If you’re like me, and you grew up going to The Nutcracker every Christmas, or fell in love with the old-fashioned romance of Swan Lake, you might not be used to thinking of ballet as ‘cool.’ Disciplined? Sure. Flawlessly Elegant? Absolutely. But hip? That one I wasn’t quite sure about. Fortunately, however, this wild and crazy new ballet called Tree of Codes came along at just the right moment to blow my preconceived notions completely out of the water, much like this modern twist on Irish step dancing.
The performance, currently showing at the Manchester International Festival in the U.K., is set to make its U.S. premiere in mid-September at the Park Avenue Armory in New York City. Based on Jonathan Safran Foer’s literary sculpture of the same name, the contemporary ballet is the brainchild of choreographer Wayne McGregor, experimental artist Olafur Eliasson, and pop musician Jamie XX. Collaboratively, the three are bringing dance, music, and a visual concept to Foer’s structured story, just like this contemporary dance troupe does in China.
Jamie XX, known as one part of the electro-pop group The xx has created a lilting, magical score for the ballet, one that might strike you as a far cry from Tchaikovsky, but that draws from the same ethereal and passionate influences as his illustrious forebears. Eliasson, known for striking, large-scale art installations that play with light, is bringing his trademark elemental style to bear on the set and design of the show. Meanwhile, McGregor debuts a fluid, contemporary choreography that obeys the spirit of ballet, if not the letter. Watch the trailer below to get a sense of this unbelievably cool collision of past art forms with contemporary style. I know what I’m doing on Ticketmaster tonight!
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