On 14 February 2026, the ballet “Lazgi. Dance of Soul and Love” will be presented on the stage of the Grosses Festspielhaus in Salzburg, Austria, performed by the National Ballet of Uzbekistan.
The production offers a unique artistic interpretation of the ancient Uzbek dance Lazgi, inscribed by UNESCO on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. With a history spanning more than three thousand years, Lazgi embodies spiritual strength, wisdom, and the profound depth of a living tradition passed down from generation to generation.
Under the direction of renowned German choreographer and ballet master Raúl Raimondo Rebec, and set to the mesmerizing music of composer Davidson Giaconello, the performance seamlessly merges the ancient Lazgi dance with the elegance of classical ballet. This fusion creates a contemporary stage language through which the richness and diversity of Uzbek culture are vividly revealed.
The ballet’s narrative transports audiences to the distant past, to the era of the Great Silk Road, where, amid desert sands and enchanting shamanic melodies, Love and the immortal Soul are born, beginning their eternal dance. This journey from antiquity to the present symbolizes the continuity of traditions, the bond between generations, and the spiritual memory of a people. In the finale, Love and the Soul unite in harmonious wholeness, embodying the triumph of life, culture, and enduring universal values.
The production premiered in Tashkent in 2021 and immediately received wide international acclaim. It has since been staged at Dubai Opera and presented in Istanbul, Bursa, Dortmund, Paris, Saint Petersburg, Moscow, Beijing, Baku, and London, becoming one of Uzbekistan’s most recognizable cultural projects on the global stage.
The international creative team behind the project brings together outstanding masters of ballet and performing arts. Unique choreography, striking stage design, sophisticated lighting, and contemporary multimedia technologies form a large-scale artistic canvas that enhances the emotional impact of the performance and transforms it into a cultural event of global significance.
The Salzburg performance marks an important milestone in international cultural dialogue and offers yet another opportunity to present Uzbekistan’s rich intangible heritage to European audiences.
Tickets are available at: https://www.oeticket.com/eventseries/lazgi-dance-of-soul-and-love-national-ballet-of-usbekistan-3797407/
Creative Team
Concept Author – Saida Mirziyoyeva
Project Director – Gayane Umerova
Libretto and Choreography – Raúl Raimondo Rebec
Stage Design – Yoko Seyama
Costume Designer – Frol Burimsky
Music Arrangement and Composition – Davidson Giaconello
Lighting Designer – Tim Wacławek
Consultants – Gulnora Musayeva, Gavkhar Matyakubova
About the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation (ACDF)
The Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation (ACDF) is dedicated to preserving, promoting, and developing Uzbekistan’s cultural heritage, arts, and creative industries. At the forefront of the country’s cultural development, ACDF seeks to foster a dynamic cultural ecosystem, stimulate the creative economy, and create opportunities for practitioners at local, regional, and global levels. The Foundation believes that culture and heritage play a vital role in shaping society, uniting communities, strengthening intergenerational ties, and promoting intercultural dialogue.
ACDF successfully hosted the 4th World Conference on Creative Economy (WCCE) (2–4 October 2024) in Tashkent and the first Aral Culture Summit (4–6 April 2025) in Nukus, Karakalpakstan. The Foundation led Uzbekistan’s participation in Expo 2025 Osaka, Kansai, Japan (April–October 2025) and is spearheading the revival of the Center for Contemporary Art in Tashkent, the construction of the new National Museum of Uzbekistan designed by Tadao Ando, as well as the restoration and partial reconstruction of the Grand Duke Romanov Palace.
ACDF has also launched “Tashkent Modernism XX/XXI”, an ongoing research project dedicated to documenting and safeguarding the city’s modernist architecture. The initiative has resulted in two major publications produced in collaboration with Rizzoli New York (published in November 2024) and Lars Müller Publishers (published in May 2025). In Bukhara, ACDF inaugurated the first Bukhara Biennial in September 2025, and in Samarkand, the Foundation hosted the 43rd Session of the UNESCO General Conference (30 October – 13 November 2025).
To date, ACDF has attracted more than 3.5 million visitors through landmark exhibitions in 17 countries, ranging from the Louvre and the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris to the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, the British Museum in London, and the Palace Museum in Beijing. Through projects presented across Europe, Asia, and the Gulf region, and collaborations with more than 40 international museums and cultural institutions, the Foundation continues to amplify the voices and stories of Uzbekistan on the world’s most influential cultural platforms.