A Night at the Museum with Gala de Danza

There are few modern venues as instantly iconic as the Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM). The museum, which houses an estimated 100,000 ancient artifacts over 490,000 square meters, was a triumph for the country when it fully opened last November, a moment that was more than 30 years in the making. (Work on the project began in 1992, when a parcel of land in the shadow of the Great Pyramids of Giza was selected to serve as the site of the museum.)

To celebrate its inaugural year, the GEM will serve as the extraordinary setting for Gala de Danza presented by GEM Experience—an evening of dance, live music, and artistry taking place on 5 November 2026. (At the time of publication, tickets are still available for purchase.) “This collaboration is especially meaningful because it unites two forms of artistic legacy: the preserved masterpieces of ancient Egypt and the ephemeral brilliance of live performance,” explains Gala de Danza founder and artistic director Christina Lyon.

To her point, the 80-minute performance will use the museum’s galleries as a stage to showcase both home-grown and international talent. French Egyptian dancer and choreographer Luca Abdel-Nour, who currently serves as the coryphée at the Dutch National Ballet, will return to his hometown to choreograph the performance of company mate Yuanyuan Zhang, a principal dancer at the Dutch National Ballet. The two will be joined by Francesca Hayward and Cesar Corrales, both Principal dancers at the Royal Ballet, and Maria Khoreva, first soloist at the Mariinsky Ballet, among others. USC Kaufman Dancers from Los Angeles will perform a piece from acclaimed Brazilian choreographer Juliano Nunes; Josie Walsh of BalletRED will present a visionary new work, as will Céline and Cain Kitsaïs, the duo behind MAGICLAB, who recently brought their signature mix of dance, light, and performance to the opening of the new Abu Dhabi Museum. (They’ve also recently collaborated with the likes of Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Roland Garros.)

Music for the evening will be anchored by opera singer Sawsan Albahiti, who led Zarqua Al Yamama, the first Saudi grand opera performance in Arabic, which made its historic world premiere in 2024. Innovative harpist William Close will also perform. Expect him to turn the museum into his instrument itself—he’s the inventor of the groundbreaking Earth Harp, a massive instrument with strings that can stretch up to 1,000 feet, often soaring over the audience’s heads.

These dancers and artists will share the stage with by 50 youth performers from local Egyptian schools, a nod to Gala de Danza’s philanthropic mission. The festival, founded in 2013 by Lyon, a former professional ballet dancer, aims to support arts education initiatives by creating transformative cultural experiences for audiences.

This year’s Gala de Danza marks its debut performance in the MENA region (the festival has previously been hosted in London and Los Cabos) and is set to draw an international crowd. Ballet and arts lovers will descend upon Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at the First Residence and across the river at Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza. Both properties are a quick cab ride away from GEM and give guests access to the heart of one of the world’s oldest cities.