‘Os Maias’, a ballet in three acts created by Fernando Duarte, director of CNB, is set to premiere on October 16 at Teatro Camões in Lisbon, with ten performances scheduled until October 26. It will lead the start of the season for the company, which is preparing to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2027.
The production, featuring choreography and dramaturgy by Fernando Duarte based on the novel by writer Eça de Queiroz (1845-1900), will include pianist António Rosado and soloists from the Portuguese Chamber Orchestra, according to the season’s program.
The new choreographic piece fulfills a proposal expressed by the CNB director in his project for the company, to “unite great Portuguese literature with the unique expressiveness and inherent narrativity of dance.”
The work is set to go on an international tour in 2026, including a scheduled appearance at the Lodz Ballet Festival in Poland, among other locations to be confirmed.
With musical curation by Andrea Lupi, scenography by José Manuel Castanheira, costumes by José António Tenente, lighting design by Vítor José, and videography by Cristina Piedade, the piece will debut with live music.
Overall, the new CNB season offers a diverse journey through choreographic creation, between the heritage of dance and contemporaneity, revisiting historic titles such as ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and ‘Swan Lake’, “after many years absent from Portuguese stages.”
These two last classical ballets will have a total of 12 performances, featuring the Portuguese Symphony Orchestra conducted by Cesário Costa. The season will also present national premieres by prominent international dance figures and new creations by emerging choreographers.
The programs ‘Four Corners in a Sonnet/Minus 16’, with choreographies by Fernando Duarte in co-creation with CNB dancers and Ohad Naharin, and ‘Stravinsky Violin Concerto/Minus 16’, by George Balanchine and Naharin, will circulate in Paredes, Tavira, Penafiel, and Braga at the start of the season, in September and October.
In December, ‘Romeo and Juliet’, choreographed by John Cranko with music by Prokofiev, will be part of the ‘Great Classics’ cycle, featuring the Portuguese Symphony Orchestra under Cesário Costa’s direction.
February will bring the ‘Great Masters’ program, which includes three landmark works of international dance: ‘Four Reasons’, by Edward Clug, ‘Sleight of Hand’, by the choreographic duo Lightfoot & León, and ‘Symphony in C’, by George Balanchine, the last two having their Portuguese debut.
In March, CNB will also take ‘Os Maias’ to Teatro Rivoli in Porto, with dates yet to be confirmed.
In April, ‘Swan Lake’, in a choreographic version by Fernando Duarte, accompanied by the Portuguese Symphony Orchestra playing Tchaikovsky’s music and a film by Edgar Pêra, will return to Teatro Camões in Lisbon.
The program ‘Only Duos’, starting in May 2026, will feature highlights such as ‘Le Parc’ by Angelin Preljocaj, debuting in Portugal, ‘The Spectre of the Rose’ by Michel Fokine, and three new world premieres by choreographers Miguel Ramalho, Wubkje Kuindersma, and Joseph Toonga.
This program will bring dance to various cities, including Viseu, Aveiro, Castelo Branco, Évora, and Tavira.
The season’s closing program at Teatro Camões will occur in July with the ‘CNB Dance Forward’ cycle, dedicated to new creations.
In a presentation text for the upcoming season, under the motto ‘Celebrate Emotion’, the CNB director describes it as “the antechamber of the grand celebration of 50 years of continuous artistic activity.”
“As has always been evident in its nearly half a century of unquestionable excellence, the new season positions itself in the inviting space for novelty while simultaneously celebrating the revisitation of its valuable heritage,” summarizes Fernando Duarte.
The programming has been designed to “consolidate the presence of new audiences, strengthen the synergies between past and present, between memory and expectation, between timeless classicism and permeability to contemporaneity, between updating a universal tradition and creating new paradigms and fields of experimentation,” the director explains.
“On the one hand, the tragic-romantic dimension that has been the foundation of great classics that have reached their pinnacle in narrative pieces that have enchanted audiences around the world will be consistently present. On the other hand, programmatic proposals aim to enrich the CNB repertoire with works of significant global relevance,” adds Fernando Duarte.
Moreover, “the desired openness to original creation and opportunity for young creators and new talents remains,” the director points out.
Regarding CNB’s aims for the 2025/2026 season, the initiative encompasses “strengthening the relationship with great music and the prominent participation of the Portuguese Symphony Orchestra from the Teatro Nacional de S. Carlos and the Portuguese Chamber Orchestra,” he notes.
Other planned activities to “establish or intensify a direct and multidisciplinary relationship with various audiences” include sharing knowledge and experiences in pre and post-show discussions, “Dance Approach Workshops, and the new Dance Reading Club in new contexts.
Open classes and rehearsals, guided tours of Teatro Camões and the new CNB History and Heritage Interpretative Circuit will continue.
The complete program for the new 2025/2026 CNB season is available from today at www.cnb.pt.
