Waltz’s GezeitenSheds Light on Human Nature, Disasters
By Han Sang-hee
Staff Reporter
German dance troupe Sasha Waltz & Guests comes back to Korea with ``Gezeiten," one of Waltz's best known works, to be staged at the LG Arts Center Sept 25-26.
The choreographer visited Korea in 1997 with her work ``Allee der Kosmonauten'' and also in 2004 with ``Korper.''
"Gezeiten," which means tides, made its world premiere in 2005. In the work, Waltz focuses on the vulnerability of humans against disasters both natural and manmade. The work portrays how people react to and save themselves from drastic situations, through realistic settings and dramatic movements.
The choreographer depicts the aftermath of a ghastly disaster through a panorama-like stage. The stage is dark and creepy, with pipes dangling and wallpaper torn from the walls. It's not just a wrecked room, but a final refuge.
A disaster is destroying the world outside, and people are forced to enter the room for survival. Sixteen dancers walk onto the dark stage, looking tired. They start moving in formation and then independently, and at one point some break down in tears while others comfort those who look ill or disturbed.
As time goes by, the stage turns into a disaster scene, with smoke coming out from the floor and the dancers running fearfully around the stage, shouting and bumping into each other.
``How do we rebuild our world again? What is worth saving?'' the choreographer wrote on her Web page, describing the work.
The music that accompanies the performance is not rock or heavy classical music as one might expect but the peaceful melodies of J.S. Bach, which provide an interesting contrast to the dramatic movements and drastic setting.
Waltz, who started dancing when she was five years old, had a sense of space thanks to her father who was an architect. Deeply interested in the relation between space and the human body, Waltz traveled around the world to study movement.
The 1990s was an interesting time for the dancer and choreographer, as the fall of the Berlin Wall enabled her to think more freely about her work.
Instead of focusing on the narrative, Waltz was more interested in exploring the theme of change through movement and concepts. After joining international festivals and introducing her works to the world, she returned to Germany and entered the Schaubuhne am Lehniner Platz, a famous theatre in Berlin, and started creating pieces such as ``Korper'' (2000) ``S'' (2000), ``noBody'' (2002) and ``Gezeiten.'' Her concept ``the realism of body'' was appreciated by both the dance and theater scenes, as she offered new insight into the human body and brought a breath of fresh air to the stagnated performance community.
Since then, Waltz's works have been known to be combinations of physical movement and improvisation.
Waltz was chosen as the Choreographer of the Year by German dance critics in 2007 and won an award for New Theatrical Realities at the Europe Theatre Prize the following year.
According to performance organizers at the LG Art Center, the death of famed German modern dance choreographer Pina Bausch this year brought a great loss to the German dance world, but many critics and fans are looking forward to another innovative career through Waltz.
``Gezeiten'' will be onstage at the LG Art Center Sept. 25 and 26. Tickets cost from 30,000 to 70,000 won. For more information, visit www.lgart.com or call (02) 2005-0114.