The Little Match Girl
dance theatre- ballet
The famous fairy tale H. Ch. Andersen's fairy tale, which has moved children and adults for more than a century, is performed by Ultra-minimal-ballet (UMB) as a poetic dance theatre - ballet. A little girl who can only have three wishes, three dreams, three matches, which hopefully will warm her up for a while, distract her from the frosty reality where she misses her mother so much, where her daddy falls into alcohol, but everyone around her celebrates...
The music that is used comes mainly from the work of the Czech genius Oskar Nedbal, who himself composed the ballet Andersen. Another part of the music is by the contemporary young composer, performer and quintet player Gabriela Vermelho. In addition to the members of the UMB - which cooperates with leading personalities of Czech dance and ballet (National Theatre in Prague, J.K.Tyl Theatre in Pilsen, members of foreign ballet companies...), students of the Dance Conservatory of the Capital City of Prague will also perform. Prague. A special original set and costumes have been created for the performance to match this beautiful poetics and the specific requirements of the UMB.
Performers. Prague - starring J. Petanová
Libretto, direction, choreography by Alena Pešková
Music by Oskar Nedbal, Gabriela Vermelho
Sets: Richard Pešek jr.
Costumes: Monika Kletečková, Alena Pešková
Further performances are planned for the Advent season in Malostranská Beseda.
Atthe law of set design...
The Little Match Girl
dance theatre- ballet
On 8 June, the dance-ballet fairy tale The Little Match Girl will premiere at the Municipal Theatre in Slane. It will be performed by the dance group Ultra-Minimal- Ballet whose artistic director is Alena Pešková.
What will be your take on this story?
I tried to base it on the original fairy tale. However, I have adapted the libretto with regard to the non-verbal treatment. That is to say, so that the viewer can understand everything without the help of words. I also modified the girl's individual dreams - we find ourselves in a ballet hall, in a "posh" household..., and I made the deceased grandmother a mother. Daddy then falls into alcohol out of grief. But otherwise, the message and the message of the story remain the same. I hope the audience will be properly moved. As I always am when I read this strange tale.
So the means of expression are only dance and ballet?
Yes, mostly. However, there is also a lot of emphasis on acting. It's also a so-called "alienated" theatre. This means that we, as dancers, "jump" from role to role - and very consciously. At the same time, we are also acting as the girl's fate, the directors of the performance within the performance... and the set designers... We are simply revealing different theatrical and dance practices to the audience again.
Who can we look forward to on stage?
So, because we are true to the idea of "minimal", our cast is also "minimal". We're only making do with five dancers. Apart from me - who will play the role of the mother, the governess and the aforementioned fate-director, you will see the National Theatre dancer Tomáš Kopecký, in the role of the father, the ballet master and again the fate-director. There are also three students of the Dance Conservatory in Prague. In the lead role you will see one of them - Julia Petanova - a very talented third year student, about whom I suspect we will hear a lot in the context of the glory of Czech ballet.
Performers. Prague - starring J. Petanová
Ultra-minimal-ballet (UMB) is an independent association of professional dancers. As the name suggests, its intention is to achieve maximum effect on the audience using minimal means. It does not mind minimal space, minimal music, minimal number of dancers... UMB cooperates with prominent personalities of the Czech ballet and dance scene (National Theatre in Prague, J.K.Tyl Theatre, members of foreign groups...) UMB has had successful projects with contemporary composers and musical groups (Petr Wajsar, Epoque quartet, GaRe...), a full-length ballet horror Jessie and Morgiana , which resulted in a wider nomination for the Thalia Award, many performances at openings, festivals, concerts, fashion shows...
The Little Match Girl , dance theatre - ballet
Libretto, direction, choreography by Alena Pešková
Music by Oskar Nedbal, Gabriela Vermelho
Sets: Richard Pešek jr.
Costumes: Monika Kletečková, Alena Pešková
Premiere 8.6.2016 from 19:30 at the Municipal Theatre in Slane, morning performance 9.6.2016from 10:30 a.m.
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