Greek National Opera: The programme of the 2025/26 season

The Greek National Opera presents the programme for the new 2025/26 season. The motto of the new season is “Opera born of the past, ahead of its time”. The 2025/26 season presents a variety of productions that bring the past and present into a productive dialogue.

International tours by the Greek National Opera
2025/26 Season
China, Italy, Cyprus | September, October 2025

Opera • Tour
La traviata
Giuseppe Verdi
13, 14 September 2025 – China: Guangming Culture & Art Center, Shenzhen, China

Musical direction: Lukas Karytinos
Stage direction, sets, costumes: Nikos S. Petropoulos
Stage direction revival: Ion Kesoulis
Lighting: Christos Tziogkas • Chorus master: Agathangelos Georgakatos
Featuring Vassiliki Karayanni, Dimitra Kotidou, Yannis Christopoulos, Konstantinos Klironomos, Dionysios Sourbis, Chrysanthi Spitadi, Eleni Voudouraki, Yannis Kalyvas, Haris Andrianos, Nikos Kotenidis, Yanni Yannissis, Nikos Katsigiannis, Ioannis Kontelis
With the Orchestra, Chorus, and members of the Ballet of the GNO

The Greek National Opera is traveling for the first time to Shenzhen, the fastest-growing city in China and the third largest in population after Beijing and Shanghai –with more than 17 million inhabitants–, to present La traviata in Nikos S. Petropoulos’ iconic staging. The two performances of Verdi’s masterpiece will be showcased at Shenzhen’s new cultural centre, the architectural jewel Guangming Culture & Art Center. The production, conducted by Lukas Karytinos, will be presented in China, featuring the GNO ensembles –Orchestra, Chorus, and members of the Ballet– while the leading roles will be performed by prominent Greek soloists, including Vassiliki Karayanni, Dimitra Kotidou, Yannis Christopoulos, Konstantinos Klironomos, and Dionysios Sourbis. The tour of La traviata to China is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

Dance • Tour
Golden Age
Konstantinos Rigos
18, 19 September 2025 – Cyprus: Nicosia Municipal Theatre
As part of the Nicosia International Festival
18 October 2025 – Italy: Visavì Gorizia Dance Festival
As part of Gorizia European Capital of Culture 2025

Concept, choreography, set, track selection: Konstantinos Rigos
Music: Ted Regklis • Dramaturgy: Erie Kyrgia
Art installation: Petros Touloudis • Costumes: Daglara
Lighting: Christos Tziogkas • Video: Vasilis Kehagias

Following its world premiere at the Belgrade Dance Festival and a successful series of performances in Athens in the spring of 2025, the remarkable production by the GNO Ballet Golden Age, created by Konstantinos Rigos, is scheduled to continue its European tour. In September, it will visit Cyprus for two performances at the Nicosia Municipal Theatre, while in October, it will arrive in Italy for a single performance in Gorizia –the European Capital of Culture 2025– as part of the Visavì Gorizia Dance Festival. This international tour is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

Opera • Concert presentation
Flora mirabilis
Spyridon Samaras
27 September 2025
Starts at: 19.30
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Musical direction: Konstantinos Terzakis
Restoration of the arrangement and curation of the edition: Yannis Samprovalakis – Hellenic Music Center
Chorus master: Agathangelos Georgakatos
Featuring Vassiliki Karayanni, Dionysios Sourbis, Yannis Christopoulos, Yanni Yannissis
With the Orchestra and Chorus of the GNO

The Greek National Opera introduces an unknown gem from the Ionian Music School to the public. Following its remarkable success in late 19th-century Europe, Flora mirabilis returns to the Greek audience in a restored edition, presented in concert form (concertante). The masterful music of the eclectic and cosmopolitan Corfiot composer Spyridon-Filiskos Samaras, renowned for its effortless melodic inspiration, imaginative harmonic language, and intricate arrangement, combined with his deep understanding of vocal composition and innate theatrical perception of musical dramaturgy, positions him as an equal to the prominent European composers of his era.

Flora mirabilis is described as “a musical legend in three acts”. The Italian libretto was penned by Ferdinando Fontana, who also crafted the librettos for Puccini’s first two melodramas. Its allegorical plot is set in medieval Sweden. The opera was first performed at the Carcano Theatre in Milan on 16 May 1886. It was so successful that the following year it was staged at La Scala in Milan, featuring notable figures. The performance was conducted by the esteemed conductor Franco Fazzio, and the leading role of Lydia was sung by Emma Calvé, one of the most famous female opera singers of the Belle Époque, celebrated for her performance in Carmen. Flora mirabilis was Samaras’ first significant international success, which was performed at various Italian theatres, as well as venues in Cologne and Vienna. Its music aligns with the spirit of late 19th-century Italian composers, such as Puccini, Mascagni, and Leoncavallo.

Unfortunately, the opera’s score was destroyed, along with a significant part of the Italian publishing house Casa Musicale Sonzogno’s archive, in 1943, during the Allied forces’ bombardment of Milan. The only thing that survived was the edition of the reduction for voices and piano, which had been released in numerous copies and was widespread in many libraries and private collections. This edition served as the basis for the Greek National Opera’s revival of the work in April 1979, which led to a new arrangement by the legendary maestro Odysseas Dimitriadis, who also conducted the performances.

However, almost a decade ago, a significant portion of the original orchestral musical material was discovered in the musical archives of the Philharmonic Company “Mantzaros” on Corfu. In 2016, a copy of this material was entrusted exclusively to the Greek National Opera. This new material, along with the surviving original arrangement of two dance excerpts stored in the GNO Musical Library, was reviewed by musicologist, clarinetist, and Associate Professor at the Ionian University, Yannis Samprovalakis. Samprovalakis complemented and restored the opera’s original arrangement, and also curated the new edition of the score. The GNO will perform the opera in its restored form for the first time.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)

Tickets will go on sale on 26/6/2025.

