The opera was paired with a modern dance interpretation of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Getting to hear this symphonic masterpiece performed by a full orchestra is a treat in and of itself, but seeing it spill all over the stage through bodies and movement invited fullest engagement with the music. The action as I read it was simple: an old woman, embodying winter, wanes in power as three young girls of spring take over the action of the stage. They invoke the excitement of a large, somnambulant group of men, who transform from workers into savage beasts in unison and compete with each other to have their way.
The elderly are cast aside, the weak are destroyed and the most virile are left standing; but the old woman returns, and with her re-appearance, the men retire into a deep sleep. The dance was really quite ravishing. Human gestures and animal movements combined to create a contemporary dance vocabulary of dynamic impact.
(posted by Ed)
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