• El Círculo de Bellas Artes It shows in its entirety and for the first time in Spain the original backdrops, designed and painted by Salvador Dalí for the ballet Bacchanale.

• This exhibition can be visited until January 6th (from 11 a.m. to 14 p.m.) at the Fernando de Rojas Theatre del Círculo.

• In parallel, a performative ballet directed by Jaime Vallaure and choreographed by Tania Arias will contextualize the creation of this Dalinian invention, reinterpreting some of its most significant parts.

Thursday, December 19. The Círculo de Bellas ArtesIn collaboration with the Jorge Alcolea Gallery and IQOS, the exhibition presents, for the first time in Spain, the complete original backdrops designed and painted by Salvador Dalí for the ballet Bacchanale. The artist, who also wrote the libretto and designed the sets and costumes, described Bacchanale as the first paranoid ballet. The work was developed by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo company and premiered on November 9, 1939, at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York. Bacchanale was a resounding success despite Dalí's absence, as he was unable to attend due to being in

France (the war had begun just a month earlier). It remained in the repertoire from 1939 to 1941. It was performed again in 1945 and subsequently in 1967, this time in Monaco, the last time it was seen. After the closure of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo in 1968, the sets were donated to Butler University.

Origin and development of an innovative project

Ballets Russes was a pioneering company founded in 1911 by Sergei Diaghilev, which had already presented the revolutionary ballet Parade in Paris in 1917, with costumes and curtains by Picasso. They were known for the freedom with which they developed daring stagings that challenged traditional conception of dance and set design, leading to collaborations with artists such as Natalia Goncharova and Max Ernst (who is currently the subject of an exhibition in Paris). el Círculo), Joan Miró or Giorgio de Chirico. After Diaghilev's death in 1929, several companies emerged as heirs to the initial project; among them the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, under the artistic direction of Léonide Massine in 1938. This choreographer, one of the most brilliant of the first half of the 20th century, asked Dalí in 1932 for his collaboration on a ballet, which finally resulted in the work Bacchanale.

The production featured other renowned figures such as Coco Chanel, who worked on some of the costumes and accessories, although they were ultimately made by Barbara Karinska. The set design was a close collaboration between Salvador Dalí and Prince Alexandre Schervachidze, who worked faithfully from the model created by the artist. Musically, the ballet chose an adaptation of Wagner's opera Tannhäuser.

Dalí envisioned the spectacle as a trilogy that would also include the ballets Labyrinth and Sacrifice, of which only the first was performed. Labyrinth staged the “resurgence of tradition”; Bacchanale was conceived as the representation of a “romantic chaos”; and Sacrifice concluded with the “triumph of religion and spiritual values.”

Bacchanale recounts the arrival of Ludwig II of Bavaria, the play's protagonist and Wagner's patron, at Mount Venus. Throughout the work, Ludwig II, in his madness, identifies with Tannhäuser, the protagonist of the medieval legend that inspired Wagner and which Dalí interpreted through his paranoiac-critical method and Sigmund Freud's psychoanalysis.

In his delusions, he sees Sacher Masoch, Lola Montez, and the Three Graces appear on stage as dressmaking mannequins. This confusion of characters and images is evident not only in the narrative but also in the set design itself, framed within the paintings Dalí had been creating since the early 1930s, where iconography acquires great symbolic power with numerous possibilities for interpretation.

Dalí's set design includes a curtain and four canvases that reinforce the perspective, with the Mount of Venus as the central element, linked to the myth of Leda and feminine sin. The composition incorporates Renaissance references, such as Raphael's The Marriage of the Virgin, and contrasts between love and death, accompanied by characteristic details like unsettling skulls, drawers alluding to the unconscious, and phantasmagorical figures. Dalí employs techniques from 15th-century Flemish painting and the Renaissance to explore the limits of vision, overlapping images that combine the sensual with the spectral. The theatrical set design reflects his interest in the gaze as a play of ambiguities and superimpositions.

Theatrical Tours: To coincide with the exhibition "The World's Greatest Dalí" at the Fernando de Rojas Theatre, a unique Dalí experience will take place. Under the direction of Jaime Vallaure and with choreography by Tania Arias, a performative ballet will be presented, contextualizing the creation of Bacchanale and reinterpreting some of its most significant aspects. The dance will delve into Dalí's surrealist universe, fusing the art of movement with his innovative artistic vision. The performance seeks to capture the essence of his work, enveloping the audience in an immersive experience deeply imbued with the creative genius of Salvador Dalí. A unique opportunity to explore his fascinating world in a different and emotionally intense way.

The event will take place at 19pm, from December 22nd to January 6th, and admission is free with prior reservation of invitations on the website.el Círculo: www.circulobellasartes.com.

Surreal December

El Círculo de Bellas Artes The museum dedicates a significant portion of its December program to commemorating the centenary of the Surrealist Manifesto, published by André Breton in 1924. The world's largest Dalí collection joins the exhibition "Max Ernst: Surrealism, Art and Film," a unique journey through the artist's life and career, combining pieces in various media: paintings, sculptures, collages, frottages, illustrated books, and photographs, all selected for their connections to cinema. This innovative and unprecedented approach to the work of the celebrated surrealist artist is a truly innovative exploration.

Also noteworthy is the dramatized reading of Leonora. Alberto Conejero wrote this text, freely inspired by the life and work of the painter Leonora Carrington, with particular attention to the artist's European years and her time in Spain. Actress Natalia Huarte, accompanied by violinist Luz Prado, will perform this dramatic monologue, which has not yet been staged in this final version and which we can see on December 21st.

Lastly, el Círculo Celebrate a Surrealist Christmas from December 21st to 29th; a program that will fill the Hall of Columns with a series of activities for the whole family, including fantasy, imagination, music, games, and learning. Following the example of last summer's Climate Refuge, a space has been designed for everyone, far removed from the consumerism that surrounds this time of year; a huge plaza in which to enjoy a wide range of free activities.