To the strains of »Dona nobis pacem« by Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks, Pascal Touzeau explores the vocabulary of human discourse in all its diversity and profundity. In the course of which, »No Thumb« dispences with a strict storyline in favour of a series of short, tableauesque scenes that fit together to form a whole, just like some sort of jigsaw puzzle.
The work of choreographer Mats Ek, whether contemporary interpretations of the classics of narrativeballet such as »Giselle« and »Sleeping Beauty«, or his abstract pieces such as »She Was Black«, all display an immense expressive force. The son of choreographer Birgit Cullberg and an actor father, Ek devoted himself to dance at a relatively late age after working as a (marionette) theatre director. His choreographies deal with the excesses of human feelings and the straitjacket of social constraints. »She Was Black« from 1995 is intended as an exploration of the problems of life and cohabitation in a modern city. The result is a series of highly emotional scenes which – although without any clear narrative structure – describe familiar human conflicts. At the same time the work uses surreal elements to create a world of fantasy.
The Italian dancer and choreographer Jacopo Godani creates intense, powerful imagery characterised by a seemingly feather-like style. With »Spazio-Tempo«, created especially for the Semperoper Ballett in 2010, the multi-talented artist introduced himself to Semperoper audiences.
No Thumb (Pascal Touzeau), She was black (Mats Ek), Spazio Tempo (Jacopo Godani)
Running time 2 hours 10 minutes
Choreography, Set Design, Costume Design & Lighting Design: Pascal Touzeau
Music: Pēteris Vasks
Choreography: Mats Ek
Music: Henryk M. Górecki
Set Design & Costume Design: Peder Freiij
Lighting Design: Ellen Ruge
Staged by: Allyson Way Wanselius
Choreography, Set Design, Costume Design & Lighting Design: Jacopo Godani
Music: 48Nord (Siegfried Rössert und Ulrich Müller)
