SACRE

The American Jerome Robbins, who along with George Balanchine was one of the most important neoclassical choreographers of the 20th century, has conceived a strange-seeming rite with his ballet “The Cage”: A matriarchal community of insect-like creatures to which the men fall prey. This disturbing but thoroughly entertaining story is told with crystal-clear, neoclassical vocabulary, modulated by stubbornness untypical of ballet. The Concerto in D for string orchestra by Igor Stravinsky provides the framework for a lively, humorous and surprisingly contemporary choreography.

The Spanish choreographer Marcos Morau is known for his theatrical productions with strong imagery. For his own company “La Veronal”, he and his interdisciplinary team create pieces that portray a self-contained world and alternative realities precisely and in detail. The influences from film and photography are particularly noticeable - a visual, absorbing aesthetic that burns itself in. For some years now, he has also been choreographing at the interface of dance, film and theatre for companies such as the Nederlands Dans Theater or the Norwegian company Carte Blanche. For the Ballett am Rhein, Marcos Morau will create a choreography to Igor Stravinsky's famous composition “Le sacre du printemps”.

Complementing the two pieces, ballet director and chief choreographer Demis Volpi will choreograph a world premiere to music by Richard Strauss. "Metamophosen for 23 solo strings" was written in 1945 as a reaction to the destroyed cultural Germany. With his interpretation of this piece, Demis Volpi approaches the title theme "SACRE" from a different direction: What remains after the sacrifice? How do we deal with its consequences? "The thing with feathers" is a search, a striving for a glimmer of hope, a contemplation of life in its eternal coming and going.