20.07.2012
Nacho Duato ballets in May
The recently premiered Multiplicity. Forms of Silence and Emptiness can be seen on 15 and 17 May. The one-act ballets Without Words, Duende, and Nunc Dimittis will be performed on 23, 24, and 26 May.
Multiplicity. Forms of Silence and Emptiness is acknowledged to be one of the most outstanding events of the season. The ballet, dedicated to Johann Sebastian Bach and set to his music, was first performed on the composer’s birthday, 21 March. The ovations that greeted the premiere are still fresh in the mind; for a long time the packed auditorium would not let the dancers and the choreographer leave the stage. Multiplicity is not a detailed biography of Bach, but it reveals the spirit and depth of the musical genius’ art. One critic has defined the ballet as “a dance essay in which notes, instruments, and thoughts dance” (Kommersant). The ballet consists of “duets, trios, quartets, sextets and larger ensembles, deployed in accordance with the polyphony of Bach’s compositions” (Expert).
Without Words, Duende, and Nunc Dimittis are living proof of the thesis that Nacho Duato’s choreography is capable of being at the same time “tranquil and excited, passionate and contemplative”. The three one-act ballets differ in tonality and concept, but together they give a full impression of Nacho Duato’s renowned original style. “Duato’s ballets are like lyric poetry interpreted in the language of dance, and for all their abstraction they are surprisingly rich in images” (Moskovsky Komsomolets). Duende was composed in 1991 for the Nederlands Dans Theater. Without Words was written for the American Ballet Theatre in 1998. Nacho Duato composed Nunc Dimittis specially for the Mikhailovsky Theatre ballet company, so beginning the Russian stage of his career as a choreographer. The one-act ballets have been part of the theatre’s repertoire for over a year, and regularly play to packed houses. The performances in May will be the last chance to see the ballet triptych this season.
Multiplicity. Forms of Silence and Emptiness is acknowledged to be one of the most outstanding events of the season. The ballet, dedicated to Johann Sebastian Bach and set to his music, was first performed on the composer’s birthday, 21 March. The ovations that greeted the premiere are still fresh in the mind; for a long time the packed auditorium would not let the dancers and the choreographer leave the stage. Multiplicity is not a detailed biography of Bach, but it reveals the spirit and depth of the musical genius’ art. One critic has defined the ballet as “a dance essay in which notes, instruments, and thoughts dance” (Kommersant). The ballet consists of “duets, trios, quartets, sextets and larger ensembles, deployed in accordance with the polyphony of Bach’s compositions” (Expert).
Without Words, Duende, and Nunc Dimittis are living proof of the thesis that Nacho Duato’s choreography is capable of being at the same time “tranquil and excited, passionate and contemplative”. The three one-act ballets differ in tonality and concept, but together they give a full impression of Nacho Duato’s renowned original style. “Duato’s ballets are like lyric poetry interpreted in the language of dance, and for all their abstraction they are surprisingly rich in images” (Moskovsky Komsomolets). Duende was composed in 1991 for the Nederlands Dans Theater. Without Words was written for the American Ballet Theatre in 1998. Nacho Duato composed Nunc Dimittis specially for the Mikhailovsky Theatre ballet company, so beginning the Russian stage of his career as a choreographer. The one-act ballets have been part of the theatre’s repertoire for over a year, and regularly play to packed houses. The performances in May will be the last chance to see the ballet triptych this season.
