This evening presents three choreographies by Angelin Preljocaj, one of the most important choreographers in France, showing the great aesthetic diversity of this artist:

“Ghost” (“Geist”) is a tribute to Marius Petipa (1818-1910), founding father of classical ballet, on the occasion of his 200th birthday. Based on “Swan Lake”, pointe dance is mixed with contemporary elements.

“Centaures” (“Centaurs”) shows two human beings – half man and half horse – wrestling with each other in a combative manner. They symbolize the possibility of a new beginning after the collapse.

“Still life” (“Still life”) is a term from 17th century European painting. Vanitas motifs represent transience and death. Spirited group scenes and suggestive duets look like vivid paintings.

Angelin Preljocaj was born in 1957 in Sucy-en-Brie near Paris. He studied classical and contemporary dance and was a dancer with Merce Cunningham and Dominique Bagouet from 1980. He founded his own company in Champigny-sur-Marne in 1985, which has been based in Aix-en-Provence as Ballet Preljocaj since 2006. He has choreographed 52 dance pieces – from solos to large ballets – both for his company and for the major opera houses in Paris, Milan, New York and Berlin. He was already a guest at euro-scene Leipzig in 2001 with “Helikopter” and “MC 14/22 (Ceci est mon corps)” and in 2005 with “Annonciation” (“Verkündigung”) and “N”.