Iolanta / The Nutcracker

Directed for the stage by Dmitri Tcherniakov, this exceptional programme combines all the talents of the Paris Opera and offers an opera and a ballet in a single evening: Tchaikovsky originally intended Iolanta and The Nutcracker to be staged together. However, since their debut performance at Saint Petersburg’s Mariinsky Theatre in 1892, they have been presented separately. The composer found inspiration for his opera in Danish playwright Henrik Hertz’s work recounting the romantic story of Iolanta, the blind daughter of King René. Protected by her father in his Provençal château, the princess ultimately regains her sight before marrying the gallant knight Vaudémont. The Nutcracker is based on a tale by Hoffmann adapted by Alexandre Dumas. This “fairy-tale ballet” recounts the adventures of young Clara one Christmas night, during which the nutcracker she has been given leads her into a magical world. Like a two-sided mirror reflecting the dreams of a composer who took refuge in the realms of the imaginary, the Paris Opera is reviving the original diptych. Alain Altinoglu conducts and Dmitri Tcherniakov stages this production that symbolises the link between opera and ballet.