The XXV International Festival of Modern Choreography will start in Vitebsk on November 19 (program)
From November 21 to 25, 2012, the jubilee XXV International Festival of Modern Choreography (IFMC) will be held in Vitebsk. The festival was the first and remained the only forum for contemporary dance in the former USSR until 1997. The significance of the festival was recognized in one of the headlines of the reputable Russian publication "Kommersant daily": "In contemporary choreography, Moscow follows Vitebsk immediately." Today, IFMC is one of the most prestigious festivals in the field of choreographic art in the Commonwealth of Independent States and Eastern Europe.
The appearance of the festival in Vitebsk is not accidental. The historical and cultural significance of the festival lies in the revival of the city's artistic traditions associated with the Renaissance of the 1920s, when Vitebsk was one of the centers of the Russian and European avant-garde. At the end of the 20th century, the festival became the first forum for contemporary choreographic art in the post-Soviet space.
The socio-cultural significance of the festival lies in the fact that it records and shapes the development paths of contemporary plastic theater. IFMC is the only educational forum in the field of contemporary dance in Belarus. Today, largely thanks to the Vitebsk festival, it can be stated that Belarusian contemporary choreography not only exists but also has its own unique identity, transmitting the peculiarities of mentality and artistic traditions of our - Belarusian - culture into the world artistic space.
Today, the festival remains true to its main goal – the integration of Belarus's creative potential in the field of contemporary choreography into the world cultural space, continuing to stimulate the development of international relations in the field of art. Thousands of artists from more than 40 countries have performed on the Vitebsk stage during the 25-year history of the festival, which all these years has contributed to strengthening the country's image as a modern state with highly artistic traditions and cultural values of the new century.
The program of the XXV festival is planned as a large-scale international art event, an integral part of the cultural life of the city and the Republic as a whole. The main event of the festival is an international competition.
INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION OF MODERN CHOREOGRAPHY
The main event of IFMC’2012 is the International Competition of Modern Choreography.
The competition is held in two nominations – one-act ballet and choreographic miniature. The total performance time of the submitted works should not exceed 20 minutes. The competition is held in two rounds. The first round is closed: the international jury, the expert council, and the competition participants are present. The final round of the competition is held publicly.
Choreographic ensembles, ballet companies, and artists of dance projects whose work relates to the concept of "modern choreography" are invited to participate in the competition in 2012. The choreographic vocabulary of the productions may include any dance and movement techniques of contemporary dance. The synthesis of various dance genres, as well as elements of other art forms, is allowed in the submitted works.
The competition commission does not consider choreographic works staged before January 1, 2011.
The competition is held in two nominations – "One-Act Ballet" and "Choreographic Miniature". Based on the results of the final, the winners of the competition in the nominations are determined, who are awarded the titles of Laureates, as well as the Grand Prix winner.
The Grand Prix winner receives a cash prize of 5,000 US dollars. Special prizes, as well as the prize for the best choreographer named after Evgeny Panfilov, are awarded based on the joint decision of the members of the international jury and the expert council.
The total prize fund is 15,000 US dollars.
Based on the results of the qualifying video round, 45 works out of 92 submitted will be presented at the competition in Vitebsk. The following are invited to participate in the international competition:
1. Belarus. Contemporary Dance Group "TAD" of the Grodno Regional Philharmonic
2. Ensemble of the Department of Choreography of the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts
3. Exemplary Studio of Contemporary Dance "PARALLELI" of the Educational Institution "STATE GYMNASIUM No. 3 of VITEBSK named after A.S. PUSHKIN"
4. People's Theatre-Studio of Contemporary Choreography under the direction of Dina YURCHENKO of the State Institution "CENTER OF CULTURE "VITEBSK"
5. Dance Theatre "KARAKULI", Minsk
