The theme of this year’s Divadelní Flora festival is freedom. And that is why the production Freedom in Motion was created, which reflects this topic in an original way. “To create a pilot program in the new space, in a balanced ratio between Czech and foreign work, I approached the choreographer and director of the Equilibrio Dinamico dance company Roberta Ferrara from Italy and the choreographer and artistic director of the DEKKADANCERS company Štěpán Pechar from the Czech Republic,” said the artistic director of the ballet Jan Fousek.
It will be a “triple” premiere for the dancers, because in addition to introducing completely new choreography and performing for the first time as part of the festival, they will also perform for the very first time in the newly renovated CENTRAL at the Olomouc Art Museum. “We found a space that gives us the opportunity to experiment and create new choreographic creations,” added Fousek.
“In addition to productions imported from elsewhere, at CENTRAL we also want to devote ourselves to the production of original or even original theatrical forms. The co-production with the ballet troupe of the Moravian Theater is the first such attempt, which we will certainly want to follow up on,” says CENTRAL dramaturg Alexandr Jeništa. “The production will remain in the repertoire of the Moravian Theater even after its two performances at this year’s Divadelní Flora, and the audience can see it six more times at CENTRAL before the end of the season,” he calculated.
WHITEflag day deals with the theme of freedom as a moment of shared power between people. “In the choreography, I try to offer a view of freedom not only as a basic human right, but also as an inherent expression of our humanity,” Roberta Ferrara explained her intention. The space will not be divided into a classically divided auditorium and stage, but will be arranged in such a way that the audience will sit around the center of the action. The production will feature compositions by Armand Amar, Henryk Górecký and Sinéad O’Connor. The main motif of the story will be the white flag, which functions here as a symbol supporting the right of all people to live in freedom.
Choreographer Štěpán Pechar created a light performance that is built on the contrast of two different dance vocabularies. “The first expresses the given system, uncompromisingly binding the performers to perform exactly the same activities. It suppresses individuality, freedom of movement, expression, and feelings. In contrast to this, the second vocabulary of movement is excessively free, playful, and a little deranged,” Štěpán Pechar outlined the theme and processing of his choreography Inventing Freedom. Pavel Knolle designed the stage and minimalist but striking costumes for the production. Music by artists such as Two Fingers, Jack Stauber or John Powell will be heard here.
“With this dance performance, we are expanding not only the modern repertoire of our ballet company, but also the attractive chamber scenes where the audience can see them. In addition to the Red Church, it will now be CENTRAL, which, I believe, will bring new perspectives to the performers and the audience,” the director of the Moravian Theater, David Gerneš, is convinced.
