Dates

10 February – 4 March 2026

Location

Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Main Stage

Running time

2:15, incl. 1 interval

Tickets

From € 26

Paquita en Carmen
Dancers: Anna Tsygankova and Giorgi Potskhishvili | Photo: Hugo Thomassen

A double bill that makes the sun shine brightly

Ballets that immediately make you feel you’re in the sunny south. That’s how we’ll warm up our audiences at the beginning of 2026. One of the biggest audience favourites, Ted Brandsen’s lively, passionate Carmen, returns to the stage. It is paired with Marius Petipa’s glittering Paquita, in an adaptation by Rachel Beaujean that lends fresh panache to the grandeur of this classic. The Dutch Ballet Orchestra, conducted by Matthew Rowe, brings the powerful music of both ballets to life. 

Carmen: a story of obsessive love

Say Carmen, and many people think of the femme fatale who dances on tabletops with a rose in her hair. But Ted Brandsen sees her more as a strong, independent woman. He created his Carmen in 2000 for West Australian Ballet, where he was artistic director at the time. The ballet, set to Rodion Shchedrin’s expressive arrangement of Georges Bizet’s famous opera, won the Australian Dance Award. In his choreography, Brandsen deliberately renounces all the clichés surrounding Carmen. He distils the story down to its core: an intense, destructive love between Carmen and Don José. Through sultry duets and dynamic ensemble scenes, the ballet inevitably builds towards a dramatic conclusion. 

Paquita: classical virtuosity with a modern flair

Marius Petipa’s Paquita, in its original 1846 version, is a rather long-winded love story about a Spanish Roma girl and a young officer. But the dazzling, pure dance section that the choreographer added in 1881 remains a favourite challenge for today’s dancers. This virtuosic Grand Pas Classique demands flawless technique. In 2012, associate artistic director Rachel Beaujean took a fresh approach to the ballet. “A work like this needs the panache that fits the times,” she says. Alongside the elegance and grandeur of Paquita, which is set at the Spanish court, expression, humour and acting skills are also of great importance. 

Ticket sales start

Ticket sales for Paquita / Carmen start on 28 August 2025 at 12 noon. Don’t want to miss this on-sale moment? Sign up for our ticket alert and receive a notification when ticket sales open.

Performance information

Paquita

Choreography  Marius Petipa, adapted by Rachel Beaujean
Music  Edward Deldevez and Ludwig Minkus
Set and costume design  François-Noël Cherpin
Lighting design  Hans-Åke Sjöquist

Carmen 

Choreography Ted Brandsen
Music  Rodion Shchedrin, after Georges Bizet 
Set design  Andrew Carter 
Costume design  François-Noël Cherpin 
Lighting design  Bert Dalhuysen

Musical accompaniment  Dutch Ballet Orchestra conducted by Matthew Rowe

Performance for schools 
We offer an exclusive school matinee of Carmen for primary school and first-year secondary school students. Explore the programme.

Order tickets

Ticket sales for Paquita / Carmen start on 28 August 2025 at 12 noon. Don’t want to miss this on-sale moment? Sign up for our ticket alert and receive a notification when ticket sales open.

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Rachel Beaujean

Rachel Beaujean on her fifty years with Dutch National Ballet

Besides Ted Brandsen, associate artistic director Rachel Beaujean is also leaving at the end of the 2025 – 2026 season. She’ll then have been working with Dutch National Ballet for precisely fifty years. And that’s unparalleled in the dance world. “When I was young, I wanted to see the world, but apparently I’m a very loyal person.”

Dutch Ballet Orchestra
Photo: Hans van den Bogaard

Dutch Ballet Orchestra

Dutch Ballet Orchestra is the leading orchestra for dance in the Netherlands. In every performance, the orchestra searches for inspiring synergy between music and dance, in order to give the audience a magical experience. From classical ballet to modern masterpieces, and from music education to talent development, Dutch Ballet Orchestra inspires the movement in dance.

 

Dutch Ballet Orchestra

From 1 August 2024, the Flemish conductor Koen Kessels (1961) is the new music director of Dutch National Ballet, and artistic director and principal conductor of Dutch Ballet Orchestra. He took over the baton from Matthew Rowe, who has fulfilled this special dual position since 2013 and who will be returning as principal guest conductor.

Since its inception in 1965, the orchestra has been the proud musical partner of Dutch National Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater. One important mission of Dutch Ballet Orchestra is investing in the youngest generation of dancers and musicians.

In 2023, for instance, the orchestra issued an open call for young composers, in collaboration with Dutch National Ballet, resulting in a new work that was presented in the Junior Company’s touring programme, Ten. The orchestra has also been working for some years already with the Dutch National Ballet Academy. For example, the orchestra members provide the music for the end-of-year performances Dancers of Tomorrow.

Dutch Ballet Orchestra has also collaborated regularly on innovative – and award-winning – family and school productions. Creatures, in partnership with ISH Dance Collective, won the international Young Audiences Music Award and the production Hansel and Gretel, received various Musical Awards.

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