Opera • New production
La Gioconda
Amilcare Ponchielli
Co-production with the Salzburg Easter Festival and the Royal Opera House, London
19, 22, 25, 29 October & 1, 4, 7 November 2025
Starts at: 19.00 (Sunday: 18.30)

GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Musical direction: Fabrizio Ventura
Stage direction: Oliver Mears
Sets: Philipp Fürhofer
Costumes: Annemarie Woods
Choreography: Lucy Burge
Lighting design: Fabiana Piccioli
Chorus master: Agathangelos Georgakatos
Children’s chorus mistress: Konstantina Pitsiakou
Featuring in the leading roles: Anna Pirozzi, Alisa Kolosova, Arsen Soghomonyan (19, 22, 25, 29/10), Francesco Pio Galasso (1 ,4, 7/11), Anita Rachvelishvili, Dimitri Platanias, Tassos Apostolou
With Soloists, the Orchestra, Chorus, and Children’s Chorus of the GNO (as part of its educational mission)

The Greek National Opera will officially open the 2025/26 season with Ponchielli’s widely popular opera La Gioconda, in a new major international co-production with two of the world’s most prestigious opera companies: the Salzburg Easter Festival and the Royal Opera House in London. Conducting the opera will be Fabrizio Ventura, while Oliver Mears, the Artistic Director of Covent Garden, will take over the stage direction. This production is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

La Gioconda is considered one of the greatest grand operas in the repertoire, not only because it tells the dramatic story of a great unfulfilled love and self-sacrifice but also because it is rich in unique melodies, famous arias, and wonderful choral parts. And, of course, because it includes one of the most famous ballets of all time, “The Dance of the Hours”, which is accompanied by a melody we all know since it has passed into pop culture after being used in Disney’s film Fantasia in 1940. The work’s world premiere was given at La Scala in Milan in 1876 and was met with tremendous success, similar to that of Verdi’s Aida and Otello, which were composed during the same decade. The libretto was penned by Tobia Gorrio –an obvious anagram and pseudonym of the poet and composer Arrigo Boito–, while the plot is based on Victor Hugo’s play Angelo, Tyrant of Padua.

In Boito’s hands, the work was set in 17th-century Venice. The main character is La Gioconda, a wandering singer who is in love with Enzo Grimaldo. Enzo, however, loves Laura, the wife of nobleman Alvise. After many adventures, La Gioconda helps the two lovers flee, while she kills herself.

In this typical opera of late Romanticism, with influences from French grand operas, Ponchielli –clearly inspired by Verdi– crafts a work featuring tempestuous characters, dramatic scenes, rich orchestration, melodious beauty, and theatrical glamour.

La Gioconda marks Maria Callas’ emblematic debut at the Arena di Verona in 1947, which signaled the beginning of her unsurpassable international career. The work’s famous aria “Suicidio” has been inextricably associated with her voice and performance.

The GNO’s international co-production opened at the Salzburg Easter Festival in 2023 to great success. Oliver Mears, the Artistic Director of the Royal Opera House in London and one of the most sought-after opera directors in Europe, set the action in contemporary Venice, delivering a staging that is both impressive and faithful to the spirit of the work while unveiling the characters’ schemes and motives in depth. According to a review of the British Telegraph: “This lavish staging may be as good as this grand but challenging opera is ever going to get.” Following the performances in Athens, La Gioconda will be presented in London.

In the title role, the GNO welcomes star dramatic soprano Anna Pirozzi, who left her mark on GNO’s recent production of Medea. Joining her in the leading roles will be the highly sought-after tenor Arsen Soghomonyan, renowned mezzo-sopranos Alisa Kolosova and Anita Rachvelishvili, distinguished Greek baritone Dimitri Platanias, and other exceptional soloists.

Lead Donor of the GNO & Production donor: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Major sponsor: PPC

Tickets will go on sale on 26/6/2025.

International Opera Awards
2025 Award Ceremony
13 November 2025
Starts at: 19.00
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
Featuring Soloists, the Orchestra, Chorus, and Ballet of the GNO

The 2025 International Opera Awards ceremony will be held for the first time at the Greek National Opera. This world-class event, awarding the “Opera Oscars” (as dubbed by Süddeutsche Zeitung), will take place on 13 November 2025 at the Stavros Niarchos Hall of the Greek National Opera in the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC). The event is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

The International Opera Awards honour exceptional operatic talent from across the globe, celebrating the diverse and collaborative nature of this cherished art form. The annual awards ceremony has become an important landmark on the international operatic calendar. Founded by philanthropist Harry Hyman in 2012, the Awards aim to elevate the profile of opera as an art form, recognise and reward excellence, and help generate funds for the Opera Awards Foundation, which provides bursaries for emerging and talented opera creators and performers worldwide.

The Greek National Opera’s hosting of the International Opera Awards ceremony represents a natural continuation of its prolific activities, given that, since its relocation to the SNFCC in 2017 under the artistic direction of Giorgos Koumendakis and with support from the SNF, the GNO has evolved into one of the most inspired and creative opera houses in Europe, showcasing many new commissions, new productions, and international collaborations, along with a remarkable expansion of its repertoire.

The Artistic Director of the Greek National Opera, Giorgos Koumendakis, notes: “We are delighted that the Greek National Opera is going to host the International Opera Awards ceremony, for the very first time, in 2025 at the Stavros Niarchos Hall. Every year, this globally prestigious event singles out the most remarkable artistic achievements in the realm of opera and rewards younger and already distinguished opera artists along with opera houses worldwide. The award ceremony will take place on 13 November 2025, curated by the GNO and featuring the Orchestra, Chorus, and Ballet of the GNO. I would like to express my gratitude to the Opera Awards Foundation and the Awards Committee for the honour of selecting the Greek National Opera for this role, as well as the Stavros Niarchos Foundation for its support of this ambitious project.”

