MEDIATHEK

A location project around star dancer Nijinsky. The scenography was born from the idea that we only know Nijinsky from 2D material: photographs. Nijinsky lived in a time that was not only revolutionary for music, but also for dance and painting. That is why Kortekaas chose to create a flat almost 2 dimensional image, a painting. Within the latter 8 dancers evoke the life of Nijinsky, while they interact with video images made by visual artist Piet Dieleman. Dielman uses a pencil to slowly draw (live) a death mask taking Nijinsky’s diary notes as a starting point: Nijinsky’s schizophrenia. Georges De Decker composed a ‘surround’ mother tape in four movements: youth, education, the years of success and the mental ‘downdrain’ of Nijinsky. 

Additional to this mother tape there were live musicians: percussion, piano, trumpet and vocals. Working with different talents within one frame, namely that of a painting, makes ‘Nijinsky a painting’ a real Gesammtkunstwerk.

Niek Kortekaas

/ CAST /

Composer: George De Decker

Piano: Jaap Dieleman

Counter tenor: Garry Boyce

Percussion: Sytze Pruiksma

Trumpet: Bart Maris

Video artist: Bea de Visser

Visual artist: piet dieleman

Voice: Lucas vande Vost

Choreography: Sarah Wicktorowitz in cooperation with the Ronnie Haver dancers, Bruno Catalano, Eva Puschendorf, Philipp Fricke, Peter Cseri, Yvonne Weschke and Ronald Wintjes

Video dancer/ choreographer: Jean-Guillaume Weis

Direction, scenography and lighting design (Grand TheDirection, scenography and lighting design (Grand Theatre Groningen& Diaghilev festival Groningen).

[msb] https://pietdieleman.nl/projects-assignments/nijinsky-a-painting-tekst [24.03.2020]