By Victor Swoboda Agora de la danse gave Montreal a glimpse of dance’s fast-approaching future with Koros, a mixed bill featuring three group works presented in virtual reality: Allegro Barbaro by Hélène Blackburn, The Complex Simplicity of Love by Margie Gillis, and 6.58 Manifesto by Andrea Peña (who is showing at the Venice Biennale in
By Jeannette Andersen Hélène Blackburn’s Coppélia X Machina is the latest of numerous ballet interpretations of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s short story The Sandman from 1816. Hoffmann wrote a sinister tale about a young man, Nathaniel, who falls in love with a doll and commits suicide upon realizing she is not human. The story first entered the
By Victor Swoboda Masks. Hand cleanser. Early curtain. Ushered entry and exit. Limited audiences. Such was the scene when live-dance performances cautiously returned to Montreal theatres in late March, 2021, after a 12-month absence because of the COVID-19 lockdown. During the lockdown, Montreal’s dancemakers toiled on virtual platforms. The oldest, largest companies, Les Grands Ballets