Ballet Nacional de España presents Generaciones in Zaragoza

Ballet Nacional de España returns to Zaragoza with Generaciones, a programme mixing existing repertoire pieces and new choreography, drawing on the tradition of Spanish dance and reflecting the evolution of performance through three generations of creators. The Spanish national dance company, directed by Rubén Olmo, has not graced Aragonese stages since 2021, when it participated with notable success in the celebrations commemorating the Goya Year.

Ballet Nacional de España will give five performances of Generaciones from March 5^th to 9^th. Audiences will be able to see some of the most emblematic works in the repertoire, such as Alberto Lorca’s Ritmos and Antonio Canales’ Grito. The first is a plotless choreography dedicated to Encarnación López "La Argentinita" and celebrates the visual beauty of dance in five movements. The second explores some of flamenco’s most iconic palos: seguiriyas, soleás, alegrías, tientos, and tangos.

The programme, designed by Rubén Olmo for Zaragoza, includes another previously performed choreography that the company revived to mark the jota’s newly awarded status of Intangible Cultural Heritage. This choreography is called Jota Aragón, a piece created by Pedro Azorín, with music by Salvador Ruiz de Luna. Its striking stage presence has helped to establish it as the most popular jota in the national repertoire. For the company, performing it in Zaragoza is a special responsibility, as they want to pay tribute to the land where Azorín, an extraordinary dancer and master of the Aragonese jota, grew up.

Three Solos by new creators

For Rubén Olmo, director of Ballet Nacional de España, it is as important to recover key pieces from our historical repertoire as it is to promote contemporary creation, without losing sight of the latest artistic trends. As a result, Generaciones includes three choreographic pieces that showcase the work of a new generation of authors. These three solos are created for female performers and will alternate across each night.

Prima ballerina Inmaculada Salomón performs Pastorela, by Antonio Ruz, with music by Manuel Blasco Nebra (March 5^th and 8^th); a choreography that moves freely between the bolero school, stylised dance and contemporary dance. In Aurora, by Jesús Carmona, soloist Miriam Mendoza dances to the rhythm of El Corpus Christi en Sevilla by Isaac Albéniz (March 7^th). Meanwhile, soloist Débora Martínez performs Jacaranda, a piece by Rubén Olmo with music by Alberto Ginastera that uses this tropical tree to reflect on femininity and nature (March 6^th and 9^th). This tour will also feature a piano performance by guest musician Juan Carlos Garvayo.

BALLET NACIONAL DE ESPAÑA

Director: Rubén Olmo

Programme:

GENERACIONES

Teatro Principal

Zaragoza

Wednesday 5^th February 2025, at 19:00. (discounted admission)

Thursday 6^th February 2025, at 20:00. (discounted admission)

Friday 7^th February 2025, at 20:00.

Saturday 8^th February 2025, at 20:00.

Sunday 9^th February 2025, at 19:00