Château de Digoine

Les Étoiles au Château seeks to contribute to the diversity of local cultural life across the country and beyond and to highlight the historical monuments of our areas by pairing them with renowned dancers and musicians. The two performances will take place in southern Burgundy on September 9 and 10, 2023, at the Château de Digoine, in Palinges, Saône-et-Loire.

The dancers from the Paris Opera will be accompanied on stage by Ophélie Gaillard, a virtuoso cellist, and Elena Bonnay, a pianist at the Paris Opera.

Access via the RCEA: take exit N°19 towards Palinges.
Coordinates: 46° 31’55” North, 4° 12’42” East
Nearest TGV stations: Le Creusot-Montceau and Mâcon-Loché.
Accessibility for persons with reduced mobility (PMR).

The Artists

Silvia Saint-Martin

Principal Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

Silvia Saint-Martin, a French-Spanish dancer, began dancing at the age of 9 in the south of France. She joined the Paris Opera Ballet School in 2002.

In her final year at the school, she danced the role of Sleeping Beauty in the ballet “Les Forains” by Roland Petit. She joined the ballet corps in 2008, was promoted to Coryphée in 2011, and won the Carpeaux Circle Prize the same year.

In the ballet corps, Silvia explored many great classical ballets. She danced in ballets by Rudolf Nureyev as well as works by Jérôme Robbins, Serge Lifar, Roland Petit, and John Cranko. Promoted to Sujet in 2012, she faced a long break due to injury. Upon her return, she performed her first soloist roles, including various pas de deux and pas de trois from the repertoire. She also danced the “Rubies” couple in “Jewels” by George Balanchine and the title role in “Cinderella” by Rudolf Nureyev.

She was chosen to dance the role of Lorraine in “Bella Figura” by Jirí Kylián and the ballet “Speak for Yourself” by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot. Silvia participated in numerous creations and repertoire entries and had the pleasure of working with renowned choreographers such as Crystal Pite, Sol León, Paul Lightfoot, Jirí Kylián, Alexander Ekman, William Forsythe, Wayne McGregor, Ohad Naharin, and Sasha Waltz…

Promoted to Principal Dancer in 2020, Silvia continues to explore the stage as a soloist. She performs various roles in ballets by George Balanchine: Sanguine in “The Four Temperaments,” the Russian dancer in “Serenade,” Hippolyta and Hermia in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “Embraceable You” and “My One and Only” in “Who Cares?” as well as the second woman in “Ballet Imperial.” She also performed the role of Cupid in “Don Quixote” by Rudolf Nureyev and recently Princess Stéphanie in the ballet “Mayerling” by Kenneth MacMillan.

Throughout her career, she has participated in tours with the Paris Opera and enjoyed discovering new stages through numerous projects. Very soon at the Opéra Garnier, she will debut as Lescaut’s Mistress in the ballet “Manon” by Kenneth MacMillan.

SILVIA SAINT-MARTIN

The first Soloist at Paris Opera Ballet

Silvia Saint-Martin

Principal Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

Silvia Saint-Martin, a French-Spanish dancer, began dancing at the age of 9 in the south of France. She joined the Paris Opera Ballet School in 2002.

LÉONORE BAULAC

Principal Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

Léonore Baulac joined the Paris Opera Ballet School in 2005. She entered the Paris Opera Ballet corps in 2008. She was promoted to Coryphée in 2014 and received the AROP Dance Prize.
She became Sujet in 2015 and then Première Danseuse the following year. Léonore Baulac was named Étoile on December 31, 2016, after her performance in Swan Lake by Rudolf Nureyev, where she portrayed the role of Odette/Odile for the first time.
As part of the official tours of the Paris Opera Ballet, she has performed in Australia (Sydney, 2013), Quebec (Montreal, 2014), Denmark (Copenhagen, 2015), the United States (New York, 2017), Russia (Novosibirsk, 2018), Spain (Madrid, 2019), Asia (Shanghai and Singapore, 2019), and Japan (Tokyo, 2020).

