Stars of the New York City Ballet will perform in Serbia for the first time. Belgrade will be one of the few cities in which the Ballet Jazz Montreal will perform to the music of Leonard Cohen
The 17th Belgrade Dance Festival, which will take place under the slogan “Pure Sensation” from 21st March to 12th April, 2020, will present unique artistic experiences. The main programme will feature performances by 17 troupes from 12 countries who will stage 23 choreographed pieces. The troupes come from France, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Germany, the USA, Israel, Canada, the Netherlands, Argentina, Croatia and Brazil, and the Festival will take place both in Belgrade and Novi Sad. The Festival will be officially opened with the world premiere by Jacopo Godani for the Dresden Frankfurt Dance Company. Godani won the Jovan Ćirilov Award for the choreographic triptych performed at the previous festival. As the recipient of this award, Godani was obligated to come back to the Festival and stage a brand new piece in front of the Belgrade audience. Earlier recipients of the Jovan Ćirilov Award (‘For a Step Forward’) include Jiri Kylian, Sharon Eyal, Dimitris Papaioannou and Marie Chouinard. The new piece by the famous Italian choreographer, who lives in Frankfurt, will bring to Belgrade many foreign fans of dance and will be an opportunity for the Festival to validate its slogan at the very beginning. With Leonard Cohen’s consent and under the artistic direction of Louis Robitaille and the bold dramaturgy by Eric Jean, the Ballet Jazz Montreal will perform its latest piece, as it did on the several biggest global stages. This homage to the renowned Montreal poet and songwriter evokes the life cycles through five seasons, as described in his lyrics. In this interview, the Director of the Belgrade Dance Festival, Aja Jung talks about all of the above in much more detail.
Next year’s Dance Festival will take place under the slogan “Pure Sensation”. How do you define sensation and what is the Festival’s main message?
— Every choreographic piece we will showcase will be sensational, just like the troupes and artists that will perform at the Festival. We will introduce a number of surprises, from live orchestra music to unique stage innovations. Stars of the New York City Ballet will perform in Serbia for the first time. Belgrade will be one of the few cities in which the Ballet Jazz Montreal will perform to the music of Leonard Cohen. We will also see “Fury” by Lia Rodrigues from Brazil, which the European press has been raving about. Then there is a piece called “August”, by Alessandro Sciarroni, who is this year’s recipient of the Golden Lion in Venice. Plus, the famous Indian dancer Shantala Shivalingappa will perform her dance of draw-ing on ashes. For the first time, Jacopo Godani will showcase hispiece, performed by his company from Frankfurt, at the opening of the festival, on March 21st, at the Sava Centre, which was specially choreographed for the Belgrade audience.
But, the sensation we talk about, lies in the dance itself, that primary and unforgettable experience, just as bringing the best contemporary dance to Belgrade for 17 years has been pure magic. Which performances are a must-see? What would you recommend?
— Lisbeth Gruwez will stage a unique piece about freedom of speech. There is also the inimitable performance called “Fugue” by the Inbal Pinto Company, and a magical autobiographical solo by Olivier Dubois. I believe that the audiences will have a hearty laugh attending the show of young company Un Poyo Rojo from Argentina. I would also like to mention Silvia Gribaudi’s piece “Graces” and the aesthetics of black-white films in the performance of the Jakop Alhbom troupe from The Nether-lands. Jason Samuels Smith is another important name I would like to mention who is a Broadway step master and a dancer whose legs are insured for millions of dollars.
Could you evaluate the Festival’s growth over the years, including its artistic accomplishments, since its inception?
— This year, London’s The Guardian wrote that Belgrade had one of the best dance festivals in the world. Critic Judith Mackrell wrote that (the Festival) “is not just about the duration of the repertoire, the number of troupes and new choreographic pieces, but about the referentiality of the content, a good balance between different dance forms, different themes and voices, as well as the relationship between established and younger authors”. Of course, it is not easy to maintain the quality of the programme and surprise both local and international audiences every time. It is not easy to even work and last in Serbia while announcing the festival programme in Europe, one year in advance. However, when we realize that the productions that we saw in Belgrade were staged in Paris, Mos-cow, London or New York months or even years later, and that the whole world is talking about them, then we are confident that we have made good choices and that for-tune really favours the bold.
Who is your competition? Are there similar festivals in the region?
— The Belgrade Dance Festival has no competition in terms of festivals, but it has excellent partners in Athens, Sofia, Budapest, Ljubljana, Zagreb and Thessaloniki. We share with them great productions that come from afar or entail having a few trucks full of stage parts and lighting. This year, thanks to the support of Er-ste Bank and Visa, we went a step further and will co-produce guest appearances of the famous New York City Ballet in Tel Aviv and Budapest before they perform in Novi Sad and Belgrade, as well as guest appearances of Shay Kuebler’s Company in Linz and Zagreb, before they come to Belgrade.
Last but not least, what is a professional challenge for you, as a ballet dancer and the Festival director?
— I come up with challenges on a daily basis, otherwise, I would not be able to do any job whatsoever. In the case of the Belgrade Dance Festival and the National Dance Foundation, challenges are easily recognizable and very loud, sometimes reaching a crazy crescendo.
CULTURE SCENE IN BELGRADE
Owing to your event, Belgrade has earned a prestigious mention in the biographies of artists that trendsetters and are writing the dance history; a place where new productions are discovered and where both established and new authors are given an equal amount of attention. What do you think of the current cultural offer in Belgrade?
— I used to believe that the most visible and concrete changes could be made in culture. Unfortunately, it seems that we are still far from the goal. Belgrade has valuable examples of culture, but it does not have its own concept, internal organization, or ability to impose its content in the region and Europe. That is why every success or step forward resembles a systemic mistake, while the managers of successful projects are not the most beloved people in their profession. There are many wrong people in the right places, as well as many people who do not want to or are afraid of making core changes. I admire the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra which has its faithful audience and I am proud of the wide-open doors of the Museum of Contemporary Art and the National Museum in Belgrade.