The Opening Gala of the Paris National Ballet was held at the picturesque Palais Garnier on October 1. This edition marked the event’s 10th year celebrating the opera’s activities while paying homage to the late Hugues Gall, who passed away in 2024. Gall was Paris Opera’s director from 1995 to 2004, and was responsible for many new pieces, which are still played at the Palais Garnier and also at the Opera Bastille.
The Paris Opera Ballet Fundraiser Gala 2024/2025 was made possible with the generous support of Chanel, major patron of the Paris Opera & Rolex timepiece of the Paris Opera. The evening commenced with a traditional ballet procession, which brought together the Étoiles, the Premiers Danseurs, and the Corps de Ballet, along with students from the Paris Opera Dance School. For the first time ever, guests also got a chance to enjoy the Junior Ballet, which was created in 2024.
These performances were followed by “Word for Word” by My’kal, a choreographer with years of extensive experience, which translated into a mesmerizing show. Interestingly, the costumes for the show were designed by none other than French maison Chanel.
During the course of the evening, the audience witnesses works by William Forsythe, namely Rearray, which is a duet that was curated in 2011 along with Blake Works I, a performance on electro-songs created for the Paris Opera in 2016 by James Blake. Along with this, the evening also saw dancers execute Swedish choreographer Johan Inger’s recognized IMPASSE, followed by performances by musicians Amos Ben-Tal and Ibrahim Maalouf. The guest list included many well-known names including Alexander Neef, director of the Paris Opera, José Martinez, dance director of the Paris Opera; and Rachida Dati, the minister of culture.
Celebrities like Lupita Nyong’o, Kelly Rutherford, Rebecca Armstrong, Aline Asmar d’Amman, and Clémence Poésy were also in attendance, among others. After the performances, guests shared a delectable dining experience by Sandra Mielenhausen, Nicolas Rozier-Chabert, Pierre Touitou, and James Henry.
The extravagant affair organized by AROP, the Association pour le Rayonnement de l’Opéra de Paris, raised more than one million euros, which will be utilized for the opera’s beneficiary activities.