Article about my work in the Rheinpfalz newspaper

The Vielpfalz Zeitung newspaper published an exciting article about my production of “Sacre du Printemps”:

“The Poetry of the Earth” is the title of Leonard Bernstein's lecture given as part of his Harvard lectures in 1973, which focuses primarily on the music of Igor Stravinsky. And thus also about his ballet “Le Sacre du Printemps” (The Rite of Spring), whose premiere in 1913 at the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris caused one of the greatest theater scandals of the 20th century. Lenny later expressed the closeness of this composition to nature, to the earth, to our elementary foundations of life in a very vivid way during rehearsals for the work with the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival Orchestra in 1987.
Today, Stravinsky's music for “Le Sacre du Printemps” has long been part of the standard repertoire on concert stages around the world. Conductors enjoy conducting this work because it shows whether and how well they can conduct. And for large orchestras, it is also a work that can ideally demonstrate their virtuosity. In addition, the rhythmic primal force of this music and its radical tonal language are as powerful today as they were 109 years ago.
The stage versions of Le Sacre that have been created since its premiere by Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes are countless and very diverse.
Film and dance
At the Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz's Modern Times festival, a very special and exciting version of “The Rite of Spring” will be presented on September 8 at the Friedrich-Ebert-Halle in Ludwigshafen. Of course, the music will be performed live by the Staatsphilharmonie with a large ensemble under the baton of chief conductor Michael Francis. The performance combines film and dance, created by director Isabella Freilinger. She has translated the ballet's narrative into a modern fairy tale. The dancers of the Académie de Ballet Heidelberg will perform not only on screen, but also live in the Ebert-Halle.
It is a dream project for her, actress and director Isabella Freilinger tells us in a conversation ahead of the production. That's because it brings together many areas of work in which she is active. She is wholeheartedly committed to the project and loves the piece very much, she emphasizes.
A performance was actually planned a year ago, but COVID-19 prevented it from happening. However, the film has been available since that time. Isabella Freilinger is now working on the live parts in collaboration with choreographer Eveline Krüger-Maitrel, who is also responsible for the design. It is a very creative exchange. Eveline Krüger-Maitrel and she inspire each other, says the director, who has already realized several projects with the State Philharmonic Orchestra.
One example is the digital platform “Perspektive 360,” for which the orchestra was awarded gold in the “Microsite” category at the German Prize for Online Communication (dpok).
Magical journey of discovery
Nature is the main theme in Isabella Freilinger's version of “Sacre.” The artist, who works as an actress and director and also writes screenplays, has created a new story for the piece about the sacrifice of spring, which is primarily about the relationship between civilization and nature.
The story centers on Lea, a young woman. She comes from the city, meets a group of dancing environmentalists, and goes with them into a forest, experiences nature, transforms, blossoms, and becomes part of nature. The experience of nature's destruction is also part of the story, but its primary aim is to transport the audience into a magical world. Magical is a word that the director uses repeatedly when describing her project. Stylistic devices, she says, include ballet, modern dance, hip-hop, African dance, and performance elements. As Isabella Freilinger says, her aim was to transfer the idea of ballet into the present day. After writing the plot, she noticed that there were many parallels between her new story and the original material.
Professional dancers are involved in the performance, as well as children and young people who have explored the theme. Katharina Geyer dances the lead role, and Medelice Krüger-Maitrel performs a hip-hop solo.
For the time being, this will be the only performance in Ludwigshafen, but Isabella Freilinger reports that other orchestras, including those from France, Austria, and Switzerland, have already inquired about taking on the production. Isabella Freilinger can also imagine future performances in other versions, for example with a piano version of Stravinsky's music.