Through the body, through space

Gerhard Bohner
IM (GOLDENEN) SCHNITT II 

Having reconstructed the first version of Im (Goldenen) Schnitt by Gerhard Bohner in 1996, three years later, in 1999, the dancer and choreographer Cesc Gelabert drew on the videos of Cosima Santoro to reconstruct Im (Goldenen) Schnitt II, the second version of the work inspired by the music of The Well-tempered Clavichord by Johann Sebastian Bach, was performed for the first time by the Berlin choreographer himself in 1989 at the Akademie der Künste in Berlin.

Based on the original concept, Gelabert presents pieces and elements selected by Bohner from three different artistic disciplines – dance, visual arts and music – all of which are interrelated in their simultaneous execution, while they remain autonomous works of art.

For Im ( Goldenen) Schnitt II, the sculptor Robert Schad designed a sculptural piece formed of five steel parts.

Gelabert and Bohner became acquainted and they developed a mutual respect for each other on both an artistic and a personal level.

In spite of adhering strictly to the essence of Bohner’s choreography, Cesc Gelabert maintains his artistic individuality as a dancer, in such a way that one is never given the impression that he is trying to imitate the German choreographer.

“For several years I have been performing the first version of Im (Goldenen) Schnitt at theatres and festivals throughout the world and the response of the public, critics and organisers has been sensational. Personally, it has given me a great deal of joy and satisfaction. It is a home, a place of meditation and repose.

When I approached the second version, I was extremely impressed by its plastic dimension, but I missed the emotional force of the biographical story, the logic of the journey through the articulations, and the exploration of space as in the first version. But once I started rehearsing, a structure of great beauty and clarity gradually emerged. It crosses over and varies the order of the sections. And to make it symmetric, it adds the prelude and fugue number 13. Instead of running the length of the body from head to toe, it does so in reverse order, from the bottom to the top. These changes, within the new scenic space, with the sculptures by Robert Schad, totally renew the reading, the sense of the work. The sculptures invade the space and shape the different landscapes of a life. It is much more optimistic, opens itself up to the future, holds out a solution. It does not lead towards death, but towards life.

It is fascinating to be able to explore the choreographic material in this new plastic context and with the force that comes from having someone perform the music live. Moreover, we are lucky enough to have Heidrun Holtmann, the same pianist who accompanied Bohner when he danced this work.”

Cesc Gelabert