Harry Hyman, founder of the International Opera Awards, underscores: “We’re thrilled to bring the International Opera Awards to Athens for the first time, and to continue to celebrate the truly international art form of opera. Our thanks go to the Greek National Opera for hosting the 2025 ceremony, and I look forward to celebrating with them and the rest of the opera world in November.”

Lead Donor of the GNO & Production donor: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)

Tickets will go on sale on 26/6/2025.

Opera • Revival • Tribute to Nikos Petropoulos
Tosca
Giacomo Puccini
27, 30 November, 2, 7, 20, 23, 27 December 2025 & 4, 7 January 2026
Starts at: 19.30 (Sunday: 18.30)
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Musical direction: Paolo Carignani
Stage direction, sets, costumes: Nikos S. Petropoulos
Stage direction revival: Ion Kesoulis
Lighting: Giuseppe di Iorio
Featuring in the leading roles: Aleksandra Kurzak (27, 30/11 & 2, 7/12), Cellia Costea (20, 23, 27/12 & 4, 7/1),Marcelo Puente (27, 30/11 & 2, 20, 23, 27/12 & 4, 7/1), Roberto Alagna (7/12), Dimitri Platanias (27, 30/11 & 2, 7/12), Tassis Christoyannis (20, 23, 27/12 & 4, 7/1)
With Soloists, the Orchestra, Chorus, and Children’s Chorus of the GNO (as part of its educational mission)

Tosca by Giacomo Puccini, with stage direction, sets, and costumes by Nikos S. Petropoulos, returns to the Greek National Opera on 27 November 2025, for nine exceptional performances at the Stavros Niarchos Hall. Tosca’s revival opens the tribute to Nikos S. Petropoulos, who has been collaborating with the Greek National Opera since 1971. As a set and costume designer, and/or director, he has left a significant mark on more than twenty productions of opera, operetta, and dance drama, which have been performed repeatedly with enormous success over the last five decades.

Tosca, a unique operatic thriller, had its world premiere in Rome in 1900. It is rightly considered one of the most famous operas in the repertoire, showcasing passionate emotions underscored by Giacomo Puccini’s highly evocative music. The first time it was presented by the GNO was in 1942 at the Summer Theatre on Klafthmonos Square, featuring the nineteen-year-old Maria Kalogeropoulou (who would later be known as Callas) in the title role. Since then, it has been performed very frequently due to strong popular demand.

This particular production of Tosca made its debut at the Olympia Theatre in 2007, following a proposal from the then Artistic Director of the GNO, Stefanos Lazaridis, to Nikos S. Petropoulos, who set the opera’s plot against the backdrop of the Second World War in Rome. The performance highlights elements of violence and sadism while allowing for extreme emotions to be expressed with even greater intensity. In Act II, the protagonist’s intimidation by the lustful officer Scarpia, along with the scene in which Tosca kills him, take on thriller dimensions. The production’s black-and-white aesthetic and evocative lighting create a cinematic atmosphere, reminiscent of Italian neorealism films.

The director, Nikos S. Petropoulos, notes: “In February 1944, in a Rome that seems like a travesty of an Unfortified City, overrun with refugees, spies, double spies, informers, collaborators of the Germans, traitors, torturers, andfugitives, amidst the barrage of Allied bombings, the constant movement of German troops, and widespread panic, Tosca weaves a perfect thread to lead us into a 20th-century realist historical drama.”

Making her highly anticipated debut at the Greek National Opera in the title role will be the international opera star and sought-after soprano Aleksandra Kurzak, who has recently received widespread acclaim for her performance in Toscaat the New York Metropolitan Opera, as well as at venues in Berlin, Barcelona, and Verona. Immediately before Athens, she will also perform Tosca in a new production at the Royal Opera House in London. On the 7th of December, she will be joined on stage by her husband and distinguished opera superstar, Roberto Alagna, a tenor with a remarkable career spanning nearly four decades, who will also make his GNO debut. The world-class cast includes the renowned soprano Cellia Costea from the GNO, the internationally acclaimed tenor Marcelo Puente, and the globally celebrated Greek baritones Dimitri Platanias and Tassis Christoyannis.

The performance on the 30th of November 2025 is dedicated to the late Ulysses Kyriacopoulos, former President of the Board of the Greek National Opera and is made possible by the support of the Kyriakopoulos family.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Tribute to Nikos S. Petropoulos sponsor: Piraeus Bank

Tickets will go on sale on 26/6/2025.

Musical for the whole family • New production
Isadora Duck
Stella Michailidou / Kostas Vomvolos
6, 7, 14, 21, 24, 28 December 2025 & 3, 4 January 2026
Starts at: 11.00, 12.00, 17.00
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Text, stage direction: Stella Michailidou
Music: Kostas Vomvolos
Sets, costumes: Kenny McLellan
Movement coach: Fotis Diamantopoulos
Lighting: Christos Tziogkas
Video: Babis Venetopoulos
The performance’s text is based on Stella Michailidou’s book of the same title, published by Kaleidoscopio Publishing.

The musical for the whole family, Isadora Duck, written and directed by Stella Michailidou and featuring music by Kostas Vomvolos, transforms the stage of the Stavros Niarchos Hall into a peculiar “swan lake”, where a petite duck aspires to carve out her own path in dance.

Following the great success of its first presentation at the Alternative Stage, Isadora Duck is coming back in a new version for a larger venue, offering an ideal and engaging introduction to the art of dance for both young and older audiences.

The performance references a pioneering figure in modern dance, the “barefoot dancer” Isadora Duncan, along with classical fairy tales, such as Hans Christian Andersen’s The Ugly Duckling. Its heroine, the petite duck Isadora Duck, with her uniquely beautiful blue feathers, lives in Swan Lake, struggling to make her dream of becoming a ballerina come true. Passion and the desire to dance are at the heart of this performance, which communicates important values in a simple yet effective manner, offering audiences a tender and at once cruel self-awareness adventure through music, dance, and humour.

