Mozart à 2
In 1997, some pages taken from piano concertos by Mozart became the basics for the creation of duets in a programme called « Bal solitude ». It was about some amorous episodes in the context of a ball. A place fit for the festive spirit but revealinf of solitudes whenever love does not mean forever. Mozart à 2 is all about that changing physiognomy of a feeling that can sometimes be measured by the poignancy of the void felt.
Don Juan, for whom any woman was a target for seduction, was born in Spain during the Siglo de Oro. He has been seen as close to the Commedia dell’arte, considered as a free thinker, a melancolic womanizer, in search of absolute and barely exhausted by that literary pursuit which is so fascinating.
For Gluck and Angiolini, he is the libertine sketched by Molière. We keep these features while adding a few more recent expressiones. I like the idea of a character who is looking for Woman, through women. Unless he is looking for himself ? He should reasonably stop one day, and should fall really in love at last. But Don Juan is not reasonable. He does not respect anything or anyone and is blasphemous. To me, he is a mystic who nistead of finding fulfillment in the ecstasy of what is unique and stable, has to keep running to enjoy multiplicity. He is a man of action, feeding exclusively on the moments he spends next to someone else’s body.
That is how he gets to know plenitude for a moment, beyond the object of his desire. Sensuality is for him the way to know eternity and it might only reside within himself : however, he does not stop to find out about it. He goes on until the Commander extends his hand to invite him to the kingdom of the Death. Might everything stop in an ecstatic rest, then ?
THIERRY MALANDAIN
Author of a repertoire of more than 80 choreographies, Thierry Malandain has developed a very personal vision of dance, closely linked to ‘‘Ballet’’, where priority is given to the dancing body, its power, virtuosity, humanity and sensuality.
The search for meaning and aesthetics guide a powerful and sober style, which can be both serious and insolent, based on the pursuit of harmony between history and today’s world. Thierry Malandain’s troupe is comprised of dancers with classical dance training who express themselves in a contemporary way via Thierry Malandain’s choreography.
« My culture is that of classical ballet and I confidently remain attached to it. Because while I readily admit that its artistic and social codes are from another time, I also think that this heritage from four centuries represents invaluable resources for dancers. A classical choreographer for some, a contemporary one for others, I play with it, simply trying to find a dance I like.
A dance that will not only leave a lasting impression of joy, but that will also restore the essence of the sacred things and serve as a response to the difficulty of being. »