Transfigured Night – May 15 – 24, at Theatre Maisonneuve LiveEvents May 4, 2014 5663 Les Grands Ballets Canadiens presents the World Premiere of Transfigured Night Inspired by a poem written by Richard Dehmel in 1896 and the innovative musical composition of the same name by Arnold Schoenberg that followed in 1899, Transfigured Night opens with a man and a woman walking in a dark forest. The woman reveals to her new lover that she is pregnant with another man’s child and each movement that follows this announcement contributes to the transfiguration and the radiant fusion of these two (three!) disparate beings into one, glowing whole. The play – and the music – is divided into five distinct sections, reflecting the five stanzas of Dehmel’s poem and the profound emotions expressed in each. Les Grands Ballets are thrilled to announce the premiere of another commissioned choreography by Stijn Celis, a long-time collaborator and friend of the company. His new work, Transfigured Night, will be performed for the first time by our dancers at Théâtre Maisonneuve of Place des Arts on May 15, 16, 17, 22, 23 and 24, 2014. About Stijn Celis One of the most active contemporary dance choreographers today, Belgian-born Stijn Celis first gained attention as a dancer for the Royal Ballet of Flanders, Zurich Ballet, Cullberg Ballet, Bern Ballet and Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève. His creative talents first came to light in 1991 during a choreographic workshop with the Grand Théâtre, then under the artistic direction of Gradimir Pankov and since 1997, he has focused exclusively on choreography and set design. Stijn’s works have been staged by Ballet Gulbenkian, Ballet Mainz, Ballet Wiesbaden, Ballet Nürnberg and Cullberg Ballet and Bern Ballet. In 2002, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal commissioned him to create Noces, a vibrant treatise on the rites of marriage set to Stravinsky’s famous score and in 2003, Les Grands called on his choreographic talents once more for the creation of Cinderella (The Lost Shoe). Transfigured Night is his third commission for Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal. www.grandsballets.com For tickets and information: www.laplacedesarts.com 514-842-2112 or 1-866-842-2112