Actress and choreographer Stella Michailidou, known for her plays for children and young people, draws on Isadora’s tale to discuss the concepts of inclusion, acceptance, respect, and recognition with both children and adults. The story of Isadora unfolds through the vibrant narratives recounted on stage by swans, ducks, and colourful birds of the lake, using the language of dance and music.

“My wings may be small and my legs crooked, but my soul never stops dancing,” sings the tiny duck who dreams of becoming a ballerina, even though she ranks last in her class. When her teacher, Mr Coup de Pied, expels her, Isadora Duck wanders desperately until she slowly begins to believe in herself and discovers her own unique dance style. A free dance, in perfect harmony with nature, without the restrictions imposed by classical ballet. A dance that allows her to express her true feelings and helps her overcome fear, loneliness, and difficulties.

The music is composed by Kostas Vomvolos, who is a member of the bands Primavera en Salonico and Chimerini Kolymvites. Lydia Stefou portrays Isadora, Margarita Syngeniotou takes on the roles of the Teacher, Narrator, Ms Hoity-Toity, and Ms Papov, and Dimitris Nalbandis performs as Mr Coup-de-Pied.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Major sponsor: PPC

Tickets will go on sale on 26/6/2025.

Ballet • New production
Giselle
Music Adolphe Adam, with additions by Friedrich Burgmüller and Boris Asafyev
19, 21, 24, 26, 28, 30, 31 December 2025 & 2, 3 January 2026
Starts at: 19.30 (Sunday & 31/12: 18.30)
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center
Choreography revival, adaptation: Verónica Villar, Elena Iglesias, based on Marius Petipa’s original choreography (according to Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot)

Musical direction: José Salazar
Sets, costumes: Dido Gogkou
Lighting: Eleftheria Deko
With the Orchestra, Principal Dancers, Soloists, Demi-Soloists, the Corps de ballet, and students from the Professional Dance School of the GNO

The Ballet of the Greek National Opera presents a new production of Giselle, one of the most famous ballets of Romanticism, featuring enchanting music by Adolphe Adam. Distinguished choreographers Verónica Villar and Elena Iglesias revive the classical choreography of Marius Petipa, while José Salazar will conduct the GNO Orchestra.

Giselle is a remarkable phenomenon in the history of ballet. Although it had been largely forgotten in Europe for many years, it began to be reintroduced into the repertoire of major companies in the early 20th century. The title role, often called “the Hamlet of ballet”, still represents the ultimate challenge for female dancers aiming to establish themselves in classical ballet.

To the eyes of the vast ballet-loving audiences, Giselle never grows old, as it illuminates deeply felt emotions such as love, jealousy, and betrayal, while, most importantly, portraying an enormous love that overcomes death to protect life itself.

The story recounts the unfortunate love of peasant girl Giselle for Count Albrecht, who presents himself to her as an ordinary villager. When his true identity is revealed and Giselle discovers that he is betrothed to another woman, she loses her sanity and takes her own life. One night, under the light of a full moon in the forest, the souls of girls betrayed by their lovers on the eve of their weddings come to take revenge, disguised as elves. They entice passing men, forcing them to dance non-stop until they collapse from exhaustion. They also mislead the repentant Albrecht, but Giselle intervenes, supporting him until the break of dawn, at which point the elves’ power wanes. After forgiving him, she returns to her grave, leaving him inconsolable.

Giselle’s initial choreography was created by the French choreographer of Italian descent, Jean Coralli, even though the principal dancer’s parts were designed by the Frenchman Jules Perrot, who was involved with the protagonist, Carlotta Grisi. It was on their work that Marius Petipa based his version, which he later presented with the Imperial Ballet of Saint Petersburg. This version serves as the foundation for most contemporary choreographies, including the new revival that the Ballet of the GNO is going to present.

Marius Petipa was the one who renamed the leading male role from Albert to Albrecht, and it is his choreographic language that creates a magical dialogue between classical style, emotion, and storytelling.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Ballet sponsor: Prodea Investments

Tickets will go on sale on 26/6/2025.

Performance-installation • New production
Requiem for the End of Love
Giorgos Koumendakis / Dimitris Papaioannou
20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30 January 2026
Starts at: 19.30, 21.00 (Sunday: 18.30, 20.00)
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Music: Giorgos Koumendakis
Concept, stage direction, choreography, visual design: Dimitris Papaioannou
Musical direction: Teodor Currentzis
Sets: Dimitris Papaioannou, Loukas Bakas (based on the initial set design by Lili Pezanou)
Costumes: Vassilis Papatsarouchas
Lighting design: Dimitris Papaioannou, Stephanos Droussiotis
Featuring fifty performers, an Orchestra, a Chorus, and a soprano

Requiem for the End of Love, a work that marked the artistic creation of the 1990s, signals the long-anticipated reunion of two emblematic fellow-travellers of the legendary Edafos Dance Theatre, Dimitris Papaioannou and Giorgos Koumendakis, in a new reading by the internationally acclaimed conductor Teodor Currentzis. This production is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

In 1995, at the Old Electric Power Station of PPC in Neo Faliro, Edafos Dance Theatre created a rupture in time with the presentation of the performance-installation A Moment’s Silence, conceived, directed, and choreographed by Dimitris Papaioannou, and featuring music by Giorgos Koumendakis in the first chapter and Manos Hadjidakis in the second chapter. With the trauma induced by the death of beloved friends from AIDS remaining unresolved and with “fear haunting the love lives of an entire generation,” Dimitris Papaioannou asked Giorgos Koumendakis to compose a “death tempest” – a requiem for those who lost their lives to AIDS. In that same performance, a reluctant hope for life was conveyed by Manos Hadjidakis’ Songs of Sin, based on poetry by Dinos Christianopoulos.

