Companhia Nacional de Bailado / Hans van Manen

Teatro Municipal do Porto hosts the National Ballet of Portugal (CNB) twice a year were it not for the fact that it presented its first performance at the Great Auditorium back in 1977, even before its official debut at Teatro Nacional de São Carlos. CNB brings to Porto either contemporary works—as was the case of the reruns and the original creation by choreographer Tânia Carvalho in 2018—or a classic and modern repertoire, led by a sense of heritage and constant update, which are at the core of the company. This programme comprises three short pieces by Hans van Manen. The Dutch choreographer is known for the strong structure and refined simplicity of its creations. From the melancholy based on Beethoven’s romanticism in “Adagio Hammerklavier”, to the flexibility needed for the avant-garde score of Jacob ter Veldhuis in “Short Cut”, to the satirical chromaticism of “In the Future”, CNB’s virtuous dancers carry in their body this prominent choreographer in the history of dance.

Adagio Hammerklavier
“Adagio Hammerklavier” is known worldwide as one of the 20th century classics. It is a piece for three pairs of dancers, choreographed over Beethoven’s piano sonata no. 29, opus 106. It is considered to be Hans van Manen’s most lyrical and scholar dance, and it reflects a clear-sighted, analytical perspective on the emotional swings taking place in ordinary life. Throughout the piece feelings alternate between passion and unrequited desire, attraction and disgust.

Short Cut
“Short Cut” is a 1999 piece for four dancers. Hans van Manen draws inspiration from Jacob ter Veldhuis’ score and takes advantage of the tonalities, rhythm and poetry of this work. The choreography follows the rhythm of the music that is the foundation of this dance, which reveals its extraordinary flexibility by focusing on the pas de deux.

In the Future
Originally choreographed for the Scapino Ballet Rotterdam in 1986, “In The Future” is an energetic, amusing and surprising piece for twelve dancers with music by David Byrne and costumes by Keso Dekker.


The National Ballet of Portugal was established at the initiative of the Portuguese Government in 1977. Over the course of four decades, it has presented international seminal pieces, both the inevitable classics and choreographies by Balanchine, De Keersmaeker, Forsythe, Jooss, Kylián, Limón, Van Manen or Spöerli. Concurrently it has commissioned a series of pieces generating an identity of its own, with a strong emphasis on Portuguese authors such as Armando Jorge, Fernando Duarte, Olga Roriz, Rui Lopes Graça or Vasco Wellenkamp. Its current artistic director is Sofia Campos.

Hans van Manen studied dance under Sonia Gaskell, Françoise Adret and Nora Kiss. He began his career in 1951 as a member of Sonia Gaskell's Ballet Recital. In 1952 he joined the Dutch Opera Ballet, where he created his first ballet, “Feestgericht”, in 1957. After spending some time with Roland Petit's company in Paris, he joined the Nederlands Dans Theater, first as a dancer, next as a choreographer, and then as artistic director (1961-1971). For the following two years he worked as a freelance choreographer before becoming resident choreographer and dance master at the Dutch National Ballet. As of 2015 he is a member of the Dutch Academy for the Arts.