Celestial Sorrow
„For many years, I’ve been thinking about ghosts as unfinished business, and the way in which unresolved conflicts affect both our presence and our movements. Our bodies are constantly shuttling between objects, sounds, lights, voices and unprocessed events from the past. This might awaken a dormant presence, whether we like it or not.“ — Meg Stuart
For Celestial Sorrow, Meg Stuart collaborates for the first time with Indonesian visual artist Jompet Kuswidananto. Departing from possession and implanted fictional traumas, they create a vibrant world of light and movement, inhabited by three performers and two musicians. Together the group embarks on an exploratory journey, moving through imaginary and invisible spaces, and the voices that make them resonate.
born in New Orleans, is an American choreographer and dancer, living and working in Berlin and Brussels. Stuart decided to move to New York in 1983 and studied dance at New York University. She continued her training at Movement Research. Interested in devising her own structure through which to develop artistic projects, Stuart founded Damaged Goods in Brussels in 1994. Together they have worked on over thirty productions, ranging from solos to large-scale choreographies. Improvisation is an important part of Meg Stuart’s practice. She has initiated several improvisation projects. The use of theatrical devices, in addition to the dialogue between movement and narrative, are recurrent themes in her choreographies. Stuart’s choreographic work revolves around the idea of an uncertain body, one that is vulnerable and self-reflexive. Her artistic work is analogous to a constantly shifting identity.
is an Indonesian artist whose work ranges from installations and sound pieces to performances and theatre productions. Originally trained as a musician, Kuswidananto turned to the visual arts and went on to work within the local Yogyakata art community. His practice focuses on the issues of politics, colonialism, power and mass mobilization in post-reformation Indonesia, while also exploring the country’s history and the complexities of contemporary life in a globalized world. His works have been shown at the Yokohama Triennale (2008), the 10th Lyon Biennale (2009) and Phantoms of Asia at the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco (2012). Solo shows include Java’s Machine: Phantasmagoria at the Osage Gallery, Singapore and Hong Kong (2009 and 2010), Grand Parade at the Tropenmuseum, Amsterdam (2014) and On Paradise at MAC’s Grand-Hornu, Belgium (2017).
Credits
Limited number of seats
Duration: 1 hour 40 min,
no intermission
In case of sold-out performances waiting numbers for remaining tickets are handed out at the evening box office opening one hour before showtime.
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