On the 31st of May and on the 1st of June in the “Andreas and Maria Kalokairinou” hall at the Cultural conference center in Iraklion, Crete, the Sofia Opera ballet troupe will present one of its signature performances: “Zorba the Greek”, on the 31st of May and on the 1st of June.
Immediately after, on the 6th of June, “Zorba the Greek” will be performed in Stara Zagora. Starting time: 19:00. This is an exchange of visits which allows ballet fans to see titles not featured in the two theaters’ respective repertoires. Just two months ago, on the 8th of April, the Stara Zagora ensemble presented its new production of “Coppelia” by Leo Delibes in Sofia.
Starring: Frederico Pinto (Zorba), Tsetso Ivanov (John), Marta Petkova (Marina), Nikola Hadzhitanev (Manolios), Charlotte Berard (Madam Ortans) and the Sofia Opera corps de ballet.
This year’s performances of “Zorba the Greek” are dedicated to the 100th anniversary of composer Mikis Theodorakis’ birth and the 30th anniversary of the ballet’s premiere in Bulgaria.
The piece brings together two exceptional people who turn Nikos Kazantzakis’ novel of Alexis Zorbas’ life into a worldwide ballet hit: composer Mikis Theodorakis and choreographer Lorca Massine. A couple years after the ballet’s premiere in 1988: a grand show featuring Mikis Theodorakis’ score and Lorca Massine’s choreography at the “Arena di Verona” festival, the ballet was performed on the 12th of May, 1995, on the NDK stage (by invitation from Plamen Kartaloff); to this day, “Zorba the Greek” is a mainstay in the Sofia Opera and Ballet’s repertoire, for over thirty years now. The performance attracts hundreds of exalted fans not only to the Sofia Opera but also to the open summer stages; it also captivates audiences during the Sofia Opera’s international tours.
The season for the Sofia Opera ballet troupe will continue with performances of “Swan Lake” by P.I. Tchaikovsky and “Romeo and Juliet” by Prokofiev during the “Muses on the Water” festival at Pancharevo Lake, from the 11th of July till the 3rd of August. “Romeo and Juliet” will be performed on an open stage for the first time.
https://musicaperpetua.com/2025/05/21/gastroli-na-baleta-na-sofiyskata-opera/