Les Arts celebrates its 20th anniversary with a world premiere, three new productions and the most international conductors
05.06.2025
- Together with Sir Mark Elder, the OCV is led by: James Gaffigan, Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Daniele Gatti, Gustavo Gimeno, Philippe Jordan, Fabio Luisi, Cornelius Meister, Marc Minkowski, Lorenzo Viotti and Timur Zangiev
- With Angel Blue, Nicholas Brownlee, Freddie De Tomasso, Ruth Iniesta, Gregory Kunde, Federica Lombardi, Vida Miknevi?i?t?, Marina Monzó, Mattia Olivieri, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Nadine Sierra and Michael Spyres
- Valentina Carrasco ('Luisa Miller'), Johannes Erath ('Faust') and Àlex Rigola ('Enemy of the People') are behind the new proposals, in a season featuring Damiano Michieletto, Álex Ollé and Laurent Pelly.
Valencia (5.6.24). The Palau de les Arts Reina Sofía celebrates its 20th anniversary with three new opera productions ('Faust', 'Luisa Miller', and 'An Enemy of the People'), a repertoire spanning 340 years of history, from Marc-Antoine Charpentier, through Handel, Verdi, Gounod, Tchaikovsky, Strauss and Puccini, concluding with its world premiere, 'An Enemy of the People', by Francisco Coll, and with the most international conductors leading the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana.
The regional secretary of Culture, Pilar Tebar, presided today over the press conference presentation of the 2025-2026 Season of the Valencian arts center, accompanied by the president of the Board of Trustees of Les Arts, Pablo Font de Mora, and its artistic director, Jesús Iglesias Noriega.
Tebar pointed out that “Les Arts is making its most ambitious artistic commitment to date to commemorate the enduring relevance of a project that emerged in 2005 as part of the Generalitat's commitment to consolidating the Valencian Community as a leading cultural hub in Spain and abroad.”
“Thus, under the motto 'Per a descobrir' (To Discover), the 2025-2026 Season presents us with an unbeatable offer to satisfy the curiosity of the most demanding spectator: ten opera titles, a newly created zarzuela show, seven dance proposals, ten powerful symphonic programs with the best conductors on the circuit, five 'Lied' recitals, an evening dedicated to the great lyrical repertoire, six Baroque sessions, five representatives of the most current Valencian music, five nights with the best flamenco and two concerts dedicated to world music,” the regional secretary highlighted.
For his part, the president of the Board of Trustees, Pablo Font de Mora, thanked the Consell and, specifically, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Universities and Employment, for their support of the project that civil society promoted in Les Arts to address new challenges such as opening up to new audiences, a greater social presence, as well as the involvement of the Valencian community in the institution's activities to commemorate its 20 years of operation in a position of strength and exceptional visibility.
In this regard, Iglesias Noriega has also highlighted the return of Valencian theater to international production circuits by leading three new productions this season with some of the most important opera companies on the continent: La Scala in Milan, the Staatsoper Unter den Linden, the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and the Teatro Real in Madrid.
In keeping with the term 'Per a descobrir' (To Discover), Les Arts advocates, once again, to start its season outside its home venue, with a tour by the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana (OCV) which, under the direction of Cornelius Meister, invites the citizens of Altea, Cullera and Requena to discover the excellence of the orchestra on this tour that will culminate with the Open House Day concert and opens the activity to the public in the Calatrava building on September 21.
'Les Arts és Òpera' invites you to rediscover, with a fresh perspective, some of the composers who have shaped the theater's artistic identity over the past two decades. An ambitious new production of 'Faust', led by Les Arts in co-production with La Scala in Milan and the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin, opens on October 3rd. Johannes Erath offers a new approach to this emblem of French opera, in which Charles Gounod revisits the Germanic myth and imbues it with the splendor of grand opera.
The lesser-known Baroque, with 'La descente d'Orphée aux enfers' and 'Les Arts Florissants' by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, coexists with essential titles by Georg Friedrich Händel that, both in concert version ('Orlando') and staged version ('Giulio Cesare in Egitto'), show a musical style present in the theater's proposals since its beginnings.
