Choreographer Mirka Eliášová and composer Jana Vöröšová were inspired by an ancient Inuit story when creating the production Still the Same Story. Dancers and musicians from the Berg Orchestra perform in it, everything is complemented by projections and videos. The theme is man and nature. The premiere will take place on September 5 at the Ponec Theater in Prague.
An old legend of the Inuit, who are the inhabitants of the northernmost part of America, sometimes classified among the Eskimos, reflects on the desire to live and survive even in difficult conditions. It considers whether it is better in the world to be ordinary grass, or a beautiful herb, a mouse, a bird, or whether it is best to be a human being.
“The ancient story resonates especially in today’s times full of fear and a constant sense of threat. But it also works with hope – thanks to your creativity, you can deal with unexpected and challenging situations,” says choreographer Mirka Eliášová, one of the creative constants of the Czech dance scene. The author of the music, Jana Vöröšová, is a recognized composer, she has worked on orders from the Czech Philharmonic and the Prague Spring Festival.
In addition to their creative contribution, the authors decided to use already used things as props. “With Mirka and Jana, we have set ourselves the goal of making the most of our warehouses, in which an enormous amount of treasures are hidden – materials, musical instruments and other things. It is a creative challenge and an obligation towards our planet,” says Eva Kesslová, director of the Berg Orchestra.
He has long been specializing in contemporary music and supporting younger composers in particular. He combines music with film, dance, theater and visual arts, often inviting listeners into non-traditional spaces. He presented over two hundred works in the world premiere, in 2021 he won the prestigious Prix Italia award for the Czech Republic after half a century.
The composer Vöröšová herself will be on stage with the dancers and musicians. “I’m not a dancer, but I used to go dancing and I’ve taught at the Duncan Center Conservatory for over 20 years, so I watch dance every day,” she notes. “It’s great that I get an emotional assignment from Mirka, and then the realization is up to me. That’s why I chose an accordion for the performance, which is very moving,” she adds.
Choreographer, dance teacher and performer Eliášová founded the group Eli et al. She studied choreography at the dance department of Prague’s HAMU, where she teaches today. At the same time, she teaches children and non-professional dancers of all ages at an elementary art school or at workshops. For a long time, he focuses on the use of improvisation in contemporary dance. Since 2008, she has been collaborating with the Berg Orchestra, with whom she prepared, for example, evenings combining music and dance at the Bubenec wastewater treatment plant or the former Palace of the Electric Companies.
The premiere of the production on September 5 is followed by a reprise in Ponci the very next day.
Video: Every singer faces a career break, says Pecková
“You give your best to your work. How many times do you sacrifice your family life, how many times do you give up your privacy,” says opera singer Dagmar Pecková in the Spotlight show. | Video: Jakub Zuzánek
