The Harris Theater presents The Rite of Spring/common ground[s], a co-production of the Pina Bausch Foundation, École des Sables, and Sadler’s Wells. The program features Pina Bausch’s The Rite of Spring, performed by an assembled company of dancers from 14 African countries.
Take a closer look at this iconic work below, and you will want to secure your seats today.
Pina Bausch’s The Rite of Spring premiered in 1975, early in her tenure as artistic director of Tanztheater Wuppertal, and is widely considered a seminal work in the choreographer’s storied career. Bausch’s choreography is set to the original Stravinsky score, one of the first modernist works of the 20th century, which caused a riot at its premiere by the Ballet Russes in 1913.
In Bausch’s version, danced on a dirt-covered stage, the central plot remains the same – a “chosen one” must be sacrificed to mark the end of winter and arrival of spring. As in much of her body of work, Bausch confronts the brutality and misogyny inherent in the ritual, as a woman is sacrificed for the benefit and gratification of men. In this stark and unsettling depiction, the audience experiences the tension and dread along with the dancers, building to its violent climax.
Until this production, Bausch’s Rite had been performed by just two other companies in addition to her own, Paris Opera Ballet and English National Ballet. Members of Tanztheater Wuppertal familiar with the work and Bausch’s process traveled to Senegal to select the 38 dancers from 14 African countries and participated in rehearsals documented in the video below. The result is “a tight community assembled from scratch” dancing with “deep humanity and supreme skill” (The Guardian).
Two performances allow viewers the rare opportunity of seeing Pina Bausch: The Rite of Spring and Germaine Acogny + Malou Airaudo: common ground[s]
A Pina Bausch Foundation, École des Sables & Sadler’s Wells production
Thursday, October 27, 2022 | 7:30PM Friday, October 28, 2022 | 7:30PM
Tickets: $35–140
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
The idea of ‘exchange’ is central in this two-part programme which marks the first collaboration between the Pina Bausch Foundation (Germany), École des Sables (Senegal) and Sadler’s Wells (UK).
Bausch’s (1975) The Rite of Spring is danced by a newly assembled company of dancers from African countries. In this pioneering work, with music by Stravinsky, a ‘chosen one’ is sacrificed changing the season from winter to spring.
common ground[s] is a new work created, performed and inspired by the lives of two remarkable women: Germaine Acogny, “the mother of contemporary African dance” and founder of École des Sables and Malou Airaudo who has performed leading roles in many of Bausch’s early works. This poetic and tender piece, the duo’s first collaboration, examines their shared histories and emotional experiences
CREATIVE CREDITS
The Rite of Spring
Choreography: Pina Bausch
Music: Igor Stravinsky
Set and Costumes: Rolf Borzik
Collaboration: Hans Pop
World Premiere: 3 December 1975, Opera House Wuppertal
2021 Restaging
Artistic Director: Josephine Ann Endicott, Jorge Puerta Armenta, Clémentine Deluy Rehearsal Directors: Ditta Miranda Jasjfi and Çağdaş Ermiş, Barbara Kaufmann, Julie Shanahan, Kenji Takagi
common ground[s]
Co-Choreographers and Dancers: Germaine Acogny, Malou Airaudo Composer: Fabrice Bouillon LaForest
Costume Designer: Petra Leidner
Lighting Designer: Zeynep Kepekli Dramaturg: Sophiatou Kossoko
A Pina Bausch Foundation, École des Sables & Sadler’s Wells production, co-produced with Théâtre de la Ville, Paris; Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg; Holland Festival, Amsterdam; Festspielhaus, St Pölten; Ludwigsburg Festival; Teatros del Canal de la Comunidad de Madrid, Adelaide Festival and Spoleto Festival dei 2Mondi. The project is funded by the German Federal Cultural Foundation, the Ministry of Culture and Science of the German State of North Rhine- Westphalia, and the International Coproduction Fund of the Goethe-Institut, and kindly supported by the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch.
This program contains depictions of violence and partial nudity, and production elements include haze and peat onstage.
The Rite of Spring
Choreography: Pina Bausch
Music: Igor Stravinsky
Set and Costumes: Rolf Borzik
Collaboration: Hans Pop
World Premiere: 3 December 1975, Opera House Wuppertal
Rite 2021 Restaging
Artistic Director: Josephine Ann Endicott, Jorge Puerta Armenta, Clémentine Deluy
Rehearsal Directors: Ditta Miranda Jasjfi and Çağdaş Ermiş, Barbara Kaufmann, Julie Shanahan, Kenji Takagi
common ground[s]
Co-Choreographers and Dancers: Germaine Acogny, Malou Airaudo
Composer: Fabrice Bouillon LaForest Costume Designer: Petra Leidner
Lighting Designer: Zeynep Kepekli
Dramaturg: Sophiatou Kossoko
A Pina Bausch Foundation, École des Sables, and Sadler’s Wells production Co-produced with Théâtre de la Ville, Paris; Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg; Holland Festival, Amsterdam; Festspielhaus, St Pölten; Ludwigsburg Festival; Teatros del Canal de la Comunidad de Madrid, Adelaide Festival and Spoleto Festival dei 2Mondi.
The project is funded by the German Federal Cultural Foundation, the Ministry of Culture and Science of the German State of North Rhine-Westphalia, and the International Coproduction Fund of the Goethe-Institut, and kindly supported by the Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch
Photo: Maarten Vanden Abeele © Pina Bausch Foundation
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