The world premiere of 'Enemy of the People' by Francisco Coll, on November 5, 2025, marks a milestone in the institution's history with its first commissioned opera, together with the Teatro Real in Madrid, in which the music of the most international Valencian composer and the dramaturgy of Àlex Rigola transpose to lyric the powerful denunciation of Henrik Ibsen in the theatrical piece of the same name.
The work of Giuseppe Verdi, an irreplaceable composer in the opera house's programming, takes center stage in the third new production of the season, with the captivating 'Luisa Miller', a title with which the genius from Busseto already announces his celebrated popular trilogy, which consists of 'Rigoletto', 'Il trovatore' and 'La traviata'.
The German repertoire, with which Les Arts and the Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana have created some of their most memorable performances since 2005, is countered by Richard Strauss's exuberant and hypnotic 'Salome', while the desolate lyricism of 'Eugene Onegin' celebrates Russian opera with one of its great masterpieces. 'Turandot', Puccini's unfinished opera and a symbol of the longest ovations in the Main Hall, closes the program.
'Les Arts és Sarsuela' surprises with a newly created show, 'A mystery of farce or zarzuela in the pot', in an idea by Enrique Viana with music by the Valencian José Serrano.
On the podium together with Sir Mark Elder in his first season as starter, expert teachers lead the proposals with William Christie, James Gaffigan, Marc Minkowski, Lorenzo Viotti, Timur Zangiev, who will have their counterpart on the scene with respected creators: Vincent Boussard, Valentina Carrasco, Johannes Erath, Damiano Michieletto, Àlex Ollé, Laurent Pelly and Àlex Rigola.
In the symphonic realm, Les Arts presents its most ambitious program ever, featuring the most prestigious conductors on the international circuit leading the OCV: Sir John Eliot Gardiner, Daniele Gatti, Gustavo Gimeno, Philippe Jordan, Fabio Luisi, Cornelius Meister, Javier Perianes, and Dima Slobodeniouk, in addition to the orchestra's principal conductor, Sir Mark Elder. 'Les Arts és Simfònic' offers ten impressive programs, including Mahler's Fifth Symphony, Bruckner's Eighth, Berlioz's oratorio 'The Childhood of Christ,' Brahms' complete symphonies, and Beethoven's complete piano concertos.
For its part, Les Arts és Dansa hosts seven shows featuring the finest classical ballet, contemporary dance and flamenco, presented by the Antonio Najarro Company, Kor'sia, Manuel Liñán Company, National Dance Company, Antonio Ruz Company, the Dortmund Ballet and a new Les Arts production with Taiat Dansa as part of the Dansa València Festival.
Five unmissable events await lovers of Lieder, featuring the debuts in this cycle of Angel Blue, Elsa Dreisig, Katharina Konradi, and Michael Spyres, in addition to the highly anticipated reunion with Christian Gerhaher, the undisputed master of the genre. Meanwhile, 'Les Arts és Grans Veus' welcomes Nadine Sierra with a program in which the soprano will perform some of the works that have made her one of the most captivating divas of the decade.
The well-established 'Les Arts és Barroc i Música Antiga' dazzles with the presence of William Christie and Marc Minkowski and their specialist ensembles, in a cycle that, thanks to the collaboration with the National Center for Musical Diffusion, will also bring together the most respected groups and performers: Vespres d'Arnadí & Serena Sáenz, María Espada, Les Époppés & Eva Zaïcik and Il Fervore & Jone Martínez.
For its part, Les Arts will continue its tradition of showcasing diverse vocal expressions, featuring the flamenco spirit of Pitingo, Ángeles Toledano, Argentina, Juana la del Pipa, and Ismael de la Rosa, 'El Bola'; the Afro-Cuban jazz of Chucho Valdés; and the baroque and theatrical pop of Rufus Wainwright. Meanwhile, the Valencian music scene will be represented by Pau Alabajos, La Maria, Anna Millo + Pep Mirambell, Jonatan Penalba, and Urbàlia Rurana.
