The GNO Ballet travels to Italy

Human Behaviour
A contemporary dance triptych choreographed by
Ioannis Mandafounis, Konstantinos Rigos, Ermira Goro
12 July 2022

MicroDances
Short dance performances choreographed by
Yannis Nikolaidis, Elena Kekkou, Konstantinos Rigos
15, 16, 17 July 2022

Chiostri di San Pietro – Reggio Emilia, Italy
As part of the  Danza ai Chiostri festival

The Greek National Opera Ballet travels to Italy to present the GNO Alternative Stage’s successful production Human Behaviour, a contemporary dance triptych choreographed by Ioannis Mandafounis, Konstantinos Rigos and Ermira Goro, in the Chiostro grande of the Chiostri di San Pietro, the big courtyard of the emblematic monastery of Saint Peter in Reggio Emilia, Italy, on 12 July 2022. The performance will be held as part of the Summer Festival Danza ai Chiostri, which is co-organised by Fondazione Nazionale della Danza / Aterballetto and Fondazione I Teatri di Reggio Emilia, as part of the City of Reggio Emilia’s programme Restate 2022.  The production is made possible by a grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) [www.SNF.org] to enhance the Greek National Opera’s artistic outreach.

In the same Festival, the GNO Ballet will also present three MicroDances, namely three short dance performances (with a duration from 6 to 10 minutes) choreographed by Yannis Nikolaidis, Elena Kekkou and Konstantinos Rigos, on 15, 16 and 17 July 2022. MicroDances is part of An Ideal City, a programme run in collaboration with three European dance organisations – Fondazione Nazionale della Danza / Aterballetto (Reggio Emilia), Les Halles de Schaerbeek (Brussels) and the Greek National Opera Ballet (Athens) – and co-funded by the EU programme Creative Europe, which aims at supporting the cultural and creative industry in Europe.

Human Behaviour

The Ballet of the Greek National Opera presents the contemporary dance triptych Human Behaviour in the Chiostro grande of the Chiostri di San Pietro, the big courtyard of the emblematic monastery of Saint Peter in Reggio Emilia, Italy, on 12 July 2022. Ioannis Mandafounis choreographs Point of No Return to music by Giorgos Koumendakis, Ermira Goro choreographs Plan B to music by Dimitra Trypani, and the GNO Ballet director Konstantinos Rigos choreographs Lieder ohne Wrote to music by Dimitris Terzakis. The choreographies hover between classical and contemporary style, giving the opportunity to the GNO Ballet dancers to experiment with new forms and on a smaller scale, on the music of Giorgos Koumendakis, Dimitra Trypani and Dimitris Terzakis.

Point of No Return

Choreography, costume supervisor Ioannis Mandafounis
Music Giorgos Koumendakis
Lighting designer Christos Tziogkas

With the participation of dancers of the GNO Ballet

The choreography Point of No Return is a co-production of the GNO and the CIE Ioannis Mandafounis

Lieder ohne Worte

Choreography, set designer Konstantinos Rigos
Music Dimitri Terzakis
Costume designer Yiorgos Mesimeris
Lighting designer Christos Tziogkas
Associate architect Mary Tsangari

With the participation of dancers of the GNO Ballet

Plan B

Choreography Ermira Goro
Music Dimitra Trypani
Set & costume designer Christos Delidimos
Lighting designer Christos Tziogkas

With the participation of dancers of the GNO Ballet

MicroDances

Three MicroDances, namely three short dance performances (with a duration from 6 to 10 minutes) choreographed by Yannis Nikolaidis, Elena Kekkou and Konstantinos Rigos will also be presented as part of the Danza ai Chiostri Festival, on 15, 16 and 17 July 2022. The three MircoDances will be held in different spaces of the Chiostri di San Pietro, giving audiences the chance to watch them successively, as they would do on a museum visit. More specifically, the following works will be featured:

Knight Rider

Choreography: Yannis Nikolaidis
Music: Manolis Manousakis
Dancer: Margarita Kostoglou

I often feel that the exhibits in the museums I visit are war captives. Just like the wild animals in the zoos. Objects and creatures forever trapped, violently removed from their natural environment and separated from the reason of their existence. Often, their enemy is the ruthless time rendering them museum exhibits, or just human greediness. Often, those less fortunate than us have this experience, trapped in ruined bodies that fail to fulfill the desires of their spirit. Doomed to complete the rest of their life inside them. Wonderful knights in painfully rigid armours.

— Yannis Nikolaidis

Active Motivation

Choreography: Elena Kekkou
Live Music: Antonis Vlachos
Dancer: Elena Kekkou

Every existence is unique. Human existence is an endless line that, as it moves forward, intersects with other lines creating an interaction. It begins alone and ends alone. The essence, however, is in the intermediate state. Movement contains a code that unlocks the essence of existence and demarcates it. The choice of the position is what defines the path.

— Elena Kekkou

Forget me not

Choreography: Konstantinos Rigos
Music: Giorgos Koumendakis
Saxophone: Guido de Flaviis
Dancer: Vangelis Bikos

An archetypical, manly, solid body, trapped in restoration rafters, breathes all over again. It is brought to life through the air released by a wind instrument creating the melody of its breath as well as of its final release from limitation. A visual mobile trajectory where the body creates architectural gestures engaging in conversation with the “static” statues on the site. Inspired by the lockdown period and the silence of the city.

— Konstantinos Rigos