6. "SKVO’S DANCE COMPANY", Minsk
7. People's Choreographic Ensemble "ALESYA", Mogilev
8. Lithuania. "ARTS PRINTING HOUSE", Vilnius
9. Poland. Soloists of the National Ballet School named after Feliks PARNELL, Lodz
10. Russia. Contemporary Choreography Workshop of Antonina KRASNOVA, Moscow
11. Creative Workshop of Sona OVSEPYAN, Moscow
12. Movement Workshop "KromeSlov", Moscow
13. Dance Company "AKVEDUK", Saint Petersburg
14. Ensemble of Contemporary Choreography of the Kemerovo State University of Culture and Arts "ETERNAL MOVEMENT", Kemerovo
15. Dance Theatre of the Omsk State University named after F.M. DOSTOEVSKY "nOga", Omsk
16. Project "FORma’T", Chelyabinsk
17. "Experimental Dance Theatre of Arina PANFILOVA" at the "EVGENY PANFILOV FOUNDATION", Perm
18. Ukraine. Project of Alexey BUSKO, Kyiv
19. "TOTEM DANCE GROUP", Kherson
20. "ANATOLY VODZYANSKY AND COMPANY", Kyiv
21. "DUET VLADIMIROVICH", Kyiv
22. Project of Sergey KON, Kyiv
23. "DANCES OF ANASTASIA KHARCHENKO", Kyiv
24. Switzerland. BASEL DANCE COMPANY, Basel
25. Estonia. LAURA KVELSTEIN PROJECT, Tallinn
26. Japan. "DANCE CREATION AWARD", Tokyo
27. International Projects "GAO SHAN DANCE COMPANY"
Maria Giovanna DELLE DONNE, Italy
Georgia KAPODISTRIA, Cyprus
Katharina KLA?MANN, Kathrina WILKE, Germany
Gao SHAN, China
28. "CIE SHEN COMPANY"
Fang-Yu SHEN, Tsai-Wei TIEN, China
Ching-Yu CHI, Taiwan
Sergey ZHUKOV, Germany
JURY OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION OF CONTEMPORARY CHOREOGRAPHY
Vladimir VASILIEV. People's Artist of the USSR, Professor at the Russian Institute of Theatre Arts, Honorary Professor at Lomonosov Moscow State University, ballet master, choreographer, theatre director, actor, educator, recipient of the V. NIJINSKY Prize of the Paris Academy of Dance for "BEST DANCER OF THE WORLD", Jury Chairman of the competition. Russia
Sushant LINK/ Former soloist of the Pina BAUSCH Dance Theatre, choreographer, educator, author of productions for FOLKWANG DANCE STUDIO, the **Jose LIMON** Company, Paris Opera, Nederlands Dans Theater. Germany
Alice DOR COHEN. Choreographer, educator, former soloist of the "BAT SHEVA" Company, recipient of national awards in contemporary art. Israel
Paul JOHNSON. Director of the Irish Association of Professional Dancers, art critic, member of the National Council for Culture and the Arts. Ireland
Wendy PERRON. Choreographer, educator, ballet critic, Editor-in-Chief of "DANCE MAGAZINE". USA
Radu POKLITARU. Choreographer, laureate of international competitions, Artistic Director of the "KYIV MODERN-BALLET" Centre for Contemporary Choreography. Ukraine
EXPERT COUNCIL OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION OF CONTEMPORARY CHOREOGRAPHY
Larisa BARYKINA
Ballet critic, musicologist, critic and researcher of musical theatre, member of expert councils and juries of the Golden Mask National Theatre Award, chairman of the expert council. Russia
Yulia CHURKO Doctor of Art History, Professor, Honored Artist, laureate of the State Prize of the Republic of Belarus. Belarus
Svetlana GUTKOVSKAYA Choreographer, laureate of international competitions, Candidate of Philology, Professor, Head of the Choreography Department of the Belarusian State University of Culture and Arts. Belarus
Vita MOZURAITE Ballet critic, lecturer of dance history at the Vilnius Academy of Music. Lithuania
Aart HAUGEE Artistic advisor of Tanzhaus NRW in Düsseldorf, organizer of the Global Dance festival. Netherlands
Valeria URALSKAYA Professor, Doctor of Philosophy, Honored Artist of Russia, Vice-President of the Association of Choreographers of Russia, Editor-in-Chief of "Ballet" magazine. Russia
Helle EINASTO Contemporary dance critic, lecturer at the Choreography Department of Tallinn University. Estonia
FESTIVAL CONCERT PROGRAM
Evenings of contemporary choreography will be presented in Vitebsk, Grodno, Minsk, Bobruisk, Molodechno.
Due to the anniversary, the guest program of the festival has been expanded, with the participation of ensembles from Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, and Estonia. The history of the festival is connected with their names. The pioneers of the 80s of the last century are now the elite of contemporary dance in the post-Soviet space. Among them are: multiple winners of the Golden Mask National Theatre Award – "PROVINCIAL DANCES" and "EXCENTRIC-BALLET" from Yekaterinburg, Yevgeny Panfilov Ballet from Perm, Olga Pony Theatre of Contemporary Dance from Chelyabinsk.
Among the festival participants are "JO STRØMGREN COMPANY" from Norway, LA VOUIVRE Company from France, and for the first time in Belarus, guests from Great Britain – National Dance Company Wales.
NOVEMBER 21 (Wednesday)
"VITEBSK" Concert Hall, start – 19:00
GRAND OPENING OF THE FESTIVAL.
