Legacies

Masters and new voices

Legacies opens with Symphony in C by George Balanchine, the most influential choreographer of the twentieth century. Dutch National Ballet is one of the foremost guardians of Balanchine’s oeuvre worldwide, preserving his legacy. In Symphony in C, his demanding, swirling dance themes keep all the dancers on their toes.

Requiem by Toer van Schayk is an absolute highlight of the programme. Set to Mozart’s famous composition, Van Schayk gives form to the damage humanity inflicts on the earth. Through poignant duets and powerful ensemble scenes, he lends a new, deeply compelling resonance to Mozart’s masterpiece.

Hans van Manen’s Simple Things is a work of great personal significance to the choreographer. A performance of the work by NDT 2 was therefore screened during his funeral ceremony. In this dynamic quartet, movement and music merge with exceptional clarity. The men’s duets are virtuosic and daring, the women bring elegance and a touch of mystery.

The evening closes with Kirsten Wicklund’s new production. Ten years after the world’s first same-sex marriage in Amsterdam in 2001, then Composer Laureate of the Netherlands, Willem Jeths, created a beautiful musical tribute to this historic milestone: Monument to a Universal Marriage. Now, fifteen years on, his composition forms the inspiration for a new ballet by the young Canadian choreographer Kirsten Wicklund. Like Jeths, she will explore different gender combinations in her choreography.