The Leipzig Ballet’s first premiere of the season is presented in honor of 25 years of sister-cityhood between Leipzig and Houston. On Saturday, October 27, 2018, the curtain will rise on “Beethoven / Ravel.” In one evening, three seminal choreographic signatures from the two cities will meet.
The evening opens with the symphonic ballet “Seventh Symphony,” which Uwe Scholz created for the Stuttgart Ballet in 1991, and which premiered in Leipzig in 1993. Scholz created a detailed and filigreed work, set to Beethoven’s music, that uniquely expresses the choreographer's extraordinary musicality. Each musical motif finds its counterpart in dance, which is characterized by a timeless, austere, neoclassical form. The stage and costume design were also drawn from Uwe Scholz’s own sketches, and are based on the painting Beta Kappa by the American painter Morris Louis.
Stanton Welch, artistic director of the Houston Ballet, also draws on a classical piece from the repertoire for “Tu Tu:” Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major. Here, Welch skillfully contrasts the music with over-stylized movements. The dancers appear on stage in colorful tutus, sketched by costume designer Holly Hynes, after paintings by Gustav Klimt. For the premiere in Leipzig, Houston Ballet’s principal dancers Karina Gonzáles and Ian Casady will dance the “Red Couple.”
The evening will be rounded off by the world premiere of “Geschöpfe” (“Creatures”) by Mario Schröder, the Leipzig Ballet’s ballet director and principal choreographer. In his examination of the “Seventh Symphony” and Beethoven’s music, he wants to build a bridge to his own work and break with the classical aesthetics of the first two pieces of the evening. Beethoven’s Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus (The Creatures of Prometheus) serves as inspiration for the title. The choreography concerns itself with the exploration of a dancer’s movements, and how they are influenced by changes in the body.
Tickets (15 € – 78 €) are available in person at the Opera House Box Office, by phone at +49 (0)341 – 12 61 261 (Mo – Sa 10.00 – 19.00 Uhr), via E-Mail at service@oper-leipzig.de, or online at www.oper-leipzig.de.
Premiere: Saturday, October 27, 7:00pm
Further Performances: October 31 / November 9, 2018 / May, 19 & 23 2019 (all performances feature an introductory presentation 45 minutes before curtain; audience discussion follows the performance, except for the premiere)
Beethoven / Ravel
3-part ballet performance by Uwe Scholz, Stanton Welch AM and Mario Schröder | Music by Ludwig van Beethoven, Maurice Ravel, Igor Stravinsky, and Elena Kats-Chernin
Direction
Musical Direction Moritz Gnann
Dramaturgy Nele Winter
Seventh Symphony
Ballet by Uwe Scholz
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven (Seventh Symphony)
Choreography, Stage, Costumes Uwe Scholz
Light Uwe Scholz
Tu Tu
Ballet by Stanton Welch AM
Music by Maurice Ravel (Piano Concerto in G Major)
Choreography Stanton Welch AM
Costume Design Holly Hynes
Light Lisa J. Pinkham
Gold Couple Madoka Ishikawa / Juliano Toscano, Red Couple Karina González / Ian Casady, Blue Lady Anna Jo, Blue Gentleman Alessandro Repellini
Geschöpfe (Creatures)
Ballet by Mario Schröder
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven (The Creatures of Prometheus / Moonlight Sonata, Third Symphony), Igor Stravinsky (Circus Polka), Elena Kats-Chernin (Naive Waltz)
Choreography Mario Schröder
Stage, Costumes Paul Zoller
Cast
Leipzig Ballet
Gewandhaus Orchestra
Piano Wolfgang Manz
The evening opens with the symphonic ballet “Seventh Symphony,” which Uwe Scholz created for the Stuttgart Ballet in 1991, and which premiered in Leipzig in 1993. Scholz created a detailed and filigreed work, set to Beethoven’s music, that uniquely expresses the choreographer's extraordinary musicality. Each musical motif finds its counterpart in dance, which is characterized by a timeless, austere, neoclassical form. The stage and costume design were also drawn from Uwe Scholz’s own sketches, and are based on the painting Beta Kappa by the American painter Morris Louis.
Stanton Welch, artistic director of the Houston Ballet, also draws on a classical piece from the repertoire for “Tu Tu:” Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major. Here, Welch skillfully contrasts the music with over-stylized movements. The dancers appear on stage in colorful tutus, sketched by costume designer Holly Hynes, after paintings by Gustav Klimt. For the premiere in Leipzig, Houston Ballet’s principal dancers Karina Gonzáles and Ian Casady will dance the “Red Couple.”
The evening will be rounded off by the world premiere of “Geschöpfe” (“Creatures”) by Mario Schröder, the Leipzig Ballet’s ballet director and principal choreographer. In his examination of the “Seventh Symphony” and Beethoven’s music, he wants to build a bridge to his own work and break with the classical aesthetics of the first two pieces of the evening. Beethoven’s Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus (The Creatures of Prometheus) serves as inspiration for the title. The choreography concerns itself with the exploration of a dancer’s movements, and how they are influenced by changes in the body.
Tickets (15 € – 78 €) are available in person at the Opera House Box Office, by phone at +49 (0)341 – 12 61 261 (Mo – Sa 10.00 – 19.00 Uhr), via E-Mail at service@oper-leipzig.de, or online at www.oper-leipzig.de.
Premiere: Saturday, October 27, 7:00pm
Further Performances: October 31 / November 9, 2018 / May, 19 & 23 2019 (all performances feature an introductory presentation 45 minutes before curtain; audience discussion follows the performance, except for the premiere)
Beethoven / Ravel
3-part ballet performance by Uwe Scholz, Stanton Welch AM and Mario Schröder | Music by Ludwig van Beethoven, Maurice Ravel, Igor Stravinsky, and Elena Kats-Chernin
Direction
Musical Direction Moritz Gnann
Dramaturgy Nele Winter
Seventh Symphony
Ballet by Uwe Scholz
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven (Seventh Symphony)
Choreography, Stage, Costumes Uwe Scholz
Light Uwe Scholz
Tu Tu
Ballet by Stanton Welch AM
Music by Maurice Ravel (Piano Concerto in G Major)
Choreography Stanton Welch AM
Costume Design Holly Hynes
Light Lisa J. Pinkham
Gold Couple Madoka Ishikawa / Juliano Toscano, Red Couple Karina González / Ian Casady, Blue Lady Anna Jo, Blue Gentleman Alessandro Repellini
Geschöpfe (Creatures)
Ballet by Mario Schröder
Music by Ludwig van Beethoven (The Creatures of Prometheus / Moonlight Sonata, Third Symphony), Igor Stravinsky (Circus Polka), Elena Kats-Chernin (Naive Waltz)
Choreography Mario Schröder
Stage, Costumes Paul Zoller
Cast
Leipzig Ballet
Gewandhaus Orchestra
Piano Wolfgang Manz