Thirty-one years later, after cycles that have opened and closed and paths that were sometimes parallel and at other times opposing, Dimitris Papaioannou sets up the great ladder for that stage installation at the Greek National Opera and reworks anew the Requiem for the End of Love, “one of Giorgos Koumendakis’ most powerful music pieces,” as he notes. The synergy of these two creators, who paved the way for a new stage language in dance, theatre, opera, and even at the Olympic Games ceremonies, is complemented by an ingenious maestro whose name is internationally hailed for his idiosyncratic interpretations of major symphonic works and operas: Teodor Currentzis. In the 2025/26 season, during which the GNO will be conversing with its historical past, the Artistic Director and composer Giorgos Koumendakis will bring onto the stage of the Stavros Niarchos Hall one of the iconic symphonic works from his early creative period, reviving, after three decades, a significant performance-installation that bears the signature of Dimitris Papaioannou.

Twenty-four years after the dissolution of Edafos Dance Theatre, which left an indelible mark on the Greek artistic scene during its seventeen-year existence, Greek and international audiences will have the chance to rediscover a work by Dimitris Papaioannou that strikes a balance between physical theatre and visual installation, based on a musical piece that serves as an early dramatic operatic harbinger in Giorgos Koumendakis’ compositional career. The dynamic collaboration between Papaioannou and Koumendakis during the 1990s led to the first public artistic acknowledgment of the AIDS epidemic in Greece and the rights of an entire community.

Lead Donor of the GNO & Production donor: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Major sponsor: PPC

Tickets will go on sale on 1/11/2025.

Opera • Revival
Falstaff
Giuseppe Verdi
15, 18, 21, 26 February & 1, 5 March 2026
Starts at: 19.30 (Sunday: 18.30)
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Musical direction: Derrick Inouye
Stage direction: Stephen Langridge
Sets, costumes: George Souglides
Movement: Dan O’Neill
Lighting: Peter Mumford
Chorus master: Agathangelos Georgakatos
Children’s chorus mistress: Konstantina Pitsiakou
Cast: Tassis Christoyannis, Dionysios Sourbis, Cellia Costea, Nefeli Kotseli, Marilena Striftombola, Vassilis Kavayas, Chrysanthi Spitadi, Yanni Yannissis, Yannis Kalyvas, Andreas Karaoulis
With the Orchestra, Chorus, and Children’s Chorus of the GNO (as part of its educational mission)

The Greek National Opera revives the highly successful production of the comic opera Falstaff for six performances at the Stavros Niarchos Hall. Verdi’s swan song, based on Shakespeare’s comedy The Merry Wives of Windsor, is brought back to life in a staging by distinguished director and Artistic Director of the UK’s famous Glyndebourne Opera Festival, Stephen Langridge, which was first presented by the GNO during the 2022/23 season.

Central to the action is the washed-up old knight Sir John Falstaff, whose romantic misadventures make him a laughingstock in the provincial society of his small town. In the end, after a series of tragicomic situations have unfolded, all the work’s characters sing the following refrain together: “All the world’s a jest… but whoever laughs last, laughs best.”

Verdi surprised everyone with his final opera, Falstaff, as not many believed the then 80-year-old composer had another major work in him (and a comedy at that!) following the huge success of his Otello (1887). After his adaptation of the plays Macbeth and Othello, Verdi turned to Shakespeare one final time and picked out a comedy: The Merry Wives of Windsor. The opera has justly been called a masterpiece of the genre for its expressive economy and concise form – for its composer’s ability to encapsulate entire characters and situations with a single musical phrase.

Langridge, who was appointed Artistic Director of the UK’s renowned Glyndebourne Opera Festival in 2019, shifted the setting of Falstaff’s story to 1930s England, to a time dominated by the absurdity of a social hierarchy that bordered on feudalism. The director notes: “Our production is set in England in the 1930s. A time between the wars (Falstaff was an old soldier), with a scandalous Prince of Wales (like Hal in Henry IV) who will briefly become King Edward VIII, and a time when the hierarchies are rigid, with social class more respected than money. Falstaff is based on Shakespeare’s only fully English comedy, but the end is pure Verdi / Boito. ‘Tutto nel mondo è burla’ (All the world’s a jest) is their conclusion – and when we look around us at today’s chaotic world, we can only agree, and then perhaps head off to the pub for a pint of warm ale and a laugh with Sir John!”

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)

Tickets will go on sale on 1/11/2025.

Ballet • Revival
Swan Lake
Konstantinos Rigos / Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
7, 8, 15, 22, 27, 28 March & 3, 4 April 2026
Starts at: 19.30 (Sunday: 18.30)
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Choreography, stage direction, sets: Konstantinos Rigos, with references to the choreographies of Marius Petipaand Lev Ivanov
Original musical composition: Ted Regklis
Musical direction: Philippe Forget
Dramaturgy consultant: Alexandros Efklidis
Costumes: Giorgos Segredakis
Lighting: Christos Tziogkas
Associate architect: Mary Tsagari
Video: Konstantinos Garinis
With the Orchestra, Principal dancers, Soloists, Demi-Soloists, the Corps de ballet, and students from the Professional Dance School of the GNO

Swan Lake by the Ballet of the Greek National Opera returns for eight performances at the Stavros Niarchos Hall, featuring Konstantinos Rigos’ successful choreography. The Director of the GNO Ballet revisits Tchaikovsky’s classical masterpiece, recontextualizing extensive parts of Petipa / Ivanov’s original ballet choreography and raising new questions about how major works of the classical ballet repertoire can be reinterpreted in the present day.

Konstantinos Rigos explores some of our era’s fears and obsessive images to immerse himself in his own lake. A landscape in a post-destruction era. A deserted gas station serves as a reminder of a world that has run out of fuel. A lake where the natural and the supernatural co-exist and alternate. Prince Siegfried emerges as a romantic hero who constantly challenges himself against the absolute, possessing a transformative gaze that shapes those around him. Siegfried’s gaze is, after all, the main narrator. The white swan and the black swan appear as his fantasy projections, which he is called upon to hunt and kill; yet, as they are merely parts of himself, his arrow will ultimately strike him too.

The original choreography by Petipa and Ivanov dominates the lake scene, resembling a ritual that is repeated in this atemporal setting. By creating a choreographic palimpsest, the dancers alternate between classical and various other choreographic styles, ranging from neoclassical to contemporary.

