First performed 150 years ago at the Paris Opera, Coppélia remains one of the romantic ballet’s most characteristic works. Based on a tale by E.T.A. Hoffmann, the ballet features an array of highly colourful characters, from the intrepid Swanilda and her fiancé Frantz, fascinated by a mechanical doll, to a mad old scientist. A whole world overflowing with fantasy and joy comes to life in Arthur Saint‑Léon’s choreography swept along by the music of Léo Delibes. The work proved to be a huge success in 1870. The pupils of the Ballet School are coming to grips with the work with the same freshness and vitality as the performers of that first production. Faithfully restaging the original version, Pierre Lacotte brings new life to the rich sophistication of the French School of Ballet. It is a style taught to the pupils of the Paris Opera Ballet School and presented along with other disciplines during the annual Demonstrations at the Palais Garnier.