Eurydice (2017/2019)

In collaboration with Centre de Vidéo Danse de Bourgogne

Premiered in Castle of Cerisy, Normandy, France on 17 May, 2018 during the International Video Dance Festival of Burgundy.
Screened on 7-14 October, 2018 at Centre del Carme Cultura Contemporània, Valencia, Spain during the 5th Encuentro internacional de video-danza y video-performance. See here.
Screened on 2-3 December, 2019 at Wicklow ScreenDance Laboratory, County Wicklow Arts Centre, Ireland.

Listen to the album at spotify.

Synopsis

Based on the plot of Louis XIV’s Ballet de la Nuit (1653), Eurydice (2017) is a modern realisation of the fourth watch of the 13-hours work. This part of the ballet is based on the Greek mythology of Orpheus and Eurydice, who loved each other but failed to end happily. The text in Eurydice is recited by a female vocal artist, in which she recites all the male and female roles, including the Companion of Orpheus, Hamadryads, the three Graces, and Eurydice. This monologue, aside from having a dramatic multiple personae effect, is also a reciprocation to the 17th century’s cross-casting tradition, when female roles were often played by men–an example would be Louis XIV playing the wine-loving Bacchante in Ballet des Fêtes de Bacchus (1651) before he reached his full adult maturity. The text is adapted from Sébastien Daucé’s reconstruction of the Ballet de la Nuit in 2015, where he also includes sections from Luigi Rossi’s Orfeo (1647) into the realisation.

This 11-movements hour-long work Eurydice (2017) is composed for the collective dance film project, Le Ballet de la Nuit, curated by the Centre de Vidéo Danse de Bourgogne (France), with 12 other composers and 13 screendance artists from around the world, a detailed list of composers/artists is attached at the end. The screendance of Eurydice (2017) is filmed by Brazilian artists Indira Brígido & Ariel Volkova.

Movements

Prologue
Episode Ia: Dialogue…
Episode Ib: …of Orpheus and the Hamadryads
Episode II: Passacaglia of Orpheus
Episode III: Eurydice
Episode IV: Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne
Episode V: Dance of Dryads, Eurydice and One of the Graces
Episode VI: The Death of Eurydice
Episode VII: Dryads and Apollo
Episode IX: The Tears of Orpheus
Epilogue

Awards

Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… accepted as official selection at the 20th Annual Santa Fe Film Festival, New Mexico, US.
Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne received official selection at the KinoDUEL International Film Festival.
Dryads and Apollo won the Best Music Video award at Italian Film Days.
Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne selected as a semi-finalist in the Canadian Cinematography Awards.
Dryads and Apollo received Outstanding Achievement Award at Druk International Film Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… accepted as official selection in White Unicorn International Film Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… awarded Best Music Video at Crown Wood International Film Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… accepted as official selection in South Film and Arts Academy Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… accepted as official selection in Philadelphia Independent Film Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… awarded Best Music Video at Tripvill International Film Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… accepted as official selection in Frostbite International Indie Festival.
Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne received official selection at the CKF International Film Festival.
Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne received official selection at Beyond Earth Film Festival.
Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne awarded finalist at Near Nazareth Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… received official selection at Woodengate International Film Festival.
Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne received official selection at Austria International Film Festival.
Eurydice: Episode Ia: Dialogue… received official selection at On Art – Film Festival (Poland).
Chorus of The Graces: Aglaia, Thalia, and Euphrosyne received official selection at Austria International Film Festival.