, offer ample opportunity for the leading couple and the rest of the cast to shine.

RAYMONDA DIVERTIMENTO
Choreography: José Carlos Martínez (inspired by the versions of Marius Petipa and Rudolph Nureyev)
Duration: 30 minutes

The ballet Raymonda, one of Marius Petipa's last great works, unfolds its three acts in a conventional Middle Ages, with heroes setting off on the Crusades. In battle, the knight Jean de Brienne must save his fiancée Raymonda from the clutches of the Saracens. The final scene finally reunites them. This "classical Hungarian passage" is an excerpt from the grand finale: the marriage of Raymonda and Jean de Brienne, celebrated in the presence of the King of Hungary. Just as the music takes its exotic tones from Magyar themes, the classical steps are also embellished with Hungarian flavors. While the legs dance in a purely classical style, the torso and arms adopt the gestures of a "character dance."
"Dedicated to Maya Plisetskaya"
José Carlos Martínez 

NATIONAL DANCE COMPANY The National Dance Company was founded in 1979 under the name National Classical Ballet, with Víctor Ullate as its first director, who implemented Maurice Béjart's 20th-century ballet style in the new company.
In 1983, María de Ávila took over the direction of the Spanish and Classical National Ballets. After María de Ávila's departure in 1986, Ray Barra held the position of artistic director until 1987, when Maya Plisétskaya was appointed artistic director of the National Lyric Theater Ballet. Under her direction, and until 1990, the company incorporated a classical repertoire.
In June 1990, Nacho Duato took over as artistic director of the National Lyric Ballet, which was renamed the National Dance Company at the end of 1992. Duato held this position for twenty years, a period that saw a profound change in the company's repertoire with choreography by Duato and leading international choreographers. In 2010, Hervé Palito succeeded Duato as artistic director for one year. Between September 2011 and September 2019, José Carlos Martínez served as artistic director of the CND, eight years during which he incorporated classical works into the company's repertoire. In September 2019, Joaquín De Luz succeeded him as artistic director of the company until August 2024, working to create a versatile company made up of dancers capable of tackling different styles and choreographic registers.
Since September 2024, Muriel Romero has been the new director of the company.

Muriel Romero
Muriel Romero, artistic director, is a talented dancer and choreographer with an impressive career in the world of dance. From her beginnings in Murcia to her training at the National Dance School in Madrid, she has accumulated numerous awards and recognitions throughout her career. She has been a member of important companies, such as the National Dance Company, the Bayerische Staatsballett in Munich, and the Deutsche Oper Berlin, and has worked with renowned choreographers.
In 2000, he began his career as a freelance artist exploring new formats, collaborating with avant-garde choreographers and playwrights. In 2008, he founded the Stocos Institute in Madrid, together with composer Pablo Palacio, a transdisciplinary project combining dance, music, mathematics, experimental psychology, and artificial intelligence. He has also participated in international projects and researched the intersection between dance and technology.
She has worked on new European productions and projects, exploring the relationship between different art forms. Her dedication to dance and her desire to innovate have led her to become the current director of the National Dance Company.

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Related activities
September 24, 6:00 p.m. Maya Plisetskaya and the Russian school at the National Dance Company. Round table discussion

September 25, 5:30 p.m.Get a taste of dance with Elna Matamoros