@leobaulac

LÉONORE BAULAC

Etoile at Paris Opera Ballet

LÉONORE BAULAC

Principal Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

@leobaulac

DOROTHÉE GILBERT

Étoile Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

Dorothée Gilbert joined the Paris Opera Ballet School in 1995. At the age of 17, she was engaged as a dancer in the Paris Opera Ballet Corps, where she experienced a meteoric rise. In 2002, she was promoted to Coryphée and then Sujet in 2004. That same year, she received the AROP Public Prize and the Cercle Carpeaux Prize. She was named Première Danseuse in 2005. The following year, she received both the Ballet 2000 Prize and the Léonide Massine Prize. In 2007, following her performance in The Nutcracker with Manuel Legris, Dorothée Gilbert was named Étoile at the age of 24. Renowned for her exceptional technique and dedication, she has since been regularly invited to international galas and has been a prominent figure in the Paris Opera Ballet repertoire. In 2009, she was nominated for the Benois de la Danse for her role as “Lise” in La Fille Mal Gardée. In 2013, she became the muse for the first Repetto perfume.

@dorotheegilbert

DOROTHÉE GILBERT

Etoile at Paris Opera Ballet

DOROTHÉE GILBERT

Étoile Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

@dorotheegilbert

GERMAIN LOUVET

Étoile Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

Germain Louvet began dancing at the age of 4 at the Conservatoire National de Région in Chalon-sur-Saône. He joined the Paris Opera Ballet School in 2005 and completed all his classes there by 2011. He joined the Paris Opera Ballet Corps as a Quadrille in September 2011 and was promoted to Coryphée in November 2013. In 2013, he received the Cercle Carpeaux Prize and was promoted to Sujet in 2014.
He has performed in the great ballets of the repertoire, from Rudolf Nureyev to Carolyn Carlson, and in works by Georges Balanchine, Serge Lifar, Adolphe Adam, John Neumeier, Frederick Ashton, Pierre Lacotte, and José Martinez. He has also participated in official tours in Australia, Japan, and Russia. Benjamin Millepied, then Artistic Director of the Paris Opera Ballet, selected him for his creations. Shortly after being promoted to Premier Danseur in November 2016, Germain Louvet was named Étoile Dancer by Aurélie Dupont during a performance of Swan Lake on December 28, 2016.

@germainlouvet

GERMAIN LOUVET

Etoile at Paris Opera Ballet

GERMAIN LOUVET

Étoile Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

@germainlouvet

HUGO MARCHAND

Étoile Dancer
Paris Opera Ballet

Hugo Marchand began dancing at the age of 9 at the Nantes Conservatory. A few years later, he received the Conservatory’s gold medal and joined the Paris Opera Ballet School in 2007. He joined the Paris Opera Ballet in 2011.

He quickly rose through the ranks of the company and won the bronze medal at the Varna International Ballet Competition in 2014. He then received the Cercle Carpeaux Prize and the AROP Dance Prize in 2015, awards recognizing the young talents of the Paris Opera. Hugo Marchand was named Étoile Dancer on March 3, 2017, during a tour in Japan where he performed La Sylphide. That same year, he received the Benois de la Danse award in the category of Best Dancer of the Year.

In 2022, he created his non-profit association Hugo Marchand pour la Danse, driven by a desire to transmit knowledge and a strong social commitment. Through its projects, the association works to make dance accessible to a wider audience and to promote this art form in regions where it is sometimes less present. In 2023, he received a second Benois de la Danse award for his performance in Mayerling.
He performs the great ballets of the Paris Opera repertoire while also interpreting numerous contemporary works choreographed by William Forsythe, Crystal Pite, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Mats Ek, Angelin Preljocaj, Jiří Kylián…

He has been honored with the title of Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture.

@humarchand
@hugomarchandpourladanse

HUGO MARCHAND

Founder of the Hugo Marchand pour la Danse Association
Etoile at Paris Opera Ballet

HUGO MARCHAND

Étoile Dancer
Paris Opera Ballet

He has been honored with the title of Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Ministry of Culture.

@humarchand
@hugomarchandpourladanse

Marc Moreau

Étoile Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

Marc Moreau joined the Paris Opera Ballet School in 1988. He completed all his classes there, participating in demonstrations, annual performances, and tours (France, Germany). He performed his first solo role in Play Bach by Claude Bessy. He joined the Paris Opera Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet in 2004 at the age of 17, was promoted to Coryphée in 2008, and then Sujet in 2010, following the ballet’s annual competition. He received the AROP Award in 2010. Since joining the company, he has performed in numerous repertoire productions as a soloist. As part of the company’s official tours abroad, Marc Moreau has performed in China, Japan, Russia, and Australia.

