The National Ballet of China (NBC), known in China as the Central Ballet Troupe was founded on 31 December 1959. It is the mainland Chinese national

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

 ballet

Ballet

Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...

 troupe. Master Peter Gushev from the former Soviet Union laid a solid foundation of classical ballet for the NBC., headquartered in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

, it works fom the Tianqiao Theater, this was specifically built for NBC in 1959, and it was renovated in 2001. This theater is one of a handful of such theaters in China that specialize in ballet

Ballet

Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...

 and opera

Opera

Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...

 performances.

NBC has toured internationally and produced and performed many Chinese ballets, Western ballets, modern ballets, as well as modern dances. Their repertoire includes:



Chinese Works:

• Red Detachment of Women
• Raise the Red Lantern
  Raise the Red Lantern
  Raise the Red Lantern is a 1991 film directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li. It is an adaption by Ni Zhen of the 1990 novel Wives and Concubines by Su Tong...
  
  
• Song of the Yimeng Mountain
• Ambush from Ten Sides
  Ambush from Ten Sides
  Ambush from Ten Sides is a classical piece written for the pipa. Ambush is written in the "Wu" or martial style, and is about the circumstances of which General Xiang Yu in 202 BC was defeated by Liu Bang...
  
  
• Yellow River
• Liang Zhu
  Butterfly Lovers
  The Butterfly Lovers is a Chinese legend of a tragic love story of a pair of lovers, Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai , whose names form the title of the story...
  
  
• The New Year Sacrifice
• The Wedding Chamber
• The Peony Pavilion
  The Peony Pavilion
  The Peony Pavilion is a play written by Tang Xianzu in the Ming Dynasty and first performed in 1598 at the Pavilion of Prince Teng. One of Tang's "Four Dreams", it has traditionally been performed as a Kunqu opera, but Chuan and Gan opera versions also exist...
  
  

Western Works:

• Swan Lake
  Swan Lake
  Swan Lake ballet, op. 20, by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, composed 1875–1876. The scenario, initially in four acts, was fashioned from Russian folk tales and tells the story of Odette, a princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer's curse. The choreographer of the original production was Julius Reisinger...
  
  
• Giselle
  Giselle
  Giselle is a ballet in two acts with a libretto by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges and Théophile Gautier, music by Adolphe Adam, and choreography by Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot. The librettist took his inspiration from a poem by Heinrich Heine...
  
  
• Coppélia
  Coppélia
  Coppélia is a sentimental comic ballet with original choreography by Arthur Saint-Léon to a ballet libretto by Saint-Léon and Charles Nuitter and music by Léo Delibes. It was based upon two macabre stories by E. T. A. Hoffmann, Der Sandmann , and Die Puppe...
  
  
• Don Quixote
  Don Quixote (ballet)
  Don Quixote is a ballet originally staged in four acts and eight scenes, based on an episode taken from the famous novel Don Quixote de la Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes. It was originally choreographed by Marius Petipa to the music of Ludwig Minkus and was first presented by the Ballet of the...
  
  http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2011-04/19/content_12349411.htm
• Le Corsaire
  Le Corsaire
  Le Corsaire is a ballet typically presented in three acts, with a libretto originally created by Jules-Henri Vernoy de Saint-Georges loosely based on the poem The Corsair by Lord Byron. Originally choreographed by Joseph Mazilier to the music of Adolphe Adam, it was first presented by the ballet of...
  
  
• The Rite of Spring
  The Rite of Spring
  The Rite of Spring, original French title Le sacre du printemps , is a ballet with music by Igor Stravinsky; choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky; and concept, set design and costumes by Nicholas Roerich...
  
  
• La Fille Mal Gardée
  La Fille Mal Gardée
  La Fille mal gardée is a comic ballet presented in two acts, inspired by Pierre-Antoine Baudouin's 1789 painting, La réprimande/Une jeune fille querellée par sa mère...
  
  
• The Sleeping Beauty
• Pas de Quatre
  Pas de Quatre
  Pas de Quatre is a ballet divertissement choreographed by Jules Perrot in 1845, on the suggestion of Benjamin Lumley, Director at His Majestys Theatre to music composed by Cesare Pugni....
  
  

Many NBC dancers have won gold, silver and bronze medals at various international ballet competitions.

External links

• National Ballet of China at China.org.cn