Founded in 1661, the Paris Opera Ballet, which gave birth to the French ballet art, is not only the oldest ballet company in the world, but also a magnet for numerous ballet dancers.

 

From the 18th century to the mid-19th century, the Ballet dominated the world’s ballet community and gave birth to the romantic ballet art. During this period, it created many classic masterpieces of ballet, such as Giselle, Coppélia and La Sylphide.

 

 

As one of the largest ballet companies in the world, the Ballet is home to a galaxy of talents, many of whom are super stars. Lots of legendary dancers in the history of ballet have left their remarkable footprints at the Paris Opera, including Marie Taglioni (1804-1884), who gave the world premiere of the ballet La Sylphide as the first dancer to perform in toe shoes, setting a precedent for performing ballets in toe shoes, and Carlotta Grisi (1819-1899), who gave the world premiere of the ballet Giselle, pushing the romantic ballet art to a new high. In 1983, the legendary Rudolf Nureyev took over the Paris Opera Ballet as its artistic director. The Ballet thus ushered in a golden era with star dancers, such as Sylvie Guillem, Manuel Legris, Agnès Letestu, José Martinez, Dorothée Gilbert and Mathieu Ganio, among others.

 

Co-hosted by the NCPA, Association pour les Echanges Artistiques entre Ia France et la Chine (AEAFC) and Prix D’europe (PDE), Under the Stars of Paris: Ballet Stars Gala will be staged in Beijing by 14 dancers from the Paris Opera Ballet. For the first time, an all-star team, made up of principal stars and principals from the Paris Opera Ballet, will perform authentic French ballet in China to show the audience the splendour of ballet.