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The internationally renowned choreographer Cathy Marston holds both British and Swiss citizenship. Since August 2023, she has been Director of Zurich Ballet. She received her dance training in Cambridge and at the Royal Ballet School in London. Between 1994 and 1999, she danced with Zurich Ballet, the Ballet of Lucerne Theatre, and Konzert Theater Bern. From 2002 to 2006, she was an Associate Artist at the Royal Opera House in London, and from 2007 to 2013 she served as Ballet Director at Konzert Theater Bern.

For many years highly successful as a freelance choreographer, Cathy Marston has been invited by numerous renowned international companies and institutions. She has created works for The Royal Ballet, Hamburg Ballet, the Royal Danish Ballet, English National Ballet, Northern Ballet, the Finnish National Ballet, Ballet Black, the National Ballet of Cuba, as well as for Opera Australia and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. In recent years, she has worked increasingly in the United States, including with San Francisco Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Houston Ballet, and The Joffrey Ballet in Chicago.

In her choreographic works, she brings major literary sources to life through dance and approaches significant historical figures in unusual and original ways. She has celebrated major successes with her ballet adaptations of "Mrs. Robinson" (Charles Webb), "Snowblind" (based on Ethan Frome), "Jane Eyre" (Charlotte Brontë), and "Of Mice and Men" (John Steinbeck). Distinctive perspectives also characterize her biographically inspired works "The Cellist", "Victoria", and "Hexenhatz". Cathy Marston has received numerous awards for her choreographic achievements, including a South Bank Sky Arts Award and the British National Dance Award. In 2020, the International Institute for Dance and Theatre honored her with an award for excellence in international dance.

A highlight of her first season as Director of Zurich Ballet was the 2024 world premiere of "Atonement", based on the novel of the same name by Ian McEwan (a co-production with The Joffrey Ballet). In addition, her works "The Cellist" and "Snowblind" were presented in Zurich. In the previous season, her Clara Schumann ballet "Clara" premiered. In 2026, she will choreograph "Romeo and Juliet" for Zurich Ballet.

Robert Houssart wurde in Haarlem, Holland geboren und wuchs in England auf. Sein Debüt gab er am Adelaide Festival mit der australischen Premiere von Ligetis Le Grand Macabre. Seit Beginn seiner Karriere arbeitet er als Pianist, Gesangslehrer und Dirigent am La Monnaie, der English National Opera, der Opera North und der Opéra Comique sowie am Theater an der Wien. Weitere Engagements führten ihn an die Opéra National du Rhin in Stassbourg, an das Ballett der Semperoper in Dresden, ans Staatstheater Mainz, die Opera North, Opéra in Rouen, das Hallé Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, die Longborough Festival Opera, das Aalto Theater in Essen, Royal Conservatoire in Schottland, Luzerner Theater und an die Royal Opera, Covent Garden. Seit 2018 ist er Hausdirigent an der Königlichen Oper in Kopenhagen. Dort hat er rund 150 Opern- und Ballettaufführungen dirigiert, darunter neue Opern wie Manualen von Louise Alenius sowie The Exterminating Angel, Powder Her Face und The Dante Project von Thomas Adès. 2019 leitete er die Uraufführung von Hans Abrahamsens Die Schneekönigin. Dreimal wurde er mit dem dänischen Reumert-Preis für die «Oper des Jahres» ausgezeichnet.

The internationally renowned choreographer Cathy Marston holds both British and Swiss citizenship. Since August 2023, she has been Director of Zurich Ballet. She received her dance training in Cambridge and at the Royal Ballet School in London. Between 1994 and 1999, she danced with Zurich Ballet, the Ballet of Lucerne Theatre, and Konzert Theater Bern. From 2002 to 2006, she was an Associate Artist at the Royal Opera House in London, and from 2007 to 2013 she served as Ballet Director at Konzert Theater Bern.

For many years highly successful as a freelance choreographer, Cathy Marston has been invited by numerous renowned international companies and institutions. She has created works for The Royal Ballet, Hamburg Ballet, the Royal Danish Ballet, English National Ballet, Northern Ballet, the Finnish National Ballet, Ballet Black, the National Ballet of Cuba, as well as for Opera Australia and the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. In recent years, she has worked increasingly in the United States, including with San Francisco Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Houston Ballet, and The Joffrey Ballet in Chicago.

In her choreographic works, she brings major literary sources to life through dance and approaches significant historical figures in unusual and original ways. She has celebrated major successes with her ballet adaptations of "Mrs. Robinson" (Charles Webb), "Snowblind" (based on Ethan Frome), "Jane Eyre" (Charlotte Brontë), and "Of Mice and Men" (John Steinbeck). Distinctive perspectives also characterize her biographically inspired works "The Cellist", "Victoria", and "Hexenhatz". Cathy Marston has received numerous awards for her choreographic achievements, including a South Bank Sky Arts Award and the British National Dance Award. In 2020, the International Institute for Dance and Theatre honored her with an award for excellence in international dance.

