Compagnie José Besprosvany / Théâtre de la Balsamine
concept and choreography
José Besprosvany
dramaturgy
Jean-Louis Sbille
visual concept
Vincent Knecht
image
Lander Loeckx
lighting
Marco Forcella
soloists
Paola di Piazza, Thierry Bastin, Jipé, José Besprosvany
location
Lantaren/Venster
day
thu may 28, 20.30 hrs
time
approx. 45 min.
prices
€ 13 / L/V pashouder € 11
type
traditional / modern
Puccini's famous opera Madama Butterfly is here transformed into a dance performance lasting 45 minutes. Whereas in Puccini's opera the Japanese girl Cio-Cio-san (Butterfly) marries the American naval officer B.F. Pinkerton, in this performance we see the just as improbable marriage of modern dance, hip-hop and Japanese puppet art, surrounded by colourful projections that have been inspired by the picture-language of manga comic strips. The question that lies at the heart of this opera, now almost one hundred years old, of whether it still has anything to say to us is presented in the form of interviews and voice-overs. The Brussels-based Mexican-Belgian choreographer José Besprosvany (1959) therefore himself takes the stage together with his three dancers so as to bring his role as an artist up for discussion, but in a way that keeps the perspective of the piece.
‘There is much to smile about in this short performance that couples intimacy with universality and combines humour with dreams and reflection'. (Le Soir)