L’Arlésienne / Carmen

The Ballet of the Croatian National Theatre Zagreb presents the choreographic opus of one of the greatest French choreographers of the 20th century – Roland Petit.

L’Arlésienne
A one-act ballet based on the novella and play by Alphonse Daudet
Music: Georges Bizet (arranged by Tommy Desserre)
Premiere: 1974, Ballet National de Marseille

At the heart of this poetic and tragic story is Frédéri, a young man from Provence who is engaged to Vivette, but becomes fatally obsessed with a mysterious woman he once saw in the town of Arles. His love for the unknown woman drives him into madness and leads to his downfall. Petit’s choreography is lyrical and dramatic, in constant dialogue with Bizet’s Suites No. 1 and 2, originally written as incidental music for Daudet’s play premiered in 1872 in Paris.

Carmen
A ballet in five scenes based on the novella by Prosper Mérimée
Music: Georges Bizet (arranged and reorchestrated by Tommy Desserre)
Premiere: 1949, Prince’s Theatre, London

Petit’s Carmen, a worldwide ballet sensation since its London premiere, is a bold, sensual, and theatrically powerful reinterpretation of one of the most famous operatic tales of all time. Blending Spanish dances, pantomime, classical ballet technique, and expressive dramatic movement, the story of the free-spirited gypsy Carmen, who seduces the soldier Don José only to abandon him for the toreador Escamillo, comes to life in a striking new dance language.
At the premiere, Petit himself danced the role of Don José, while the passionate and charismatic Carmen was portrayed by his future wife Zizi Jeanmaire. This is the first full-length staging of this iconic ballet by HNK Zagreb – a historic moment, as it also marks the debut of Roland Petit’s work both in Zagreb and now on the Maribor stage.

Both ballets have been restaged for the Zagreb company by Luigi Bonino, Roland Petit’s longtime collaborator, with faithful reconstruction of sets and costumes following the original designs by Jean-Michel Désiré, Aurélie Lyon, Antoni Clavé, and Christine Laurent, under the technical supervision of experienced ballet masters and assistants.

Principal roles:
L’Arlésienne – Frédéri: Takuya Sumitomo / Yuho Yoshioka, Vivette: Natalia Kosovac / Asuka Maruo
Carmen – Carmen: Iva Vitić Gameiro / Rieka Suzuki, Don José: Guilherme Gameiro Alves / Pavel Savin, Escamillo: Taiguara Goulart / Adam Harris / Samuele Berbenni

This guest performance of the Ballet of the Croatian National Theatre Zagreb, featuring choreographies by Roland Petit, is a rare opportunity to experience the work of a true ballet master whose legacy transcends time, genre, and the classical canon.
You are warmly invited to witness a dance evening full of French elegance, Mediterranean passion, and the timeless musical power of Bizet.