The Ballets de Monte-Carlo: the beauty of dance
In a nutshell
- The Ballets de Monte-Carlo’s 2026–2027 season: a programme blending new works, major narrative ballets and iconic pieces.
- The 30th anniversary of *Romeo and Juliet*, *La Bayadère*, the *Bartók Evening*, *The Taming of the Shrew * and *Cinderella*.
- Two iconic venues: the Salle Garnier at The Opéra de Monte-Carlo and the Grimaldi Forum Monaco.
- The season brings together the Ballets de Monte-Carlo Company, the Monaco Dance Forum and the Académie Princesse Grace, under the artistic direction of Jean-Christophe Maillot.
2026–2027 season: a mix of new works, iconic pieces and major revivals
Nearly 180 ballets created over the course of 40 seasons now make up the repertoire of the Ballets de Monte-Carlo. For 2026–2027, the Company invites audiences to rediscover works that have shaped its identity, as well as acclaimed recent creations and two new pieces that will enrich this choreographic heritage.
The season opens in the Principality with an anniversary: *Romeo and Juliet*, Jean-Christophe Maillot’s signature ballet, first performed in Monaco in 1996, celebrates its 30th anniversary. The work returns to the Salle Garnier from 29 October to 1 November 2026, in the very venue where it first saw the light of day.
The festive season will then be punctuated by two events at the Grimaldi Forum Monaco. From 19 to 21 December 2026, *Bronia* by Kor’sia will share the bill with *Altro Canto*, Jean-Christophe Maillot’s iconic work. Then *Ma Bayadère*, a major ballet premiered in 2025 and restaged following its success, will take to the stage at the Salle des Princes from 28 December 2026 to 2 January 2027.
Monaco Dance Forum 2027: dance in all its forms
In the spring, the Monaco Dance Forum will return to its role as a laboratory open to all forms of choreographic expression, with five consecutive events from 22 to 26 April 2027.
Audiences will discover Aakash Odedra’s *Songs of the Bulbul* on 22 April at the Salle Garnier, a work inspired by Kathak dance and the Sufi tradition. On 23 April, Cécile Martinez’s *Lever les yeux* will bring together Monegasque dancers with disabilities and professional dancers from the Compagnie 6eSens at the Grimaldi Forum Monaco.
On 24 April, Scirocco will showcase WINNDance, a collective bringing together experienced dancers and former soloists, ahead of a screening of Stanley Donen’s *Drôle de frimousse* on 25 April. Finally, on 26 April, Israel Galván ’s distinctive flamenco will take centre stage at the Salle Garnier with *La Consagracion de la Primavera*.
A programme that fully illustrates the Monaco Dance Forum’s mission: to foster dialogue between disciplines, generations, aesthetics and cultures through contemporary dance.
The Bartók Evening, a highlight of the 2026–2027 season
From 27 April to 2 May 2027, the Grimaldi Forum Monaco will host one of the major highlights of this new season: a Bartók Evening bringing together two new works set to the Hungarian composer’s music.
Jean-Christophe Maillot will present a new version of *The Miraculous Mandarin*, forty years after first staging this work in Monaco. Alongside him, choreographer Alexei Ratmansky will create *The Wooden Prince*, inspired by Béla Bartók’s other great choreographic tale.
Two artistic worlds brought together around a major 20th-century composer, with the participation of the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra.
The Ballets’ Summer at the Salle Garnier
The season will continue well into the heart of summer with several events in the prestigious setting of the Salle Garnier at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo.
On 18 and 19 June 2027, the traditional Académie Princesse Grace Gala will give the institution’s young dancers the opportunity to showcase the results of their high-calibre training to the public.
From 24 to 27 June, Jean-Christophe Maillot’s *The Taming of the Shrew* will be staged at the Salle Garnier for the first time. Inspired by Shakespeare, the piece depicts the explosive encounter between Katharina and Petruchio and ranks among the Choreographer-Director’s great narrative ballets.
From 8 to 11 July, Paul Lightfoot’s *See You*, a recent creation brought back to the programme following its warm reception from audiences, will be performed alongside George Balanchine’s *Violin Concerto*, an iconic piece from the Company’s repertoire.
Finally, from 22 to 25 July 2027, Jean-Christophe Maillot’s *Cendrillon* will return to the Salle Garnier, where this ballet was first performed in 1999. A summer finale that will mark a return to one of the major works in the Ballets de Monte-Carlo’s repertoire.
From Diaghilev to the Ballets de Monte-Carlo: a long history of dance in Monaco
The history of dance in Monaco is closely linked to that of the Ballets Russes. In the early 20th century, Serge Diaghilev made Monte-Carlo one of his company’s key bases. Choreographers, composers, dancers and avant-garde artists all contributed to a profound renewal of the language of ballet. Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Nijinsky, Picasso, Matisse and Braque were all part of this artistic adventure, which left a lasting mark on the history of dance.
This tradition gained new momentum in 1985, when the current Compagnie des Ballets de Monte-Carlo was founded under the leadership of HRH the Princess of Hanover. In 1993, Jean-Christophe Maillot’ s appointment as artistic director gave the Company a new artistic identity and strengthened its international reputation.
The Ballets de Monte-Carlo: cultural ambassadors for the Principality
Whilst the 2026–2027 season will focus primarily on performances in the Principality, the Company will continue its international tours in parallel. LAC, Romeo and Juliet, Cinderella, The Taming of the Shrew and My Bayadère will tour, in particular, to France, Belgium, Azerbaijan, Egypt, Morocco, Germany and Italy.
From Monaco to the world’s major stages, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo thus continue in their role as cultural ambassadors for the Principality, promoting a vision of dance in which heritage, creativity and openness to the world are in constant dialogue.