William Forsythe / Ioannis Mandafounis / Dresden Frankfurt Dance Company

This double evening celebrates the artistic encounter between choreographer William Forsythe, founder of the Dresden Frankfurt Dance Company, and choreographer Ioannis Mandafounis, the company's new director.

William Forsythe is one of the most important and influential choreographers of the late 20th century. His innovative approach to the tradition of ballet has opened up directions in dance that previously seemed unimaginable. From 1984 to 2004, Forsythe directed the Frankfurt Ballet, and after its closure, he led the Forsythe Company from 2005 to 2015. This was later renamed the Dresden Frankfurt Dance Company. In this year, Forsythe returned to the place where he had worked for many years and developed a new work for the company for the first time. In UNDERTAINMENT, Forsythe uses an improvisational building block system to create his own structure, which does not seek to represent anything else, but stands alone and unfolds its appeal precisely in this way. As in a kaleidoscope, new patterns are constantly emerging: clearly framed, but full of surprises and twists. The dancers immerse themselves deeply in this system they have created and explore it to its limits.

LISA takes the audience on an extraordinary journey—right into the heart of the 1930s. Based on the method of live choreography developed by Ioannis Mandafounis, a space full of possibilities is created on stage. The dancers decide live and in the moment of the performance when they enter and leave the stage. These spontaneous changes create ever-changing dynamics: two people meet, and suddenly a lively group scene emerges. Shortly afterwards, a dancer stands alone on stage, and an unexpectedly moving solo unfolds. In LISA, these dramaturgical principles merge with poems by the poet Ossip Mandelstam and music by Gabriel Fauré.