Protagonist
Protagonist is choreographer Jefta van Dinther’s second big stage production for Cullbergbaletten. Elias, 2015’s major breakthrough artist in Swedish music, whose debut single ‘Revolution’ was a big hit, provides recorded singing and voice-over, accompanied by sound design and music from David Kiers, set design by artist duo SIMKA and lighting design by Minna Tiikkainen.
Protagonist is a contemplation on mankind. Songs of revolution and dances of evolution tell a tale of how people congregate, take on and are given roles. All the while instinct, resistance and compulsion become evidence of the battle each and every individual is fighting. Struggling to belong, in search for a common meaning or belief, a community takes shape. Protagonist is a parable about care, kinship and alliance as well as isolation, control and estrangement.’Protagonist’ is Jefta van Dinther’s second creation for Cullbergbaletten. His first, the successful production ‘Plateau Effect’, premiered in 2013 and went on to tour throughout Europe. Van Dinther received the Swedish Theatre Critics’ dance award in 2013 for the production, also chosen to be performed at the Swedish Biennial for Performing Arts in 2015. Jefta van Dinther’s work is characterised by a vigorous physical approach and nearly always implies a staged research of movement itself. The moving body is centrefold in his work, interacting with light, sound and different materials to come together as a whole. His works deal with notions of the visible and the invisible, light and darkness, illusion, affect voice and image.
”Such intense scenes with such a big group of dancers would hardly be possible with any other dance company than Cullbergbaletten, an ensemble of artists-personalities that is able to psychologically embody, to dramatically be present, that is dance and bodily technical versed and is both cognitively and contemplatively trained.” Tageszeitung
Duration approximately 60 minutes.
World premiere 7 July 2016 at Julidans, at Stadsschouwburg, Amsterdam.
Sweden premiere 23 November at Dansens Hus, Stockholm.
First, Van Dinther shows that he has an excellent feel for the atmosphere of today’s western society, and secondly that this is very well accomplished by Swedish Cullbergbaletten.
Der Standard
26.09.2019
Stora Teatern, Göteborg13.09.2019
Magasinet, Falun06.06.2019
The Sherover Theatre, Jerusalem, Israel26.02.2019
Auditorium Parco della Musica, Rome25.10.2018
cultuurcentrum Hasselt, Hasselt17.05.2018
Chassé Theater, Breda05.04.2018
La Rose des Vents, Villeneuve d'Ascq04.04.2018
La Rose des Vents, Villeneuve d'Ascq16.03.2018
Sandnes Kulturhus, Sandnes15.02.2018
Teatros del Canal, Madrid14.02.2018
Teatros del Canal, Madrid10.02.2018
Teatro Central, Sevilla09.02.2018
Teatro Central, Sevilla04.02.2018
Mercat de les Flors, Barcelona03.02.2018
Mercat de les Flors, Barcelona02.02.2018
Mercat de les Flors, Barcelona21.01.2018
Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris20.01.2018
Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris19.01.2018
Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris18.01.2018
Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris17.01.2018
Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris13.01.2018
Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin12.01.2018
Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin11.01.2018
Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin26.10.2017
Dampfzentrale, Switzerland, Bern05.10.2017
Dansstationen, Malmö13.08.2017
Tampere Hall, Main Auditorium, Tampere, Finland01.04.2017
Tanzquartier Wien, Vienna31.03.2017
Tanzquartier Wien, Vienna19.02.2017
Dansens Hus, Oslo18.02.2017
Dansens Hus, Oslo17.02.2017
Dansens Hus, Oslo04.02.2017
Pact Zollverein, Essen03.02.2017
Pact Zollverein, Essen26.01.2017
Norrlandsoperan, Umeå29.11.2016
Showburg, Kortrijk25.11.2016
Dansens Hus, Stockholm24.11.2016
Dansens Hus, Stockholm23.11.2016
Dansens Hus, Stockholm07.07.2016
Rabozaal, Amsterdam