Choreographer Edward CLUG (Slovenia)
Assistant Choreographer Gaj ŽMAVC (Slovenia)
Musical Director and Conductor of "Stabat Mater" Tomas AMBROZAITIS
Set and Costume Designer of "Stabat Mater" Jordi ROIG (Spain)
Set Designer of "The Rite of Spring" Marko JAPELJ(Slovenia)
Costume Designer for "The Rite of Spring" Leo KULAŠ (Slovenia)
Lighting designer Tomaž PREMZL (Slovenia)
Invited by Klaipėda State Music Theatre, Edward Clug, one of Europe's most prominent contemporary dance artists, choreographer and director of the Mariboro Ballet of the National Theatre of Slovenia, has come to Klaipėda for the first time, having gained worldwide recognition for his abstract, minimalist language of contemporary ballet and his surprising, provocative interpretations of the classical repertoire. Clugas makes his debut on the Klaipėda stage with two ballets created at different times and for different companies: 'The Rite of Spring' was staged with the Mariboro Ballet Company of the National Theatre of Slovenia in 2012, In 2014, the two ballets were combined in Maribor and became the calling card of the local ballet company, travelling to many ballet festivals and theatres around the world, and receiving numerous transfers. According to the choreographer, "the two ballets are linked by a central figure - a woman and her extraordinary strength, which comes from a humble acceptance of what is meant for her. This acceptance of fate and the power that comes from it seems to me to be more characteristic of women. "In the Stabat Mater, the woman has to accept the sacrifice of her crucified son, whereas in The Rite of Spring she chooses to be sacrificed herself. It is interesting to see how the two stories of sacrifice unfold in different trajectories over the course of one evening."
In Stabat Mater, the choreographer establishes a sensitive, yet somewhat ironic dialogue between the modern man and the masterpiece of the Italian Baroque master Giovanni Battista Pergolesi (1710-1736). Composed in the last weeks of the composer's life, this highly influential, extraordinarily expressive composition for soprano, viola, strings and the famous bass is based on the thirteenth-century sequence 'Stabat mater dolorosa' (Latin for 'the mother of sorrows was standing'). One version attributes its text to the Franciscan monk Jacopone da Todi. According to legend, he was a wealthy layman who was prompted to renounce his wealth and take monastic vows by the death of his wife, to which he had indirectly contributed himself. The hymn about the Blessed Virgin standing by the cross and mourning her crucified son was thus created as a penance.
Choreographer's comment. I had no idea how it was possible to dance to Pergolesi's Stabat Mater, so I decided to focus on the narrative. Together with the set designer Jordi Roig, I decided to give this music a theatrical form or environment that would fit my vision and my understanding of Pergolesi's work. This resulted in a very austere, yet effective scenic design, with only a few abstract details, referring to the biblical story of the crucifixion, but not directly retelling it. In one of the scenes, the aggression of a man towards a woman resonates with the life story of the author of the text, although I chose this treatment intuitively, not knowing the origin of the text at the time. On the other hand, I eventually became intrigued by Pergolesi's own treatment: it is very emotional, painful and affecting, but at the same time there are arias in the work that convey a certain joy or even a sense of happiness. The contrast between the character of the music and the text is striking, as it tells the story of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The contrast between the contrast between the music and the contrast between the music and the contrast between the passion and sorrow of the Virgin Mary made me realise that, on a deeper, metaphysical level, the work is not so much about the suffering, but rather about the hope and consolation that comes out of it. As a result, my treatment became imbued with that joy, with moments of almost humorous moments in everyday situations in the lives of men and women.
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"Edward Clug has achieved the almost impossible - a new and meaningful interpretation of Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring," wrote Maggie Foyer, a reviewer for Dance Europe, after the premiere in Maribor in 2012. The new production by the Maribor Ballet Company is a tribute to Igor Stravinsky (1882-1971) on the 130th anniversary of his birth and one of the highlights of Maribor's European Capital of Culture 2012 cultural programme. It was also an important prelude to the centenary of the ballet's world premiere, celebrated worldwide in 2013. As is well known, the premiere of Stravinsky's ballet by Vaclav Nijinsky with the Ballets Russes in Paris in 1913 caused the greatest scandal in the history of 20th century theatre, and in the following decades, the more conservative guardians of classical ballet also described the opportunity to see the ballet as a "great hardship rather than a special pleasure". For the more progressive choreographers, Stravinsky's work became a symbol of rebellion against the stagnation of art and a catalyst for the search for new, individual forms of expression.
Choreographer's comment: The Rite of Spring is undoubtedly an iconic 20th century work, marking a turning point in not only Stravinsky's own poetics, but in the whole of music history. What's more, the entire development of 20th century dance is linked to the rethinking of The Rite of Spring, starting with Nijinsky's original choreography, then Maurice Béjart's sublime aestheticism, and then Pina Bausch's unique work and her passion for life. The latter two "principles" in turn shaped the choreographic paradigm of the productions of The Rite of Spring in the second half of the 20th century. This ballet was also my initiation as a choreographer into Stravinsky's music, which I had fallen in love with as a teenager at ballet school, when I had never even dreamt of a career as a choreographer. My interpretation of The Rite of Spring is my personal dedication to Nijinsky, to the peculiar 'hermeticism' and 'irritating' avant-gardism of his choreography, whose 'bad fame' became a dynamic platform for the whole further development of modern dance. It follows the original structure and libretto of the work, which depicts pagan rites of spring in pre-Christian Rus'. During the rites, an innocent girl is danced to death - she is sacrificed to the pagan deity of fertility, thus ensuring the fertility of the Earth. Even some of the iconographic details of the first production have been retained: the girls' hair is braided, their cheeks are painted, and the men's faces are adorned with beards. On the other hand, while searching for my own voice in this saga of the century's productions, I was thinking of symbols that would embody the idea of the work in a new way, and at the same time would be as archaic as the rituals depicted. As I listened to the Earth Dance, which concludes the first part of the ballet, I realised that I wanted something heavy, falling from the sky. We experimented with water and it became clear that it is water that gives meaning to this rite of spring cleansing, the consecration of the earth, preparing the ground for new life. The only difference from the original libretto is that the Chosen Victim appears on stage from the very beginning of the performance, not at the very end. This allows us to observe more closely the development of her character, her experience: how she is separated from the community, mercilessly reprimanded and maliciously mocked. But at the same time it is stressed that this is her own choice, because she sees it as the salvation of the whole community. It is a dual feeling - the fear of losing oneself and, at the same time, the pride that eventually overwhelms the victim who is committed to the common good. It is also the power that comes from reconciliation.
AWARDS
"Thanksgiving Mask" (27-03-2022) to the KVMT Ballet Company for the one-act dance performances Stabat Mater and The Rite of Spring (nomination Theatre Arts Creative Team of the Year).