CNB opens season with the premiere of the ballet 'Os Maias' on October 16

The ballet 'Os Maias', which combines the dramatic intensity of the universe of Eça de Queirós (1845-1900) with the expressiveness of choreographic creation, will have a total of nine performances until October 26, according to information from the Companhia Nacional de Bailado (CNB), sent to the Lusa agency.

The national company has also confirmed its presence at the Lódz Ballet Festival, in that Polish city, where it will present this new ballet on World Dance Day, April 29, and on April 30, at the Wielki w Lodzi Theater, the company indicates.

With choreography by CNB director Fernando Duarte, the play has musical curation by Andrea Lupi, set design by José Manuel Castanheira and costumes by José António Tenente, in a show that will feature a cast of more than thirty dancers.

The CNB will take to the stage at the Teatro Camões accompanied by pianist António Rosado and soloists from the Portuguese Chamber Orchestra.

"The idea is not to compete with the book, because the book will always win, but rather to encourage its (re)reading, both for those who already know it and for those who might be willing to do so," says Fernando Duarte, quoted in a CNB statement about the opening of the new season.

One of the best-known works by writer Eça de Queirós, published in 1888, 'Os Maias' tells the story of three generations of the family, focusing on the most recent, with the love story between Carlos and Maria Eduarda, two of the characters who seem to be at the mercy of a destiny that leads them to perdition.

The ballet "evokes, reinterprets, and brings to life unique characters and timeless questions, viewed through Queiroz's shrewd irony," projecting dance as a language capable of "telling and moving, like few others, dialoguing between past and present," notes the CNB text.

A year ago, when he took over as director of the company, after being selected through a competition, Fernando Duarte revealed in an interview with Lusa that adapting classics of Portuguese literature to dance was among the aims of his project for the CNB.

At the Dança em Diálogos Company, which he founded in 2018, with the dancer Solange Melo, the choreographer adapted 'O Primo Basílio' (1878), by Eça de Queirós, and 'O Memorial do Convento' (1982), by José Saramago (1922-2010) for dance.

"There was a huge turnout from the audience, and in almost every show people recognized the story, they were satisfied with the idea that had been created in their imagination," he recalled, noting that these adaptations "are not, nor are they intended to be, a transformation of the original book, but a reinterpretation."

The musical curation of 'Os Maias' is in charge of Andrea Lupi, who chose composers such as the Belgian César Franck, a contemporary of Eça, and the Austrian Maria Theresia Von Paradis, who lived at the turn of the 18th century, establishing a line through the time of the action.

Dancing in the main roles for Afonso da Maia will be the dancers Francisco Morais, Mário Franco, Aeden Pittendreigh and Christian Schwarm; for Pedro da Maia will be Francisco Gomes, Frederico Loureiro, Maria Monforte, Inês Ferrer and Filipa de Castro; in the role of Carlos da Maia will be Frederico Loureiro, Lourenço Ferreira, Diogo Bettencourt and João Costa, and in the role of Maria Eduarda da Maia, will be the dancers Raquel Fidalgo and Patrícia Main.

In addition to the planned artistic program, the CNB will present a parallel program, through the Dance Approach Program, with workshops and pre- and post-show conversations, with artists, experts and the public.

On the weekends before the premiere, October 4th, 5th, 11th and 12th, the company will promote dance workshops for children and families, designed by dancer Sílvia Santos, in co-creation and co-guidance with dancer Filipa Pinhão.

The workshops are based on Queiroz's imagery and explore the various characters from 'Os Maias', explaining the ballet to promote a love of dance.

During the workshops, performance moments are planned with interpretations by dancers Maria Girardin, Maria João Pinto, Francisco Couto and João Pedro Freitas, and a second part of exploration of movement and dance, guided by Sílvia Santos and Filipa Pinhão.

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