A Rave of Ravel

Since the beginning of the season, Bridget Breiner and Raphaël Coumes-Marquet have been conducting the Ballett am Rhein, whose performances are spread between the opera houses in Düsseldorf and Duisburg. Responsibilities are clearly defined: she serves as chief choreographer and ensures the artistic profile while he is the organizational all-rounder. And while their predecessor, Demis Volpi, suffered shipwreck in Hamburg, the duo is doing well and apparently on the road to success. This is significant far beyond the region — indeed, it is a kind of rehabilitation. After Sasha Waltz and Johannes Öhman quit the Berliner Staatsballett in 2020 because they couldn't find common ground as a leadership duo, the barely tested principle of dual leadership fell into disrepute. Breiner and ...