IT DANSA

COR PERDUT, by NACHO DUATO

The choreography

Cor perdut is a pas de deux inspired by the Catalan version of the song Bir Demet Yasemin, sung by Maria del Mar Bonet and based upon a theme with traditional nuances composed by the Armenian M. J. Berberian. “It’s no use crying / it’s no use dying / desire is too strong / it finds it own way forward”, laments the impressive voice of Maria del Mar Bonet, whose influence on Duato (who created Cor perdut as a birthday gift for the Majorcan singer) seems undeniable after Jardí tancat (1983) and Arenal (1988), two of the most brilliant pieces by the Valencian choreographer, both with music by this singer. Performing to the syncopated, hypnotic rhythm of the Tunisian percussion, the two dancers bring to life Duato’s dynamic and expressive body language with the same anxious fluency transmitted by the voice of Maria del Mar Bonet. (Patricia García Ríos)

Choreography: Nacho Duato
Music: Maria del Mar Bonet
Set design, costumes and lighting: Nacho Duato
Choreographer’s assistant: Catherine Allard
Length: 10 minutes

Premiered by the Nederlands Dans Theater 2 in The Hague on 27 April 1989
Premiered by the Compañía Nacional de Danza at the Centro Cultural de la Villa in Madrid on 30 June 1990
Premiered by the IT Dansa Jove Companyia from the Institut del Teatre on 9 March 2002 at the Centre Cultural de la Caixa Terrassa. Co-produced by the Institut del Teatre and the Fundació Cultural de Caixa Terrassa

NAKED THOUGHTS, by RAFAEL BONACHELA

The choreography
Energy, dynamics and technique. Eight dancers embark on a journey through movement and also about feelings, sometimes complicated, dangerous, tender and ambiguous; it is a struggle with their emotional demons and their physical barriers. The first piece by Bonachela with a Catalan company takes its inspiration from the cyber poems by artist Ainize Txopitea, with an original soundtrack by Catalan musician Ramon Balagué and costumes by fashion designers Spastor.

The choreographer
Bonachela defines himself as a “movement addict” and his motivation is based precisely on the exploration of pure movement and experimentation in the field. Drawing on his own language, he finds inspiration in the visual arts and popular culture, which give his work a very personal style. His commitment to innovation has made him one of the most interesting and inventive choreographers on the current UK scene, working just as much with commercial dance as the most avant-garde proposals.

Rafael Bonachela is currently in his second season as artistic director of the Sydney Dance Company

Choreography Rafael Bonachela
Choreographer’s assistant Amy Hollingsworth
Music Ramon Balagué
Poems Ainize Txopitea
Lighting Paco Azorín
Costumes Spastor
Length 15 minutes
Premiered at the Festival de Barcelona Grec 2007. Teatre Ovidi Montllor

IN MEMORIAM, by SIDI LARBI CHERKAOUI

The show
The link between memory and reality lies at the heart of In Memoriam. Reality is not memory and memory is not reality, but recalling the past helps us to better capture the reality of the present. Our roots are as strong as those of a tree, which spread out a long way like the branches.

Working with memory, the dancers explore the movements of attraction and repulsion, magnetism and anti-magnetism, in order to examine the meaning of the word “harmony”.

The choreographer
Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui. Of Moroccan origin he trained at the PARTS dance school founded by choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. One of the new wave of artists in European choreography, he is a member of the company Ballets C de la B (Belgium Contemporary Ballet), based in Ghent, Belgium.

His first work as a choreographer, Anonymous Society, was an international award-winner and helped advance his career with various European institutions, which quickly decided to stage his shows. His first choreographies, such as Rien de rien from 2000, dealt with social themes like multiculturalism and diversity. He works with institutions such as the Grand Théâtre de Genève and the Ballets de Monte-Carlo. His creative style is always related to the exploration of identity, whether cultural, religious or sexual.

In 2005 he created the successful duo Zero Degrees with the choreographer Akram Khan. In 2008 he worked with Antony Gormley in Sutra and in 2009 with María Pagés in Dunas. He created BABEL (words) with Damien Jalet and Antony Gormley in 2010.

Choreography Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
Music A Filetta
Costume design Maribel Selma
Length 10 minutes

Co-production Institut del Teatre de la Diputació de Barcelona, Grec’11 Festival de Barcelona.
Premiered at the Festival de Barcelona Grec 2011. Teatre Grec

WHIM Fractured Fairytale, by ALEX EKMAN

The choreography
A piece about how we always have to maintain a semblance of sanity even when we are going crazy inside… The whole piece presents a variety of situations drawn from real life. While watching the dress rehearsal, I realized that we had created a kind of strange musical, black and sad. In fact you do not know whether you should laugh or not. It’s funny, but not really funny… it’s sad, but not really sad… it’s agreeable, but not really agreeable.

I felt very happy and privileged to work with such a specially talented and hardworking group of people. They are eager to learn and ALWAYS give 100%. IT Dansa is not only a great opportunity for young dancers to develop as artists, but also a perfect scenario for the choreographer to feel free to experiment. The desire for art is there. We had a great time creating this “black musical” and I will never forget it. Many thanks to all the dancers and the team! (Alex Ekman)

The choreographer
Alex Ekman, who has danced with the Royal Swedish Ballet (2001-2002), the Nederlands Dans Theater II (2002-2005) and the Cullberg Ballet (2005-2006), has choreographed several workshops for companies in which he has danced and has also been guest choreographer for other dance companies in the Netherlands. He was described by Ballettanz magazine in 2006 as a young choreographer to watch. His piece The Swingle Sisters won second prize at the International Competition for Choreographers in Hanover (2006), as well as the critics’ award.

Choreography Alex Ekman
Music Antonio Vivaldi (The Four Seasons – “Winter”), Marcelle de Lacour (La pendule de Marie-Antoinette), Edmundo Ros (Bolero) and Nina Simone (My baby just cares for me)
Lighting Alex Kurth
Costumes Alex Ekman
Length 15 minutes
Premiered at the Festival de Barcelona Grec 2007. Teatre Ovidi Montllor

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