Dates

10-27 Jun 2023

Location

Dutch National Opera & Ballet, Main Stage

Running time

1:50, incl. 1 interval

Tickets

n.a.

Forsythe Festival

Ode to an international master choreographer

If there is one choreographer who has influenced and steered the development of contemporary dance, it has to be William Forsythe. He completely overturned the traditional logic and dynamic of ballet. Dutch National Ballet is extremely proud to present its first complete programme of three of his masterpieces: The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, Pas/Parts 2018 and the Dutch premiere of the internationally acclaimed Blake Works I.

Photo: Marta Syrko

Ode to an international master choreographer

Tribute and parody

The first work, as suggested by its title The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude, is a tribute to the precision and speed of classical ballet, while simultaneously being a parody of it as well. To Schubert’s Symphony no. 9, the dancers perform a whirlwind of pirouettes and tricky allegro work, but they do it at such speed that the original steps are barely visible any more.

 

Abstract art

In 1999, right before diving into his experimental phase, Forsythe created another masterpiece for the Paris Opéra Ballet: Pas/Parts, which Dutch National Ballet is now presenting in an adapted version from 2018. The piece is a prime example of how dance innovator Forsythe took classical ballet steps and transformed, cut and regrouped them to form contemporary abstract art. Like a dizzying avalanche, ingenious solos, duets, trios and group sections follow one another at amazing speed.

Blake Works l was the first work in which Forsythe – after seventeen years of choreographic experimentation – returned to classical ballet technique. This proved to be the foundation of his success in the eighties and nineties. At the world premiere in Paris, in 2016, the audience went wild. In technically challenging, yet swinging solos, duets and group formations, the piece portrays seven poetic songs from James Blake’s album The Colour in Anything.

Credits

The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude
Choreography  William Forsythe
Music  Franz Schubert
Costume design  Stephen Galloway

Pas/Parts 2018
Choreography  William Forsythe
Music  Thom Willems
Costume design  Stephen Galloway

Blake Works l (Dutch premiere)
Choreography  William Forsythe
Music  James Blake
Costume design  Dorothee Merg, William Forsythe

Musical accompaniment  Dutch National Ballet Orchestra conducted by Matthew Rowe

Part of Holland Festival

Online programme

Along with the printed programme book, we also offer online programme information for this performance. The online programme will take you behind the scenes with in-depth stories, articles, and interviews with the creators and cast.

Trailer Forsythe

Scènebeeld van The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude; vijf dansers in groene tutu's

Five reasons to look forward to Forsythe

Forsythe
Forsythe
Forsythe
Pas Parts | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Pas/Parts 2018 | Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Pas Parts | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Pas/Parts 2018 | Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Pas Parts | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Pas/Parts 2018 | Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Pas Parts | Foto: Hans Gerritsen
Pas Parts | Photo: Hans Gerritsen
Het Balletorkest

Dutch National Ballet Orchestra

Dutch Ballet Orchestra’s mission is ‘to inspire movement in dance’. Since its inception in 1965, the orchestra has been the proud musical partner of Dutch National Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater. In every performance, the orchestra searches for inspiring synergy between music and dance, in order to give the audience a magical experience.

Dutch Ballet Orchestra

Led by principal conductor Matthew Rowe, Dutch Ballet Orchestra is the leading orchestra for dance in the Netherlands. The orchestra accompanies performances ranging from traditional ballet to modern dance, alongside and is active in music education and talent development.

Besides performances with Dutch National Ballet and Nederlands Dans Theater, Dutch Ballet Orchestra has a long tradition of innovative – and award-winning – family performances. For instance, Creatures (in collaboration with ISH) received the international Young Audiences Music Award, and the production Hansel and Gretel (in collaboration with Orkater) won various Musical Awards. In these productions, the musicians play from memory, without a conductor and in costumes, so that they form an integral part of the performance. And finally, Dutch Ballet Orchestra has a long-term partnership with the Dutch National Ballet Academy. They are therefore involved in the music curriculum for pupils and students, facilitate student visits to orchestra rehearsals and provide music for the academy’s end-of-year performance, where possible. 

hetballetorkest.nl/en

Olga Smirnova tijdens een repetitie voor Blake Works I
Olga Smirnova - rehearsal Blake Works I | Photo: Altin Kaftira
James Stout, Yuanyuan Zhang en Constantine Allen tijdens een repetitie voor Pas/Parts 2018
James Stout, Yuanyuan Zhang and Constantine Allen - Rehearsal Pas/Parts 2018 | Photo: Altin Kaftira
Martin ten Kortenaar tijdens een repetitie voor Pas/Parts 2018
Martin ten Kortenaar - rehearsal Pas/Parts 2018 | Photo: Altin Kaftira
Elisabeth Tonev en Daniel Montero Real tijdens een repetitie voor Pas/Parts 2018
Elisabeth Tonev and Daniel Montero Real - rehearsal Pas/Parts 2018 | Photo: Altin Kaftira
Daniel Silva en Sho Yamada tijdens een repetitie Pas/Parts 2018
Daniel Silva and Sho Yamada - rehearsal Pas/Parts 2018 | Photo: Altin Kaftira
Kira Hilli en William Forsythe tijdens een repetitie The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude
Kira Hilli and William Forsythe - Rehearsal The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude | Photo: Altin Kaftira
Timothy van Poucke en Victor Caixeta tijdens een repetitie The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude
Timothy van Poucke and Victor Caixeta - rehearsal The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude | Photo: Altin Kaftira

Humour, beauty and innovation: ballet innovator William Forsythe offers it all [...] Connoisseurs can search for quotes from ballet history but the performance is a delight even without prior knowledge.

12 June

Triptych Forsythe is the epitome of explosive power.

11 June

[...] the highlight of the evening: Pas/Parts 2018.

11 June

To Thom Willems' popping, whistling, gibbering composition, the dancers rush through twenty movements in varying formations, all equally beguiling by the inventiveness with which the choreographer adapts the classical arsenal of steps to contemporary use - NRC Handelsblad about Pas/Parts 2018

28 March

Forsythe makes what seems perfectly logical illogical, and gives you a new logic in return. The aesthetic appeal of this is great.

- Pas/Parts 2018

28 March

The result is a dance marathon [Pas/Parts 2018] of solos, duets and trios, laden with poses that are repeatedly moulded into dizzying constellations of high kicks and athletic hip swings.

28 March