Konstantinos Rigos notes: “In Swan Lake, I present a version that flirts with the enchantment of classical dance and neoclassical dance. The heroes preserve the characteristics of the classical version, but their roles are portrayed as projections of the prince himself. I see the roles of the white and black swan as two sides of the same person, aiming to illuminate the struggle between them; the innocence and the need for self-destruction hidden within every human. Human existence is drawn to both good and evil. I believe this is an ingenious feature of this work and one of the elements I want to bring out.”

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Ballet sponsor: Prodea Investments

Tickets will go on sale on 1/11/2025.

Opera • New production
Anna Bolena
Gaetano Donizetti
26, 29 March & 2, 5, 15, 19 April 2026
Starts at: 19.30 (Sunday: 18.30)
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Musical direction: Jacques Lacombe
Stage direction: Themelis Glynatsis
Sets: Leslie Travers
Original costumes: Nicholas Georgiadis
Costume revival: Claire Bracewell • Movement: Katerina Gevetzi
Chorus master: Agathangelos Georgakatos
Featuring in the leading roles: Maria Kosovitsa, Yannis Christopoulos, Petros Magoulas
With Soloists, the Orchestra and Chorus of the GNO

Fifty years after the legendary GNO production of Anna Bolena, featuring sets and costumes by the acclaimed Nicholas Georgiadis and stage direction by Dinos Yannopoulos, Donizetti’s masterpiece returns to the stage in a new production directed by Themelis Glynatsis, in which the new sets by Leslie Travers engage in a conversation with Nicholas Georgiadis’ historic costumes.

Anna Bolena was first performed to enormous success at the Carcano Theatre in Milan on 26 December 1830, featuring leading opera artists of the time. The libretto was penned by Felice Romani and was based on Alessandro Pepoli’s Anna Bolena and Ippolito Pindemonte’s Enrico VIII ossia Anna Bolena. The plot references the blood-stained years of the English Reformation and the tragic fate of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII’s second wife, who was executed at the Tower of London in 1536.

Anna Bolena is one of Gaetano Donizetti’s most famous operas and marks his first international success, as immediately after its debut in Milan, it was presented across almost the entire world. It is a dramatic story filled with passion, political intrigue, and betrayal, which, in combination with its inspired musical and poetic language, fascinatingly unveils the characters in the work, especially Anna’s. Trapped between emotions and political interests, she transforms from a woman in love to a victim of fate. Part of the Tudor Trilogy (along with Maria Stuarda and Roberto Devereux), Anna Bolena was written in just a month. After its world premiere, it remained popular for nearly fifty years. Then, it was forgotten and re-entered the repertoire during the 1950s, primarily thanks to Callas’ performance at La Scala in Milan in 1957.

The production’s director, Themelis Glynatsis, notes: “In this new production of Donizetti’s Anna Bolena, the core of the dramaturgy and the entire aesthetic of the performance revolve around the conflicts of different versions of historicity: the romantic and historically inaccurate portrayal of Anne Boleyn’s final days by the composer, NicholasGeorgiadis’ costumes for the 1976 staging of the work at the GNO, and our own historical perception. Georgiadis’ costumes are brought back to life half a century later in a bold, new stage setting that illustrates the tense balance between historical authenticity and contemporary experience. The historical characters of 16th-century England, Georgiadis’ costumes, the history of the GNO itself, and our own historical reflexes become materials that will mould a contemporary and intense performative present in constant dialogue with the past. Set and costumes transform before the audience’s eyes, dramatizing the conflict between a captivating authenticity and a modern visual gesture that reveals the power and oppression mechanisms often hidden within this fascination. The new Bolena of the GNO not only focuses on the tragic relationships among the characters, but also explores their imprisonment by their very history, clothing, living spaces, as well as our fantasies about the past. Finally, it also aims to accompany them in their melancholic effort to live out an elusive experience of emotional truth and personal freedom; that is, to become contemporary.”

Making her debut in the challenging title role will be the emerging Greek soprano Maria Kosovitsa, who left a lasting impression as Liù in the Greek National Opera’s production of Turandot at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in the summer of 2025.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Production sponsors: Eurobank – Metlen Energy & Metals

Tickets will go on sale on 1/11/2025.

Opera • New production
Carmen
Georges Bizet
Co-produced by the Opéra Royal de Versailles Spectacles, Opéra de Rouen, Bru Zane France, Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de musique romantique française. Executive producer: Bru Zane France 30 April, 2, 3, 5, 7, 14, 17, 20, 24, 26, 28 May & 4 June 2026
Starts at: 19.00 (Sunday: 18.30)
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Musical direction: Konstantinos Terzakis
Stage direction: Roman Gilbert
Sets: Antoine Fontaine
Costumes: Christian Lacroix
Choreography: Vincent Chaillet
Lighting: Hervé Gary
Chorus master: Agathangelos Georgakatos
Children’s chorus mistress: Konstantina Pitsiakou
Featuring in the lead roles: Gaëlle Arquez, Cellia Costea, Marina Viotti, Charles Castronovo, Andrea Carè, Dionysios Sourbis, Tassos Apostolou, Nikos Kotenidis, Vassiliki Karayanni
With Soloists, the Orchestra, Chorus, and Children’s Chorus of the GNO (as part of its educational mission)

In the context of the 2025/26 season’s theme, the Greek National Opera presents, for the first time in Greece, a faithful revival of the world premiere of Carmen that was held at the Opéra Comique in Paris in 1875. After years of research into the director’s notebook and the designs of the costumes and sets for this landmark premiere of a work that was meant to become one of the most famous operas of all time, the Palazzetto Bru Zane – Centre de musique romantique française achieved a unique recreation of that world premiere featuring the stunning historical sets and costumes that Georges Bizet himself supervised 151 years ago.

