The Basque National Orchestra and Malandain Ballet Biarritz to feature in Château de Versailles Spectacles

The Basque National Orchestra and Malandain Ballet Biarritz, directed by Thierry Malandain, will stage La Belle et la Bête (Beauty and the Beast) with support from San Sebastián European Capital of Culture 2016. This production is the third collaboration between these two entities, and the BNO's return to the Opéra Royal del Château of Versalles, two years after its successful debut performance. Before travelling to Paris, Beauty and the Beast will be performed at Gare du Midi in Biarritz, headquarters of the Malandain Ballet Biarritz, on December 5th and 8th. It will then travel to the Opéra Royal for performances on 11, 12 and 13 December. On 28 January and 4 February 2016, Beauty and the Beast will be staged in Bilbao (Palacio Euskalduna), Pamplona (Baluarte Auditorium) and San Sebastián (Kursaal Auditorium), as part of the Basque National Orchestra's Season Concert programme.

Once again a pas de deux featuring the BNO and Malandain Ballet Biarritz. Beauty and the Beast comes on the heels of Cendrillon in 2013 and Magifique in 2011, two highly successful performances featuring choreographer Thierry Malandain and the music of P.I. Tchaikovsky and S. Prokofiev, respectively, performed by the Basque National Orchestra. The BNO and Malandain Ballet Biarritz join forces this time as part of 'Conversations San Sebastián 2016', a DSS2016EU initiative aimed at forging alliances with cultural stakeholders in the area and contributing to specific projects linked to the values of the European Capital of Culture.

The close ties between the Basque National Orchestra and Malandain Ballet Biarritz, one of the 19 national choreography centres in France, are a valuable alliance on the artistic level. San Sebastián 2016 immediately got involved in this alliance, knowing how important it is to create synergies between cultural entities whose activities complement one another. Working together in this fashion gives rise to the collaborative creations at the highest level, performed on the most important stages. Such events become the best representation of our culture, and by extension, of our society as a whole.

The Château de Versailles Spectacles music season, which features some 70 performances from September to June at the Opéra Royal and in some of the most characteristic spaces at the Palace of Versailles, is one of the most demanding programmes in the European circuit. The season features symphony concerts, operas, ballets, recitals, and more. This year, together with Malandain Ballet Biarritz and the BNO, top billings include Sir John Elliot Gardiner, Les Arts Florissants and William Christie, Hesperion XXI, Jordi Savall, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Lang Lang, Mark Minkowski, Munich Radio Orchestra, Joyce DiDonato, Cecilia Bartoli, Gabrieli Consort and Players and Paul McCreesh, and Alexandre Theraud, among others.

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