A highlight of her first season as Director of Zurich Ballet was the 2024 world premiere of "Atonement", based on the novel of the same name by Ian McEwan (a co-production with The Joffrey Ballet). In addition, her works "The Cellist" and "Snowblind" were presented in Zurich. In the previous season, her Clara Schumann ballet "Clara" premiered. In 2026, she will choreograph "Romeo and Juliet" for Zurich Ballet.

Edward Kemp, born in Oxford, has collaborated with Cathy Marston on more than twenty ballets, including seven for Bern Ballett. Recent collaborations include "Summer & Smoke" (Houston/American Ballet Theatre), "Of Mice and Men" (Joffrey), "Mrs. Robinson" (San Francisco), "The Cellist" (Royal Ballet), "The Suit" (Ballet Black), "Lady Chatterley’s Lover" (Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal), "Liaisons Dangereuses" (Royal Danish Ballet), and a screenplay for Disney+. He has written texts for composers such as Sally Beamish, Victoria Borisova Ollas, Jason Carr, Tansy Davies, Terry Davies, Péter Eötvös, Stuart MacRae, Julian Philips, and Gary Yershon. In theatre, his works include "King James Bible" (National Theatre), "The Mysteries" (Royal Shakespeare Company), as well as stage adaptations of Bulgakov’s "The Master and Margarita" (Chichester/Complicite/Avignon), Lessing’s "Nathan the Wise" (Chichester/Off-Broadway/Shaw Festival), and Faulkner’s "As I Lay Dying" (Baton Rouge). He also adapted works by Brecht, Goldoni, Kleist, Lorca, Prokofiev, Molière, Racine, and Sibelius for the stage and translated novels by Paul Auster, Eça de Queirós, Charles Dickens, Knut Hamsun, Ted Hughes, Salman Rushdie, and W. G. Sebald. He has written dramas and comedies for BBC Radio and directed plays and musicals in the United Kingdom and the United States, from authors such as Gertrude Stein and William Shakespeare to Alan Bennett and Stephen Sondheim. From 2008 to 2021 he was Director and Chief Executive of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Today he is Chief Executive of the Royal Literary Fund, the oldest literary charity in the United Kingdom.

Richard Hudson wurde in Simbabwe geboren und  studierte an der Wimbledon School of Art. Er entwarf Bühnenbilder und Kostüme für Operninszenierungen in Glyndebourne, Covent Garden, an der Metropolitan Opera New York, der Mailänder Scala, dem Maggio Musicale Florenz, der English National Opera, der Scottish Opera, der Kent Opera, der Opera North, der Wiener Staatsoper, der Opéra de Paris sowie für die Opernhäuser in München, Chicago, Kopenhagen, Tokio, Athen, Bregenz, Amsterdam, Zürich, Barcelona, Madrid, Brüssel, Chicago, Houston, Washington, Toronto, St. Petersburg, Venedig, Pesaro, Genua, Turin, Bologna und Rom. Ausserdem arbeitete er für das Aldeburgh Festival, das Royal Ballet, die Royal Shakespeare Company, das National Theatre, das Royal Court, das Almeida und das Young Vic. 1988 gewann er einen Olivier Award für eine Spielzeit am Old Vic, für den König der Löwen erhielt er 1998 einen Tony Award.  Er ist Royal Designer for Industry (RDI). 2003 gewann er die Goldmedaille für Bühnenbild bei der Prager Quadrenniale, 2005 wurde ihm die Ehrendoktorwürde der Universität of Surrey verliehen. Zu seinen jüngsten Arbeiten gehören Bühnenbilder und Kostüme für Peer Gynt am National Theatre, London, Der Nussknacker beim American Ballet Theatre, Romeo und Julia beim National Ballet of Canada, Le Coq D'or, La Bayadère und Raymonda beim Royal Danish Ballet, Der Ring des Nibelungen  am Teatro Massimo, Palermo, Versailles am Donmar Warehouse, La traviata  für die Grange Park Oper, The Sleeping Beauty  beim American Ballet Theatre und an der Mailänder Scala, Morgen und Abend (Royal Opera House/Deutsche Oper), Romeo und Julia (Bolshoi Ballett Moskau), Wake (Birmingham Opera Company) und The Outsider (The Print Room, London). Er kreierte die Kostüme für Yumé (Opéra de Reims), Peter Grimes (Opéra de Lyon) und Asters (New National Opera of Japan) sowie die Bühnenbilder für Leopoldstadt von Tom Stoppard (Wyndham's Theatre, London), und Un ballo in Maschera (Teatro Regio, Parma). 2024 wurde Richard Hudson bei den Irene Sharaff Awards in New York mit dem Robert L. B. Tobin Award for Sustained Excellence in Theatrical Design ausgezeichnet.

