With CARMEN, a symbol of rebelliousness if ever there was one, choreographer Étienne Béchard returns to Les Grands Ballets headlining an audacious mixed program. His creation choreographed boldly to the Carmen Suite derived by Rodion Shchedrin from Bizet’s opera, will happily break with tradition.
To begin this music-inspired evening accompanied by Les Grands Ballets' Orchestra, Les Grands Ballets' dancer Kiara Flavin presents The Waves, her first piece for the company.
This program will also offer the opportunity to discover a pas de deux choreographed by Uwe Scholz on Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 9 in E♭ major, K. 271, known as the Jeunehomme concerto.
To close off the evening beautifully, Béchard presents his Rite of Spring, a rereading of Stravinsky’s landmark work, transposed to the arena of a post-apocalyptic setting in which two clans go head-to-head.
An explosive mix and a true breath of fresh air!
Total duration: 2h21, including a 20 minute intermission.
Synopsis
Choreography: Kiara Flavin
Music: Violin Concerto in D by Igor Stravinsky
Conductor: Dina Gilbert
Solo violin: Uliana Drugova
Costumes: Anne Armit
Duration: 22 minutes
Les Grands Ballets' dancer Kiara Flavin presents The Waves, her first piece for the company. The work is set to Igor Stravinsky's Violin Concerto in D, and is inspired by Virginia Woolf's eponymous novel, whose release in October 1931 coincided with the premiere of the concerto. The Waves explores the complexity and unpredictability of the music, encouraged by a text which similarly relinquishes the comforts of harmony and linearity. Dance is the swimmer in the sea of the unknown.
WARNING: This show contains stroboscopic effects.
Choreography: Uwe Scholz
Music: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Piano Concerto No. 9 in E♭ major, K. 271, known as the Jeunehomme or Jenamy concerto
Costumes: Uwe Scholz
Duration: 14 minutes
Let yourself be carried by this pas de deux choreographed by Uwe Scholz on Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 9 in E♭ major, K. 271, known as the Jeunehomme concerto. The late German choreographer described Mozart’s composition as wholly melancholic, fuelled not by narcissism, but by a sense of tragedy.
Choreography: Étienne Béchard
Assistant Choreographer: Sidonie Fossé
Music: Carmen Suite by Rodion Shchedrin, based on the opera by Georges Bizet
Conductor: Dina Gilbert
Costumes: Emma Paris
Sets: Till Kuhnert
Duration: 45 minutes
The piece unfolds in a world of extreme societal control, where individuals are forbidden to have physical contact. The only escape from this authoritarian society is an immersive virtual reality where individuals create an avatar self. Unlike in the real world, everything goes in this virtual universe. Everyone has the freedom to make their voice heard, to choose their gender, their appearance, and to let their desires run wild.
José and Micaëla meet in the real world, but the rules prevent them from getting to know each other better. In the virtual world, José plays the character of Carmen, and Micaëla plays The Toreador. José makes his debut in this world as a woman. The Toreador, on the other hand, is already a respected and established figure in the virtual world. Carmen represents love, freedom, protest and hope.
But just after entering the virtual world, Carmen experiences a terrible humiliation that shakes José. All of José and Micaëla’s virtual world emotions start to spill over into the real world.
During a scene in which The Toreador is crowned “King of the Virtual,” we get a real glimpse into the chaos of the virtual universe. The stunning, colourful aesthetic is an explicit nod to video game culture.
Tensions reach an all-time high during a sensual scene in which José/Micaëla and Carmen/The Toreador play each pair as mirror images, dancing the same choreography.
Overcome by emotion, José decides to leave the virtual world by breaking his VR headset, effectively “killing” his avatar, Carmen.
