M Ballet Company to Perform 'Don Quixote' at Hanam Culture and Arts Center on the 27th

The M Ballet Company will perform "Don Quixote" at the Hanam Culture and Arts Center Grand Theater on the 27th. This performance is organized to commemorate the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Italy and is sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute in Korea.

Francesco Mura, born in Pistoia, Italy, currently a Premier Danseur at the Paris Opera Ballet, and Son Yuhee, former principal dancer of the Universal Ballet Company, will take the lead roles as Basilio and Kitri, respectively.

Francesco Mura was educated as a scholarship student at the La Scala School in Milan and joined the Paris Opera Ballet in 2015. He was promoted to Premier Danseur in 2019 and has been actively performing on the world stage. Son Yuhee graduated with honors from the Perm State Ballet School in Russia and has performed with the Universal Ballet, the National Ballet of Korea, and the Tulsa Ballet in the United States. She joins this stage through a long-standing connection with M Ballet Company’s artistic director Moon Byungnam (former deputy artistic director of the National Ballet), whom she met during her time at the National Ballet.

Yang Young-eun, director of M Ballet Company, stated, "Together with Michela Linda Magri, director of the Italian Cultural Institute in Korea, we were able to realize this performance by exchanging passion and conviction for mutual exchange based on trust." Michela Linda Magri, director of the Italian Cultural Institute in Korea, said, "I am proud and grateful for the collaboration with M Ballet Company that made this amazing project possible, and I look forward to future cultural exchange events between Italy and Korea."

[Photo by M Ballet Company]

The performance will be held twice on the 27th, at 3:00 PM and 7:30 PM, with Francesco Mura and Son Yuhee appearing on stage at 7:30 PM.

In the 3:00 PM performance, ballerino Yoon Byeol and ballerina Park Soyeon will perform as Basilio and Kitri. The two previously performed together in M Ballet Company’s 2021 production of .

Both Yoon Byeol and Park Soyeon graduated from the Korea National University of Arts. Ballerino Yoon Byeol won first place at the 2016 Vienna International Ballet Competition and has performed with the National Ballet of Uruguay. Ballerina Park Soyeon won first place at the 2014 Rome International Dance Competition and has performed with the Dresden Semperoper Ballet in Germany.

is a representative comedic ballet that conveys the passion of Spain through a variety of dazzling Spanish-style dances such as seguidilla, flamenco, and fandango, combined with humorous acting.

is mostly performed based on the 1869 premiere choreography by Marius Petipa (1818?1910), who was mostly French. M Ballet Company has restructured the original three acts into two to present a more dynamic stage. They plan to showcase a version of Don Quixote with a different tempo, featuring faster music and sharper choreography. Additionally, they have newly created the character "Musacho," a cheerful and humorous friend of Basilio, who will enhance the enjoyment with high-level technique and comical acting. In this performance, the role of Musacho will be played by ballerinos Lee Yoobeom and Lee Jinyoung.