The Chairman Dances | CHILDS

As with "Concerto" choreographed in 1993 to music by Gorecki, the dancers execute in unison and in cannon a series of intricate rhythmic patterns, precisely rooted within the structure of the music. The dancers entertain a kind of rapport with the music in a balance between reflection and contradiction of the many accents and down beats within the ever present syncopations. "The Chairman Dances", a ballet of twelve minutes duration has twelve sections with an ensemble of twelve dancers and two soloists. While the opera "Nixon in China" is concerned with Nixon's three day visit to China, the ballet revolves around one of the episodes: the appearance at a reception held for the Americans by Madame Mao as an unvited guest, and Chairman Mao's emergence from the frame his painted portrait to dance with her. While my ballet makes reference to this episode, it is for the most part abstract."

Lucinda Childs

"The Chairman Dances" | CHILDS
Choreography: Lucinda Childs
Assistant-Choreographer: Maria de Lourdes Davila
Music: John Adams
Scenography and lighting: Dominique Drillot
Costumes: Jean-Michel Lainé
Duration: 12 min

Creation for Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo
Premiere held on December 26th décembre 2000, Grimaldi Forum Monaco