Martin Gebhardt was lighting designer and Head of Lighting for John Neumeier’s Hamburg Ballet. From 2002 onward he collaborated with Heinz Spoerli and the Ballett Zürich. Ballet productions of both companies took him to renowned theatres across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. At Zurich Opera House he created the lighting design for productions by Jürgen Flimm, David Alden, Jan Philipp Gloger, Grischa Asagaroff, Matthias Hartmann, David Pountney, Moshe Leiser/Patrice Caurier, Damiano Michieletto, and Achim Freyer. At the Salzburg Festival he designed the lighting for "La bohème" and for a new version of Spoerli’s "Der Tod und das Mädchen". Since the 2012/13 season Martin Gebhardt has been Head of Lighting at Zurich Opera House. He maintains a close collaboration with choreographer Christian Spuck (including "Winterreise", "Nussknacker und Mausekönig", "Messa da Requiem", "Anna Karenina", "Woyzeck", "Der Sandmann", "Leonce und Lena", "Das Mädchen mit den Schwefelhölzern"). He has also worked as lighting designer for choreographers Edward Clug (including "Strings", "Le Sacre du printemps" and "Faust" in Zurich), Alexei Ratmansky, Wayne McGregor, Marco Goecke, and Douglas Lee. He collaborated with Christoph Marthaler and Anna Viebrock on Handel’s "Sale" and Rossini’s "Il viaggio a Reims" in Zurich as well as on "Lulu" at the Hamburg State Opera, and with Jossi Wieler and Sergio Morabito at the Grand Théâtre de Genève for "Les Huguenots". In 2023 he designed the lighting for Spuck’s ballet "Bovary" at the Staatsballett Berlin and in 2024 for Rossini’s "Tancredi" at the Bregenz Festival. He was also the lighting designer for Cathy Marston’s "Atonement" at Zurich Opera House.

Michael Küster is from Germany. After studying German studies, art, and speech science at the University of Halle, he worked as a presenter, author, and speaker at various broadcasting stations in Germany. There, he hosted numerous classical music programs and live broadcasts of major concert events, including those from the Metropolitan Opera New York, the Semperoper Dresden, and the Leipzig Gewandhaus.
Since 2002, he has been a dramaturg at the Zurich Opera House, working with directors such as Matthias Hartmann, David Alden, Robert Carsen, Moshe Leiser/Patrice Caurier, Damiano Michieletto, David Pountney, Johannes Schaaf, and Graham Vick.
As dramaturg of Ballett Zürich, Michael Küster has collaborated since 2012 with Cathy Marston, Marco Goecke, Marcos Morau, Kim Brandstrup, Edward Clug, Alexei Ratmansky, William Forsythe, Jiří Kylián, and Hans van Manen. Together with Christian Spuck, he worked on productions including «Winterreise» («Prix Benois de la Danse»), «Romeo and Juliet», «Messa da Requiem», and «The Sleeping Beauty».
At La Scala in Milan, Michael Küster was dramaturg for Matthias Hartmann’s opera productions of «Der Freischütz», «Idomeneo», and «The Queen of Spades».

Edward Kemp, born in Oxford, has collaborated with Cathy Marston on more than twenty ballets, including seven for Bern Ballett. Recent collaborations include "Summer & Smoke" (Houston/American Ballet Theatre), "Of Mice and Men" (Joffrey), "Mrs. Robinson" (San Francisco), "The Cellist" (Royal Ballet), "The Suit" (Ballet Black), "Lady Chatterley’s Lover" (Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal), "Liaisons Dangereuses" (Royal Danish Ballet), and a screenplay for Disney+. He has written texts for composers such as Sally Beamish, Victoria Borisova Ollas, Jason Carr, Tansy Davies, Terry Davies, Péter Eötvös, Stuart MacRae, Julian Philips, and Gary Yershon. In theatre, his works include "King James Bible" (National Theatre), "The Mysteries" (Royal Shakespeare Company), as well as stage adaptations of Bulgakov’s "The Master and Margarita" (Chichester/Complicite/Avignon), Lessing’s "Nathan the Wise" (Chichester/Off-Broadway/Shaw Festival), and Faulkner’s "As I Lay Dying" (Baton Rouge). He also adapted works by Brecht, Goldoni, Kleist, Lorca, Prokofiev, Molière, Racine, and Sibelius for the stage and translated novels by Paul Auster, Eça de Queirós, Charles Dickens, Knut Hamsun, Ted Hughes, Salman Rushdie, and W. G. Sebald. He has written dramas and comedies for BBC Radio and directed plays and musicals in the United Kingdom and the United States, from authors such as Gertrude Stein and William Shakespeare to Alan Bennett and Stephen Sondheim. From 2008 to 2021 he was Director and Chief Executive of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA). Today he is Chief Executive of the Royal Literary Fund, the oldest literary charity in the United Kingdom.