Warsaw: 7th Days of Dance to begin soon at Teatr Wielki Polish National Opera

Teatr Wielki ? Polish National Opera and the Polish National Ballet are delighted to invite everyone interested to the 7^th Days of Dance. The dominant in this year?s edition is the presentation of two famous contemporary choreographers, Wayne McGregor (London) and Paul Taylor (New York), as well as the works of Polish artists Krzysztof Pastor, director of the Polish National Theatre, and Izadora Weiss, director of the Baltic Dance Theatre.

The festival will begin with a period ballet Casanova in Warsaw choreographed by Krzysztof Pastor to Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart?s music, with stage design by the Oscar-winning Italian designer Gianni Quaranta, performed by the Polish National Ballet (18 October, consecutive presentations on 22 and 23 October). On the first day of the festival, the chamber stage will host the guest performance of the Baltic Dance Theatre featuring original pieces by Izadora Weiss: Fun, Death and the Maiden, and Body Master.

The foreign strand of the festival promises to be equally attractive, marked by the first appearances in Poland by the New York-based contemporary dance company of the legendary American choreographer Paul Taylor (21 October), who will present his three famous works: Mercuric Tidings to the music of Schubert, Piazzola Caldera to the music of Astor Piazzola and Jerzy Petersburski, and Esplanade to the music of Bach. The review will conclude on 25 October with the performance by the London-based Company Wayne McGregor, who will present FAR, giving the Polish audience a taste of the style and aesthetics of one of Europe?s foremost and most popular choreographers. The latter event will end the 7^th Days of Dance and inaugurate the 22^nd International Meeting of Live Arts CROSSROADS 2015, organized annually by the Art and Its Time Foundation and the Centre for Contemporary Art ? Ujazdowski Castle. 

About the guest companies:

Company Wayne McGregor is one of the most esteemed contemporary dance companies in the world. Formed in 1992, the group?s performances are characterized by the combination of dance with electronic music and new technologies, including animation, digital film, and 3D design. McGregor?s company has performed at the major dance festivals in the world and numerous theatres in Europe, America, Asia and Australia. For the past few years, the company has been seated at the Sadler?s Wells in London. In 2016, it will move to its own seat. The performance mark the company?s first visit to Warsaw.

Paul Taylor Dance Company was founded in 1954 by dancer and choreographer Paul Taylor. One of the first American contemporary dance companies, it has performed in more than 500 cities in 62 countries, spending half of each of its artistic season touring American venues. Throughout the decades, the Paul Taylor Dance Company created a repertoire which strengthened its position as one of the foremost dance ensembles in the world.

Baltic Dance Theatre is a young company of twenty artists created in 2010 as a result of transformations in the Baltic Opera. The artistic director of the company is its founder Izadora Weiss. Her work is driven by the belief that body movement has to result from the spirit of music and is only reasonable when it is inseparably unified  with that music. The Baltic Dance Theatre strives to attain its artistic ideal and model set by the Nederlands Dans Theater shaped by Jiří Kylián?s choreographies, Izadora Weiss? master and teacher.

PROGRAMME:

All presentations will begin at 7 pm except Casanova in Warsaw on 18 October (6 pm).

18, 22, 23 October 2015

Polish National Ballet (Warsaw)

CASANOVA IN WARSAW

Ballet in two acts
Choreography & direction: Krzysztof Pastor
Idea and libretto: Paweł Chynowski
Music: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Conductor & music concept: Jakub Chrenowicz
Set & costume design: Gianni Quaranta
Lighting design: Daniele Nannuzzi 

18 October 2015 (Młynarski Hall)

Baltic Dance Theatre (Gdańsk)

FUN / DEATH AND THE MAIDEN / BODY MASTER

Ballet evening in three parts 

Fun
Libretto, production, choreography & music concept: Izadora Weiss
Music: Jordi Savall, Antonio Vivaldi, Niccolo Paganini
Set design: Hanna Szymczak
Lighting design: Piotr Miszkiewicz

Death and the Maiden
Libretto & choreography: Izadora Weiss
Music: Philip Glass
Costumes: Hanna Szymczak
Lighting design: Piotr Miszkiewicz

Body Master 
Synopsis, production & choreography: Izadora Weiss
Music: collage / Izadora Weiss 
Costumes: Hanna Szymczak 
Lighting design: Piotr Miszkiewicz 

21 October 2015

Paul Taylor Dance Company (New York, USA)

MERCURIC TIDINGS / PIAZZOLA CALDERA / ESPLANADE

Ballet evening in three parts (programme may be subject to change) 

Mercuric Tidings
Choreography: Paul Taylor
Music: Franz Schubert
Costumes: Santo Loquasto
Lighting design: Jennifer Tipton

Piazzola Caldera
Choreography: Paul Taylor
Music: Astor Piazzolla & Jerzy Peterburshsky
Set and Costumes: Santo Loquasto
Lighting design: Jennifer Tipton 

Esplanade
Choreography: Paul Taylor
Music: Johann Sebastian Bach
Costumes: John Rawlings
Lighting design: Jennifer Tipton 

25 October 2015

Company Wayne McGregor (London, UK)

Guest performance organised in collaboration with the Art & Present Time Foundation and the Centre for Contemporary Art ? Ujazdowski Castle as part of the 7th Days of Dance & the 22nd International Meeting of Live Arts CROSSROADS 2015.

FAR

Concept and direction: Wayne McGregor
Choreography: Wayne McGregor in collaboration with the dancers
Original music: Ben Frost
Stage design: Random International
Costumes: Moritz Junge
Lighting design: Lucy Carter

More information available at: www.teatrwielki.pl/en/activity/artistic-projects/7th-days-of-dance/