PERIOD PIECE

The current state of affairs awakens contradictory feelings: we are longing for the “old normal”, but we also have hopes for a new and better future. PERIOD PIECE tries to address both: to revel in dancing in “an old-fashioned way” to music, while trying to reach new horizons with it. In 1973 Henryk Górecki composed Three Dances, which forms the musical basis of this choreography. The music is built on strong contrasts and seems propelled by various influences: echoes of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, minimalism and folk rhythms pave the way for an extravagant dance in which a pulsating energy goes hand in hand with slow control.

Choreographically, this music demands a large ensemble of dancers, and Kristina is given the sheer impossible task of rising above the immense scope of the orchestra. In this way, the solo is a metaphor for the struggle we are waging in as human beings, trying to understand and tame things much bigger than ourselves. The old and the new, the serious and the absurd, the minimal and the exuberant are intertwined in this composition which celebrates the possibilities of the human body and mind.

September 2020, The Lyon Opera Ballet’s new artistic director Julie Guibert started the season by presenting seven outstanding solo pieces, the first part of her Danser Encore project to bring together 30 of the company’s dancers with 30 well-known choreographers. As for PERIOD PIECE, Jan Martens collaborates with dancer Kristina Bentz.

In October and November 2024, the Lyon Opera Ballet will present the program Envols, featuring restagings of three solo works: Bella Figura by Jiří Kylián, Set and Reset / Reset by Trisha Brown, and PERIOD PIECE by Jan Martens. This program aligns with the 17th Biennale de Lyon – Art contemporain.