Nederlands Dans Theater returns to Melbourne

In an Australian exclusive, Arts Centre Melbourne and Bank of Melbourne present Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT) on June 22-25. Comprising some of the world’s most stunning contemporary dancers, NDT is regarded as one of the most innovative and influential companies in the industry today.

Based fulltime in The Hague, the Dutch troupe performs annually for over 115,000 people in Europe and across the world. The multiethnic company is made up of 28 suburb dancers from various countries, each one shining as individuals. NDT performers are renowned for their experimental movement, supreme adaptability and technical precision.

The company masterfully integrates various art forms, including visual art, music composition, and innovative light and set designs. While in Melbourne, it will showcase this with a program of three distinctive works: the 2009 piece Sehnsucht; the 2012 piece Solo Echo; and the 2014 piece Stop-Motion.

Both Sehnsucht and Stop-Motion are by renowned NDT House Choreographers Sol León and Paul Lightfoot (also the company’s artistic director.) Sehnsucht—the German word for “longing”—is inspired by the music of Beethoven and has been said to show off the company’s “impressive technique” (The New Yorker.) Stop-Motion, on the other hand, features the forlorn music of Max Richter and depicts seven dancers in the midst of farewell and transformation.

Solo Echo, the work splitting these two pieces, is by NDT Associate Choreographer Crystal Pite. Inspired by the poem “Lines for Winter” by Mark Strand, it softly lures you into a wintery melancholy against a backdrop of steadily whirling snowflakes.

For further information, visit www.artscentremelbourne.com.au. Before coming to Melbourne, the company will tour to France, Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland in June. After visiting Melbourne, NDT heads to Auckland, New Zealand from June 29 to July 2.

Photo: NDT in Solo Echo by Crystal Pite. Photo by Rahi Rezvani.