It was late spring of 2007 when I went to see a Maurice Bejart’s ballet. Little did I know that it would be the last time I would see him on the stage with his troupe. He was smiling and waiving at the audience, first from his wheelchair, and then while standing and holding on to a stand.
Bejart passed away in Lausanne few weeks ago.
Bejart’s choreography was more than celebration of human body and dance. There was this rebel, this counterculture zeal that set the stage. His “Firebird” was like a lone guerrilla rising up… like a phoenix from the ashes. His overt theme in “Romeo and Juliet” seemed like an eclectic call to “make love, not war.” His dancers – in many performances imbued with an erotic subtext – seemed to celebrate our innate impulses and tensions. His compositions soared from anguish to joy, from shadows to light, as if exalting universal man in search of his soul.
Bejart was nothing, if not curious and innovative. He mixed Argentinean Tango with Bach, meditative Indian music with Richard Wagner, Electronic/Rock with Tchaikovsky. His dance compositions weaved traditional ballet, modern dance, folk-dancing, Mandarin, Japanese, Iranian, African, whatever. Bejart found beauty and ideas everywhere.
Peace.
(Celebrate Bejart. If you can get tickets, see L’Amour La Danse in Lausanne: 29 April – 04 May 2008, or experience the L’Amour La Danse DVD from http://www.bejart.ch/)
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Maurice Bejart - Eulogy
Jan 5, 2008 @ 11:50
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It was late spring of 2007 when I went to see a Maurice Bejart’s ballet. Little did I know that it would be the last time I would see him on the stage with his troupe. He was smiling and waiving at the audience, first from his wheelchair, and then while standing and holding on to a stand.
Bejart passed away in Lausanne few weeks ago.
Bejart’s choreography was more than celebration of human body and dance. There was this rebel, this counterculture zeal that set the stage. His “Firebird” was like a lone guerrilla rising up… like a phoenix from the ashes. His overt theme in “Romeo and Juliet” seemed like an eclectic call to “make love, not war.” His dancers – in many performances imbued with an erotic subtext – seemed to celebrate our innate impulses and tensions. His compositions soared from anguish to joy, from shadows to light, as if exalting universal man in search of his soul.
Bejart was nothing, if not curious and innovative. He mixed Argentinean Tango with Bach, meditative Indian music with Richard Wagner, Electronic/Rock with Tchaikovsky. His dance compositions weaved traditional ballet, modern dance, folk-dancing, Mandarin, Japanese, Iranian, African, whatever. Bejart found beauty and ideas everywhere.
Peace.
(Celebrate Bejart. If you can get tickets, see L’Amour La Danse in Lausanne: 29 April – 04 May 2008, or experience the L’Amour La Danse DVD from http://www.bejart.ch/)
coloradoJan 5, 2008 @ 11:50
Bejart passed away in Lausanne few weeks ago.
Bejart’s choreography was more than celebration of human body and dance. There was this rebel, this counterculture zeal that set the stage. His “Firebird” was like a lone guerrilla rising up… like a phoenix from the ashes. His overt theme in “Romeo and Juliet” seemed like an eclectic call to “make love, not war.” His dancers – in many performances imbued with an erotic subtext – seemed to celebrate our innate impulses and tensions. His compositions soared from anguish to joy, from shadows to light, as if exalting universal man in search of his soul.
Bejart was nothing, if not curious and innovative. He mixed Argentinean Tango with Bach, meditative Indian music with Richard Wagner, Electronic/Rock with Tchaikovsky. His dance compositions weaved traditional ballet, modern dance, folk-dancing, Mandarin, Japanese, Iranian, African, whatever. Bejart found beauty and ideas everywhere.
Peace.
(Celebrate Bejart. If you can get tickets, see L’Amour La Danse in Lausanne: 29 April – 04 May 2008, or experience the L’Amour La Danse DVD from http://www.bejart.ch/)
coloradoJan 5, 2008 @ 11:50
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