The Swimmer + Les Sylphides

For The Swimmer, the London dancer and choreographer Rachel Krische adapted a solo by Deborah Hay. In the sixties Hay was a member of the legendary Judson Dance Theatre. In her dance, Krische liberates herself entirely from any structured, interpretable movement and aims for total freedom. Her comical, sometimes grotesque solo is the result of fruitful collaboration with Hay herself.

Nicole Beutler is presenting a remake of Les Sylphides (Mikhail Fokin, 1907), the first classical ballet not to tell a story. She is fascinated by the beauty and precision of the original, and wishes to re-experience its essence and magic. The audience is almost literally on top of the dancers and witnesses the metamorphosis from person to performer. The choice of dancers and the unusual position of the audience create friction between past and present.