An exhilarating mix of highly physical, dynamic dance
Introdans will perform at the International Dance Theaters Festival in Poland with an adapted HEROES programme. Everyone seems to be a hero on social media these days. But who are our real heroes? In the HEROES programme, Introdans focuses on this theme in a number of high-energy and enthralling choreographies by three choreographers and a choreographer duo, each with their own very individual, unique voice. Daily Hero is a piece by Regina van Berkel, a Dutch choreographer who has enjoyed her greatest success abroad. Introdans is performing this work for the first time, and for the company it has now been specially extended with a stunning finale. This is followed by a choreographic jewel recently acquired by Introdans: SH-BOOM!, marking a long-overdue return of top choreographer duo Sol León and Paul Lightfoot to Dutch venues. Choreographer Inbal Pinto has created the third work in HEROES: the Dutch premiere of the sophisticated, melancholic Boulevard of Broken Dreams. And finally the choreography Three by Robert Battle.
“A very diverse programme with ballets that vary in style, ranging from highly virtuoso and acrobatic to lyrical and poetic,” says artistic director Roel Voorintholt.
HEROES in Lublin, Poland
Date: 7 November 2024
International Dance Theatres Festival Polen
SH-BOOM! – Sol León and Paul Lightfoot
SH-BOOM! (1994) is one of the earliest works by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot, who choreographed for Nederlands Dans Theater for many years. They drew their inspiration here from the satirical black-and-white drawings of the Spanish painter Francisco de Goya. And just like the wonderful and striking achievements in their later oeuvre, in this jewel too they masterfully combine the dark aspects (irony) and the light aspects (humour) of life. SH-BOOM!, set to popular songs of the 1930s and 40s, transports you into a theatrical hall of mirrors where the ladies dance in flamboyant dresses and the gentlemen stand – literally – in their underwear.
Three – Robert Battle
Introdans dances Three by Robert Battle, former artistic director of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. It is a hilarious and athletic power piece in which three men throw themselves into a ‘muscular jam session’ – this leads to uninhibited, sometimes almost spastic movements, but still performed with a precision bordering on the impossible. Three premiered already at Introdans in 2016 and it immediately received the Swan Award for the Most Impressive Dance Production. This award is the most important choreography prize in the Netherlands. The jury report in 2016: “Never before has the jury of the Swans seen such a successful and absolute fusion of hip-hop, breakdance and modern dance. Every moment has clarity, there is superb physical ability, it’s bursting with enjoyment and the concentration is unparalleled.”
Daily Hero – Regina van Berkel (Introdans premiere)
In Daily Hero (2013) a troupe of heroes parades before a towering golden archway as if walking along a high fashion catwalk. Mozart, Marilyn Monroe, popstars, or tomorrow’s superstars waiting to be discovered? You can let your own imagination run wild. Van Berkel examines the phenomenon of the hero in a dynamic, contemporary choreography. What makes someone a hero? Is heroism something you can acquire, is it an ideal, a guiding principle, or are you simply born a hero?
Boulevard of Broken Dreams – Inbal Pinto (Introdans premiere)
Choreographer Inbal Pinto has made a new version of her widely praised choreography Fugue (2018) specially for HEROES. This new version is entitled Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Reflecting on past lives, bygone worlds, lost loved ones and memories that resonate like a distant inner voice, Pinto paints a spectrum of colours and feelings in this melancholy and simultaneously warm choreography. Humour, in a subtle form, is always part of Pinto’s work, but her unique and quirky creations are above all poetic and often mysterious. Or as artistic director Roel Voorintholt puts it: “They resemble little poems in which every word, every movement has significance.”