The Australian Ballet to present ‘Vitesse’

For the 2016 Season, The Australian Ballet will present its contemporary triple bill in the fall. Titled Vitesse, it will be performed in Melbourne on March 11–21 and in Sydney on April 26-May 16. Audiences can expect a visceral, wild ride of modern dance as this mixed program will bring together three of the world’s most exciting contemporary choreographers for an exhilarating collection of cutting edge ballet.

In Vitesse, Christopher Wheeldon’s work sees dancers hurtle at a head-spinning pace; Jiří Kylián’s work evokes a haunting and harrowing seascape set to Benjamin Britten’s dark Sinfonia da Requiem; and William Forsythe’s ballet promises something chic, sleek and dangerous.

Wheeldon’s DGV: Danse à Grande Vitesse is set to a score by celebrated British composer Michael Nyman, composed for the inauguration of the north European line of the French Train á grande vitesse (or TGV). This work is infused with a sensation of velocity and momentum, inspired by the breakneck speed of modern transport.

Kylián’s Forgotten Land explores how memories, events and people are lost through time. The work is inspired by a painting of a woman on an isolated beach by German expressionist Edvard Munch, best known for the silent torment of The Scream. Set in a seascape, it evokes the dark isolation of Britten’s score. This is a harrowing picture of lost homelands, lost lovers and lost time.

Forsythe’s In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated is a work which The Guardian says “changed ballet forever.” It sent electric shocks through the ballet elite when it opened at the Opera Garnier in Paris in 1987. The work elevated Forsythe to international acclaim. It also made stars of its dancers, including a young Sylvie Guillem. Raw and ferocious, nine dancers prowl the stage. Deliberately disruptive, formality is discarded in favour of theatricality and primal force.

For more information on the explosive Vitesse program, visit http://australianballet.com.au.

Photo by Justin Ridler.