The most famous opera in the French repertoire –a symbol of love and freedom– and one of the most emblematic operas overall, continues to provoke audiences today just as it did when it was first presented in Paris. Over its 151-year-long history, numerous creators who staged it have tried everything, from academic and traditional approaches to productions that have completely deconstructed the opera’s spirit. In our era, perhaps the most revolutionary and unexpected step for Carmen is the discovery of the original direction, sets, and costumes. Such an attempt does not equate to a museum approach; instead, it constitutes a new insight into Carmen’s early steps. Although it may seem strange today, in the 19th century, the concept of an opera director did not even exist, and operatic works were staged according to the composer’s instructions. From 1830 onwards, score set aside, operas performed at various venues began utilising a stage notebook as a guide, which was later renamed the director’s notebook and contained information about the placement of the sets, the entrances of actors, the movement of the protagonists and chorus, the use of supporting actors, and other directions.

Based on these valuable archival materials and sketches published in the newspapers of the time, the creative team –consisting of stage director Roman Gilbert, set designer Antoine Fontaine, costume designer Christian Lacroix, choreographer Vincent Chaillet, and lighting designer Hervé Gary– took on the challenging task of recreating the original production of Carmen, by rediscovering the characters and portraying the cruelty of the story – which the audience sometimes tends to overlook due to the music’s exceptional beauty. Carmen speaks for the heroine’s freedom and her right to choose her romantic partners herself, instead of being chosen by them. As she poses a threat to male-dominated and patriarchal societies, the only solution seems to be her elimination – a task taken on by the lovestruck and “betrayed” Don José.

For this production of Carmen, the GNO has assembled a stellar cast, featuring both world-class protagonists and renowned Greek singers. The title role will be shared by three celebrated singers: the distinguished French mezzo-soprano Gaëlle Arquez, who has performed this role at Europe’s most prestigious venues, the soprano from the GNO, Cellia Costea, who will be making her debut as Bizet’s famous heroine, and Marina Viotti, the exceptional Franco-Swiss mezzo-soprano with a remarkable career, who attracted international attention for her performance of “Habanera” along with a heavy metal piece during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris. Portraying Don José will be star tenor Charles Castronovo –one of the most successful tenors of recent decades–, along with the exceptional tenor Andrea Carè, who captivated the Greek audience in the GNO’s recent production of Madama Butterfly at the Odeon of Herodes Atticus.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Production sponsor: Alpha Bank

Tickets will go on sale on 1/2/2026.

Dance • Revival
Golden Age
Konstantinos Rigos
13, 15, 16, 22, 23 May 2026
Starts at: 19.30
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

Concept, choreography, set, track selection: Konstantinos Rigos
Music: Ted Regklis
Dramaturgy: Erie Kyrgia
Art installation: Petros Touloudis
Costumes: Daglara
Lighting: Christos Tziogkas
Video: Vasilis Kehagias

A year after the introduction of Golden Age, Konstantinos Rigos is inviting us once again to his wild party on the stage of the Stavros Niarchos Hall. Following its world premiere at the Belgrade Dance Festival in April of 2025 and a series of successful performances at the SNFCC in May 2025, this remarkable production by the GNO Ballet will return to the Greek National Opera in May 2026 –after a tour to Thessaloniki, Cyprus, and Italy– for all those who were moved and inspired by it, felt nostalgic, and danced in their seats, as well as for those who have not yet had the chance to experience this grand celebration. This international tour is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

Golden Age aims to speak about the present and future of dance, in the form of an unexpected mixtape reflecting Rigos’ 35-year-long journey, in which the concepts of irony and nostalgia appear as identical. From his time at the National School of Dance (KSOT), the spring of Greek dance in the 1990s, and the Dance Theatre Company OKTANA, to his work at the Art Theatre, the National Theatre of Northern Greece, the National Theatre of Greece, the Athens Festival, and the Greek National Opera, Konstantinos Rigos’ iconoclastic imprint transcends the boundaries of dance and converses with the art forms surrounding it. Golden Age is a combative manifesto about the unknown tomorrow; it encompasses Konstantinos Rigos’ profound beliefs and enduring obsessions, set in a breathtaking club atmosphere featuring electronic music and dazzling lighting.

Through golden reflections, vertical screens, mottos, and a grand chandelier created by visual artist Petros Touloudis, the dance performance Golden Age signs the declaration of a new faith that places its beliefs not in God but in humans, not “in the heavens” but “on earth” – a declaration that, although it may not promise salvation, does ensure an exit from hell. Sixteen dancers –sometimes resembling a strange mass that survives in the frenzied rhythms, and at other times acting like clockwork soldiers performing rigid choreography, or even forming unexpected duets that blend romanticism with despair– encapsulate Rigos’ subversive journey from dance theater to the neoclassical strictness of the GNO Ballet. With Konstantinos Rigos’ musical selections and the original music score composed by his collaborator Ted Regklis, Golden Age features the vibrant sounds of a wild dance party, showcasing pieces that range from “reworked” melancholic compositions by Verdi and Bizet to Greek songs by Hiotis, Loizos, and Mamangakis, as well as rock and jazz hits from the 1960s and 1970s. From the aria “Addio del passato” and the line from Hotel California “Some dance to remember, some dance to forget” to texts and songs performed by Rigos’ special guests, Golden Age aspires to remind us that, since we cannot escape who we are, we ought to continue dancing to affirm our existence.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Ballet sponsor: Prodea Investments

Tickets will go on sale on 1/2/2026.

Opera • New production
Medea
Luigi Cherubini
20 June 2026
Starts at: 21.00
Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus

Musical direction: TBA
Artistic direction: Giorgos Koumendakis
Stage direction: Alexis Minotis
Sets, costumes: Yannis Tsarouchis
Chorus master: Agathangelos Georgakatos
In the title role: Anna Pirozzi
With Soloists, the Orchestra and Chorus of the GNO

The Greek National Opera revives Cherubini’s opera Medea at the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, sixty-five years after the legendary 1961 production featuring Maria Callas in the title role, directed by Alexis Minotis, with sets and costumes designed by Yannis Tsarouchis, and choreography by Maria Hors.