Choreography: Étienne Béchard
Music: Igor Stravinsky
Conductor: Dina Gilbert
Costumes and sets: Étienne Béchard
Duration: 30 minutes
The evening will end with Béchard’s The Rite of Spring, which was a huge hit when it made its world premiere at Les Grands Ballets in 2017. In this retelling, Stravinsky’s groundbreaking work is transposed to a dystopian setting where two clans are at war. A spirit of protest suffuses this contemporary Rite of Spring, which denounces a society corrupted by lies, indifference and dangerous obsessions.
Distribution
1st movement - Toccata
20/10, 21/10, 22/10 at 8 P.M.:
Alexandra Eccles, Kiara Felder, Étienne Gagnon-Delorme, Mai Kono, James Lyttle, Hamilton Nieh, André Santos, Stephen Satterfield.
22/10 and 23/10 at 2 P.M.:
Graeme Fuhrman, Anna Ishii, Enno Kleinehanding, Tatiana Lerebours, Felixovich Morante, Théodore Poubeau, Rose Trahan, Angel Vizcaino
2nd movement - Aria I
20/10, 21/10 and 22/10 at 8 P.M. :
Anya Nesvitaylo, Maude Sabourin
22/10 and 23/10 at 2 P.M. :
Anya Nesvitaylo, Yui Sugawara
3rd movement - Aria II
20/10, 21/10 and 22/10 at 8 P.M.:
Roddy Doble, Myriam Simon
22/10 and 23/10 at 2 P.M. :
Raphaël Bouchard, Myriam Simon
4th movement - Capriccio
Alexandra Eccles, Kiara Felder, Étienne Gagnon-Delorme, Mai Kono, James Lyttle, Hamilton Nieh, André Santos, Stephen Satterfield
Graeme Fuhrman, Anna Ishii, Enno Kleinehanding, Tatiana Lerebours, Felixovich Morante, Théodore Poubeau, Rose Trahan, Angel Vizcaino
(all dates)
Rachele Buriassi and Esnel Ramos
(all dates)
José : Raphaël Bouchard
Micaëla : Emma Garau Cima
Carmen: Vanesa G.R. Montoya
The Toreador : André Santos
Antoine Bertran, Bernardo Betancor, Giuseppe Canale, Alexandra Eccles, Kiara Felder, Kiara Flavin, Graeme Fuhrman, François Gagné, Étienne Gagnon-Delorme, Anna Ishii, Enno Kleinehanding, Mai Kono, Oscar Lambert, Tatiana Lerebours James Lyttle, Carrigan MacDonald, Tetyana Martyanova, José Morales, Felixovich Morante, Anya Nesvitaylo, Hamilton Nieh, Théodore Poubeau, Stephen Satterfield, Christian Scifo, Calista Shepheard, Rose Trahan, Angel Vizcaino
(all dates)
Soloists: Graeme Fuhrman, Emma Garau Cima
People downstage:
Kiara Felder, Graeme Fuhrman, Vanesa G.R. Montoya, Étienne Gagnon-Delorme, Emma Garau Cima, Tatiana Lerebours, Hamilton Nieh, André Santos, Stephen Satterfield, Yui Sugawara
People upstage:
Antoine Bertran, Bernardo Betancor, Giuseppe Canale, Alexandra Eccles, Kiara Flavin, Maude Fleury, François Gagné, Anna Ishii, Enno Kleinehanding, Mai Kono, Oscar Lambert, James Lyttle, Carrigan MacDonald, José Morales, Felixovich Morante, Anya Nesvitaylo, Théodore Poubeau, Calista Shepheard, Rose Trahan, Angel Vizcaino
With Les Grands Ballets Orchestra
Our orchestra features 43 musicians and superior soloists, and has been playing a major role in the success of Les Grands Ballets for more than 30 years.
Full Credits
Head of Wardrobe: Mélanie Ferrero
Head Stage Carpenter: Kenneth Gregg
Artistic Director: Ivan Cavallari
Executive Director: Marc Lalonde
President Emeritus: Constance V. Pathy, C.M., C.Q., DMus.
Founder: Ludmilla Chiriaeff
Artistic Director Emeritus: Gradimir Pankov