He was promoted to Premier Danseur in 2019. He was named Étoile Dancer by José Martinez following the performance of Ballet Impérial by George Balanchine at the Palais Garnier on March 2, 2023.

@marcmoreau

MARC MOREAU

Etoile at Paris Opera Ballet

Marc Moreau

Étoile Dancer
of the Paris Opera Ballet

He was promoted to Premier Danseur in 2019. He was named Étoile Dancer by José Martinez following the performance of Ballet Impérial by George Balanchine at the Palais Garnier on March 2, 2023.

@marcmoreau

ELENA BONNAY

Pianist

Of Russian origin, Elena Bonnay graduated from the Gnessin Academy of Music in Moscow. Since 1983, she has held the position of rehearsal pianist for the Ballet of the Paris Opera. Her career is divided between her work at the Opera, where she accompanies dance across the full range of the pianistic repertoire, and her collaborations in contemporary works (M. Constant, P. Sciortino, P. Hersant, G. Beytelmann, P. Glass, etc.). She has toured with the Ballet as a solo pianist in the United States, China, Japan, and Brazil. Infusing a spiritual dimension into dance, her musicality and sense of performance have been recognized by numerous choreographers as well as by the soloists and Étoiles of the Paris Opera.
At the Opera, Elena Bonnay regularly performs with renowned orchestras. She has notably played Bach’s concertos, Tchaikovsky’s Concerto No. 3 (with national orchestras in Beijing and Ferrara), and Mozart’s concertos (San Francisco Orchestra, Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra, London Chamber Music Orchestra, Paris Opera Orchestra). Passionate about world music, she is a member of the Quinquet Nuevo Tango Tangamente and performs in France and abroad with bandoneonist and accordionist Max Bonnay.

ELENA BONNAY

Pianist

ELENA BONNAY

Pianist

OPHÉLIE GAILLARD

Cellist

Ophélie Gaillard is a French cellist born in 1974 in Paris. From the age of 7, she showed a keen interest in the cello. She studied in Paris, earning three prizes at the CNSM in chamber music, cello, and baroque cello. She also holds a cello diploma and a degree in musicology from the Sorbonne. After winning several international prizes, including the 3rd prize at the J.S. Bach International Cello Competition in Leipzig in 1998, she was voted “Instrumental Solo Revelation” by the public at the Victoires de la Musique Classique in 2003. Since then, she has performed in the most prestigious venues (Bruges, Amsterdam, Bozar). After co-founding the Amarillis ensemble (a chamber music group with a flexible configuration), she created Pulcinella in 2005, a collective of virtuosos dedicated to historically informed performance. She has recorded two albums, *Boccherini, Madrid* (2007) and *Vivaldi, Complete Cello Sonatas* (2006), both of which received top discographic distinctions.

She also collaborates with contemporary composers and dancers, notably hip-hop dancer Ibrahim Sissoko, and contributed to the creation of a dance performance in 2012. Her recordings of the complete Bach suites, Britten suites, and her sonata with pianist Vanessa Wagner have received international critical acclaim, as has her album dedicated to the works for cello and piano by Gabriel Fauré, recorded with Bruno Fontaine.

@ophelie.gaillard

OPHÉLIE GAILLARD

Cellist

OPHÉLIE GAILLARD

Cellist

@ophelie.gaillard

The Program

Show Duration: 1h

Don Quixote, Kitri’s Entrance after Marius Petipa / Léon Minkus
Swan Lake, Pas de Deux, Act II after Marius Petipa / Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Sonatine George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust / Maurice Ravel
Giselle, Pas de Deux, Act II after Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot, libretto by Théophile Gautier / Adolphe Adam

The Dying Swan after Michel Fokine / Camille Saint-Saëns
Clair de Lune Alastair Marriott / Claude Debussy
Le Parc Angelin Preljocaj / Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Manon Kenneth MacMillan / Jules Massenet

The performance of Sonatine, a Balanchine ® Ballet, is presented by arrangement with The George Balanchine Trust and has been produced in accordance with the Balanchine Style ® and Balanchine Technique ® Service standards established and provided by the Trust.

Program subject to change

EVENT ENDED !

VIEW THE GALLERY