The new beginning was a success: Christian Spuck, the director of the Berlin State Ballet, can look back on a successful first season. At a press conference in the Apollo Hall of the State Opera on Wednesday, he presented the program for the coming season. Four premieres with a world premiere, five revivals and a guest performance by the renowned Nederlands Dans Theater are planned.
To kick off the season, the ballet evening “Minus 16” will be presented at the Deutsche Oper Berlin on October 25th, combining works by Sharon Eyal and Ohad Naharin. The State Ballet is thus continuing its collaboration with Israeli artists who are among the leading choreographers of today. The Romanian choreographer Edward Clug will perform “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” based on William Shakespeare, create a full-length creation based on music commissioned by Milko Lazar (February 21, 2025, Deutsche Oper).
Christian Spuck will rework his celebrated ballet “Winterreise”, which he created in 2018 for the Zurich Ballet based on the song cycle of the same name by Franz Schubert in the musical version by Hans Zender, with the Berlin company. The premiere will be on May 11, 2025 at the State Opera.
In the last premiere, “Gods and Dogs” (June 28, 2025, State Opera), Jiří Kylián tells of the madness of the individual, while Crystal Pite lets the dancing bodies become a sign of human transience and vitality. “Swan Lake” by Patrice Bart returns to the repertoire. The ballet evening “William Forsythe”, which has become a hit, will be resumed.
Dance as a living art form
With the program for its second season, Spuck is relying on proven forces and dialogue between generations. Ballet and neoclassical music are more strongly represented than in the current season.
“Ballet, like dance as a living art form, creates spaces that reflect our present in a very special way, offer a look into the past, but are also able to capture our current experiences in a deeply turbulent and torn world,” said Spuck. “For me, the Staatsballett Berlin is a place of creativity, networking and mutual exchange that explores and enables these spaces.”
In July 2025, the Nederlands Dans Theater will present the trilogy “Figures in Extinction,” a four-year project by choreographer Crystal Pite and theater maker Simon McBurney on the topic of climate change.