"Chaix's choreography is like the flickering of a candle, and the audience is like the hand that protects it," wrote a critic about the dance language of French choreographer Martin Chaix. In the first part of the author's evening, Chaix's work "Sinfonietta" returns to the big stage, an exceptional blend of two antitheses: the sharp and dynamic composition of Krzysztof Penderecki meets the soft and calm blue creations of painter Yves Klein. Inspiration for the second ballet, named "Dora and Slava," premiered at the 69th Split Summer Festival, Chaix found in the lives of two Croatian artists, Dora Pejačević and Slava Raškaj, composers and painters who significantly marked the Croatian artistic scene at the turn of the century.
Martin Chaix was born in Albi, France. He began his classical ballet education in 1986 in Albi. After that, he studied at the École de Danse de l'Opéra National de Paris from 1993 to 1999. After his studies, he joined the Paris Opera Ballet under the direction of Brigitte Lefèvre. Later, he became a soloist in the Leipzig Ballet under the direction of Paul Chalmer. In 2009, he joined the Ballet am Rhein Düsseldorf Duisburg under the direction of Martin Schläpfer, where he danced as a soloist until 2015.
Chaix has collaborated with numerous choreographers and participated in many productions of various dance styles. As a freelance choreographer since 2015, he has created works for companies such as the Leipzig Ballet, Ballet am Rhein Düsseldorf Duisburg, National Ballet of Saarbrücken, National Ballet of Mecklenburg, Croatian National Theatre in Split and Rijeka, Ballet du Rhin, and the Bolshoi Ballet, among others. Some of his recent works include "Giselle" for Ballet du Rhin and "Ma Mère l'Oye" for the Paris Opera Ballet School. In addition to choreography, Chaix is also involved in making short films and photography, and one of his works was selected for the One Minute Film Festival in Amsterdam in 2013.
The performance will be performed by soloists and the ensemble of the Split HNK Ballet, and besides choreographer Martin Chaix, the creative team of "Sinfoni(ett)a" includes costume designer Aleksandar Noshpal, assistant choreographers Ann-Kathrin Adam and Albina Rahmatullina, lighting designers Martin Chaix and Branimir Bokan, and ballet master Ivan Boiko.