PRESENTATION OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION PARTICIPANTS
SECTION I
CHELYABINSK CONTEMPORARY DANCE THEATRE
"HeadFeedHands" Theatre, Cologne
"KYIV MODERN-BALLET" CONTEMPORARY CHOREOGRAPHY THEATRE
Sergey Mandrik's "Street Jazz" Ballet, Moscow
SERGEY SMIRNOV'S "ECCENTRIC BALLET", Yekaterinburg
"D.O.Z.SK.I." CONTEMPORARY CHOREOGRAPHY THEATRE, Minsk
YEVGENY PANFILOV BALLET STATE THEATRE, Perm
SECTION II
PREMIERE OF THE PERFORMANCE "SEPIA"
LAUREATE OF THE GOLDEN MASK NATIONAL THEATRE AWARD
"PROVINCIAL DANCES" THEATRE, YEKATERINBURG
MUSIC: AVET TERTERYAN
CHOREOGRAPHY, DIRECTION: TATIANA BAGANOVA
The performance is based on Kobo Abe's novel "The Woman in the Sands". However, it is not a retelling of the story, but an attempt to convey the states of a person in certain conditions. In the performance, sand is simultaneously the characters' habitat, a symbol of time, and an external factor transforming consciousness. The infinity of falling sand is emphasized by the long, drawn-out sounds of Avet Terteryan's symphony.
NOVEMBER 22 (Thursday)
Vitebsk Regional Philharmonic, start time – 17:30
PERFORMANCE "DASHED LINE"
LAUREATE OF THE GOLDEN MASK NATIONAL THEATRE AWARD
CHELYABINSK CONTEMPORARY DANCE THEATRE
MUSIC BY CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: OLGA PONNA IN CO-AUTHORSHIP WITH THE DANCERS
What is a dashed line? A broken line consisting of closely spaced dots. The choreographer skillfully plays with this concept. By assembling dots: the dancers' movements, their successive pauses, the music and its interruptions, light and darkness – the author draws their dashed line, their own line…
YAKUB KOLAS NATIONAL DRAMA THEATRE, start time – 19:30
SECTION I
PERFORMANCE "MANDALA"
"FINE FIVE DANCE THEATRE" CONTEMPORARY DANCE THEATRE, ESTONIA
MUSIC BY CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: RENEE NOMMIK AND TIINA OLLSK
In Sanskrit, the word "mandala" means circle, a geometric figure. "MANDALA" is a kind of divine order, an inner striving for it; a prayer, a request… The concentric structure of the performance unites the journey from one state of the soul to another, from material existence to spiritual, in order to unite Heaven with Earth, body with soul…
II SECTION
DANCE PERFORMANCE "OUPS"
LA VOUIVRE COMPANY, FRANCE
IDEA, CHOREOGRAPHY, DIRECTION: BÉRÉNGE FOUCHIER AND SAMUEL FASSIOLI
Their subject is man, his dreams and fantasies, which he skillfully approaches. Their work is full of discoveries, mockery, and energy.
Minsk Concert Hall, start – 19:00
I SECTION
HIT OF THE EUROPEAN THEATRE STAGE
PERFORMANCE "DANCE DEDICATION TO THE ART OF FOOTBALL"
JO STROMGREN KOMPANI, NORWAY
MUSIC BY CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: JO STROMGREN
The performance meticulously examines the physical routine of the greatest game on earth and raises the aesthetic aspects of its madness. It comments on the artificial conflict between "ordinary sports competitions" and "eloquent art forms" as well as the pride and prejudice surrounding the concept of working-class football and upper-class ballet. Dancers dance football and play it at the same time.
II SECTION
DANCE PERFORMANCE "LITTLE STORIES TOLD TO EACH OTHER"
THREE-TIME WINNER OF THE RUSSIAN NATIONAL THEATRE AWARD "GOLDEN MASK"
"EXCENTRIC BALLET" BY SERGEY SMIRNOV, EKATERINBURG
MUSIC BY CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: SERGEY SMIRNOV
"LITTLE STORIES" is a nostalgic performance about what will probably never return. The changing scenes set to music by Tariverdiev and Soviet composers look sharp and unexpectedly relevant. Smirnov's "little people from the big city" are captivating with their sincerity, which is perhaps not found today.
Molodechno Palace of Culture, start – 19:00
WINNER OF THE NATIONAL THEATRE AWARD "GOLDEN MASK"
PERM STATE THEATRE "BALLET OF EVGENY PANFILOV"
I SECTION
BALLET "CAGE FOR PARROTS"
MUSIC BY: GEORGES BIZET, RODION SHCHEDRIN
CHOREOGRAPHY: EVGENY PANFILOV
Oh, the brilliant perfection of the cage – a temptation that eternally captivates man. How good it is in natural captivity. The secrets, sorrows, doubts, and tears of the world are unknown to the parrots. Is it like people? In general, this is life on both sides of the bars. Irony and sadness, beauty and ugliness, constraint and freedom? Is it needed at all?
