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Hamburg's Ballet Days: Neumeier celebrates the premiere of The Mermaid!
The Hamburg Ballet Days 2025 begin with Neumeier's "The Little Mermaid". A festival with first-class performances!
Hamburg's Ballet Days: Neumeier celebrates the premiere of The Mermaid!
On July 9, 2025, there was a lot of excitement at the Hamburg State Opera: the eagerly awaited Hamburg Ballet Days started with the premiere of John Neumeier's masterpiece “The Little Mermaid”. After the surprising departure of former ballet director Demis Volpi, the event became the scene of an interesting new beginning for the company. In just 18 days, the dancers managed to rehearse a complex choreography that was described as a “theatrical miracle” by Lloyd Riggins, the company’s deputy director.
The premiere itself was marked by mixed emotions: while viewers were impressed by the performances, many seats remained empty and tickets were returned. Volpi's piece “Demian” was originally supposed to be the focus, but circumstances led to Neumeier's return, who will also talk about the history of the Ballet Days in the next two weeks.
A special anniversary
The Hamburg Ballet Days are celebrating their 50th anniversary this year. These celebrations were marked by change: some audience favorites had to leave the company because they did not want to work with Volpi, Neumeier's successor. After his dismissal in June, some of the outgoing first soloists have already taken on new engagements, and an interim team is running the company's business.
The festival, which runs until July 20th, has a varied program to offer. In addition to the new version of “The Little Mermaid”, the Hamburg Ballet School will also be represented on July 7th with “First Steps” in works by Volpi and other educators. Another highlight are the performances by Friedemann Vogel, who will perform his solo “Die Seele am Faden” on July 14th.
Brief insights into the festival
Another captivating part of the program includes the performance of “Sonoma” by Marcos Morau and his company “La Veronal” on July 11th and 12th. John Neumeier will also moderate the 50th Nijinsky Gala at the end of the festival - a great honor that illustrates the choreographer's connection to the Hamburg ballet scene.
Ticket prices for the festival vary widely and range from 6 to 207 euros in order to appeal to a wide audience.
What's left to say? This year, the Hamburg Ballet Days present a mixture of tradition and innovation - undeniably a feast for the senses that will go down in history. The challenge lies not only in the dance itself, but also in convincing the audience of the new beginnings in the company.