In the context of the 2025/26 season’s thematic axis, which explores the concept of “the opera of the future that arises from the womb of the past”, the Greek National Opera decides to revive the 1961 Medea production, using contemporary materials. Through director Alexis Minotis’ notebooks, Tsarouchis’ designs, and the rich photographic material surviving from Callas’ iconic performances in Epidaurus, an attempt will be made to recreate the original production as it was conceived and presented by those legendary artists who have left their mark on Greek culture.

In 1961, Maria Callas accepted the invitation from Costis Bastias, the founding Director of the Greek National Opera, to perform as Medea at the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, a year after her first appearance at the Argolic theatre in Norma. Medea –which Cherubini first presented in Paris in 1797– is one of the operas that Callas had already reintroduced to the 20th-century audience since 1953 in Florence. When, in 1958, the newly founded opera in Dallas commissioned her for a new production of Medea, Callas requested that it be directed by Alexis Minotis, a Greek director associated with ancient Greek tragedy like no other. Despite his initial hesitations, due to his lack of experience in opera, and thanks to the persistence of the leading Greek actress Katina Paxinou, Minotis accepted. He also proposed the renowned Greek painter Yannis Tsarouchis as the set and costume designer. The Dallas premiere was met with unprecedented success, with rave reviews speaking of a “supernatural yet at the same time humane Callas,” “a rejuvenating air of Minotis’ staging” and “the 130 unique costumes by Tsarouchis, made in Greece.” In 1959, the dream team of contemporary Greek culture presented Medea at the Royal Opera House in London, and on 6 and 13 August 1961, the production arrived at the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus.

For the open-air space of Epidaurus, Minotis recrafted the direction, wanting, as he had said, to “recover as much as possible the function of the myth according to the ancient model without, however, neglecting the famous composer’s music not for the least.” At the same time, Tsarouchis adapted the set and created new costumes for the overall 250 people present on stage. The performances in Epidaurus were conducted by Nicola Rescigno. Alongside Callas performed Giuseppe Modesti, Soula Glantzi, Jon Vickers, Kiki Morfoniou, Yorgos Zakkas, Angeliki Drakopoulou, and Anna Maragaki. The cycle of this legendary production concluded in 1962 at La Scala in Milan, where the demanding audience gave a standing ovation not only to Maria Callas –in her final performance of this role– but also to the entire production team.

Following the closure of the Odeon of Herodes Atticus for restoration work, the GNO continues the great tradition of summer opera productions, this time at the Ancient Theatre of Epidaurus, 65 years after it last presented an opera there and for the first time in the 21st century.

After enhancing the GNO archive with new collections, photographs, and rare records, having a significant number of Tsarouchis’ costumes restored by the GNO Costume Department, and ensuring collaboration with the National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation’s Greek Literary and Historical Archive, as well as with the Minotis – Paxinou archive, the Artistic Director of the GNO, Giorgos Koumendakis, is forming a new creative team that will revive the production through a thorough exploration of the surviving material, offering contemporary audiences a rare opportunity to be introduced to a landmark work of Greek culture. The dozens of surviving costumes designed by Tsarouchis, this distinguished visual artist of the 20th century, are unique works of art that represent an exceptional instance of incorporating ancient Greek art into his timeless and unsurpassable aesthetic.

Performing the title role will be the renowned Italian dramatic soprano Anna Pirozzi. The creative team, cast, and conductor will be announced shortly.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Major sponsor: PPC

Opera • Revival • Tribute to Nikos Petropoulos
La traviata
Giuseppe Verdi
18, 19, 21, 23, 24, 26, 28, 30 July 2026
Starts at: 20.00
GNO Stavros Niarchos Hall – Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center

The final production of the GNO for the 2025/26 season, the revival of La traviata, will be presented for the first time at the Stavros Niarchos Hall, marking the launch of a new chapter in summer opera performances held in the ideal conditions of an air-conditioned venue.

Following its triumphant tour to Thessaloniki and China, Giuseppe Verdi’s masterpiece, featuring the signature of Nikos Petropoulos, returns to the Greek National Opera twenty-five years after its first performance at the Olympia Theatre, as part of a tribute to the renowned Greek opera director and set and costume designer.

Petropoulos offers us a remarkable portrayal of 19th-century France, creating a spectacular depiction of the scenes both at Violetta Valéry’s residence in Paris and her home in the countryside outside the French capital, featuring impressive costumes that are perfectly aligned with the work’s spirit.

The opera tells the story of a courtesan’s romantic relationship with the son of a respectable bourgeois family in Paris. Their relationship provokes the reaction of the young man’s family; the couple breaks up but reunites a while before the girl dies. The premiere of La traviata at Teatro La Fenice in Venice in 1853 is usually referred to as one of the biggest failures in the history of opera. “La traviata was a fiasco, spare yourself from finding an excuse, it’s just how it is,” wrote Verdi to his publisher Tito Ricordi, the following day, on 7 March 1953. A century and a half later, this Verdian masterpiece is hailed as one of the most popular works in the repertoire, featuring hundreds of performances each year at the world’s greatest opera houses and attracting thousands of ecstatic spectators.

In La traviata, Verdi successfully weaves an intricate psychological portrayal of his heroine. Depending on the shifts in her mental state, Verdi’s approach to vocal composition changes from one act to another. In Act I, hedonistic sexual freedom and the glamorous yet decadent Paris are depicted through music that demands virtuosic skills from the soprano performing the title role. In Act II, the serenity of life in nature and the heroine’s profound emotions are conveyed by a warm, lyrical soprano voice, while the tragic ending of the couple’s thwarted love is underscored by dark vocal tones that express anguish and despair.

Lead Donor of the GNO: Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF)
Sponsor of the tribute to Nikos Petropoulos: Piraeus Bank

Tickets will go on sale on 1/2/2026.

24.06.2025

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