Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève

Artistic director: Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui

Year founded: 1962

At the beginning of the 20th century, the greatest ballet companies were invited to perform in Geneva at the Théâtre Neuve, including Isadora Duncan and Nijinsky with the Ballets Russes. It was not until its reopening in 1962 that the Grand Théâtre acquired its own ballet company. Its direction has been entrusted successively to Janine Charrat, Serge Golovine, Patricia Neary, Peter van Dyck, Oscar Araiz, Gradimir Pankov, François Passard, Giorgio Mancini, Philippe Cohen, and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.

From its inception, the company has sought to explore the stylistic diversity of 20th-century dance, leading it to work with renowned artists such as George Balanchine (who was its artistic advisor from 1970 to 1978), Mikhail Baryshnikov, Rudolf Nureyev, Jiri Kylian, Ohad Naharin, William Forsythe, and Lucinda Childs.

When Philippe Cohen was appointed director of the Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève in 2003, the company embarked on a radical overhaul of its repertoire and image, based on two seemingly contradictory ideas: tradition and creation. Tradition in the sense of claiming one’s place in history. Creation in the sense of actively participating in writing the history of tomorrow.

Since the 2022–23 season, the Ballet has been directed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and collaborates with internationally renowned choreographers. World premieres always take place in Geneva before touring outside Switzerland for the rest of the season: France, Italy, the United States, Russia, Australia, China, Brazil, South Africa, and more.

Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui is a globally celebrated figure like few others in dance today: a brilliant auteur-choreographer, with roughly a hundred shows under his belt, touring all around the planet, and former artistic director of the Royal Ballet of Flanders (2015-22). The Belgian-Moroccan’s choreographic oeuvre overflows with memorable productions, some of which originated in Geneva (Loin, 2005) and others on great stages and video sets all over the world (Puz/zle at the Avignon Festival in 2012, to name but one). For Marina Abramović’s maiden voyage as scenographer, and with Damien Jalet as co-creator, Cherkaoui’s whirling, shadowy and darkly mechanical interpretation of Ravel’s Bolero for the Paris Opera Ballet was a sensation at the Palais Garnier in 2013 and remains one of his most iconic pieces. The trio reformed for Pelléas et Mélisande in 2018 at Opera Ballet Vlaanderen; a production which was reprised and live streamed in Geneva. From dancer colleagues to creative partners, Cherkaoui and Jalet form a unique artistic bond: it is only logical that Damien Jalet should join Cherkaoui and the Geneva Ballet as an associate artist.

Sources: Maison de la Danse program; Grand Théâtre de Genève website