SECTION II
BALLET “DESTINO”
MUSIC BY CLASSICAL AND CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: ALEXEY RASTORGUYEV
A house without a single chair is very strange and unusual… Our belongings are like condemned witnesses and guardians of our openly visible and hidden images of existence. They acquire, perhaps, a fictitious soul, a memory… Between what the world offers us as visible life and what this visible reality conceals, the theatre of human destiny has been unfolding for centuries…
NOVEMBER 23 (Friday)
Vitebsk Concert Hall, start time – 19:00
SECTION I
PERFORMANCE “DANCE DEDICATION TO THE ART OF FOOTBALL”
JO STROMGREN KOMPANI, NORWAY
MUSIC BY CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: JO STROMGREN
SECTION II
DANCE PERFORMANCE “LITTLE STORIES TOLD TO A FRIEND”
THREE-TIME WINNER OF THE RUSSIAN NATIONAL THEATRE AWARD “GOLDEN MASK”
“EXCENTRIC BALLET” BY SERGEY SMIRNOV, YEKATERINBURG
MUSIC BY CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: SERGEY SMIRNOV
Bobruisk Drama Theatre, start time – 18:00
WINNER OF THE NATIONAL THEATRE AWARD “GOLDEN MASK”
PERM STATE THEATRE “BALLET OF EVGENY PANFILOV”
SECTION I
BALLET “CAGE FOR PARROTS”
MUSIC BY: GEORGES BIZET, RODION SHCHEDRIN
CHOREOGRAPHY: EVGENY PAFILOV
SECTION II
BALLET “DESTINO”
MUSIC BY CLASSICAL AND CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: ALEXEY RASTORGUYEV
NOVEMBER 24 (Saturday)
Vitebsk Concert Hall
16:30
FINAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION. CONCERT ONE
19:00
SECTION I
FINAL OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION. CONCERT TWO
SECTION II
GUEST
WINNER OF THE NATIONAL THEATRE AWARD “GOLDEN MASK”
PERM STATE THEATRE “BALLET OF EVGENY PANFILOV”
BALLET “DESTINO”
MUSIC BY CLASSICAL AND CONTEMPORARY COMPOSERS
CHOREOGRAPHY: ALEXEY RASTORGUYEV
NOVEMBER 25 (Sunday)
Vitebsk Concert Hall, start time – 16:00
GALA CONCERT
AWARDS CEREMONY, PERFORMANCE BY THE CONTEST WINNERS AND GUESTS OF IFMC’2012
KYIV MODERN BALLET CONTEMPORARY DANCE THEATRE
FOR THE FIRST TIME IN BELARUS
NATIONAL DANCE COMPANY OF WALES, UK
BALLET “DREAM”
MUSIC: MAURICE RAVEL, GRACE WILLIAMS
CHOREOGRAPHY: CHRISTOPHER BRUCE
The choreographer drew inspiration for this production from two main events in British life in 2012 – the London Olympic Games and the Queen’s Jubilee. Witty references to the past and present, parallels between sporting competitions and the jubilee celebration, combined with the art of dance, celebrate the absolute pleasure of physical movement in all its forms.
NOVEMBER 26 (Monday)
Grodno Drama Theatre, start – 19:00
KYIV MODERN BALLET THEATRE
ACT I
BALLET “BOLERO”
MUSIC: MAURICE RAVEL
CHOREOGRAPHY: RADU POKLITARU
Maurice Ravel’s “BOLERO” is a legendary ballet score of the 20th century. An absolutely unpredictable, bold interpretation, imbued with the contradictory spirit of our time.
ACT II
CHOREOGRAPHIC FANTASY “RAIN”
MUSIC: PEOPLES OF THE WORLD, JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
CHOREOGRAPHY: RADU POKLITARU
“RAIN” is a philosophical story about the destinies of people, united by circumstances in one time and space. Ethnic music and the contrasting music of J.S. Bach, like the voices of people speaking different languages, serve as a magnificent framework for Radu Poklitaru’s choreography.
NOVEMBER 28 (Wednesday)
National Academic Grand Opera and Ballet Theatre of the Republic of Belarus, start – 19:00
ACT I
KYIV MODERN BALLET THEATRE
CHOREOGRAPHIC FANTASY “RAIN”
MUSIC: PEOPLES OF THE WORLD, JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
CHOREOGRAPHY: RADU POKLITARU
ACT II
NATIONAL DANCE COMPANY OF WALES, UK
BALLET “DREAM”
MUSIC: MAURICE RAVEL, GRACE WILLIAMS
CHOREOGRAPHY: CHRISTOPHER BRUCE
FESTIVAL INFORMATION PROGRAM
Traditionally, the festival’s information program includes:
– practical master classes,
– theoretical master classes,
– exhibitions.