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Korea Herald
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Explore emotional duality of high-profile choreographer at Asia premiere of double bill
Inger sees bright future for Korean contemporary dance scene Acclaimed Swedish dancer-turned-choreographer Johan Inger says he is impressed with Korea's growing commitment to contemporary dance and sees a bright future for the newly established Seoul Metropolitan Ballet. The 57-year-old artist is in Seoul for the Asia premiere of his double bill, 'Walking Mad' and 'Bliss,' set to run Friday through May 18 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. Following Ohad Naharin's 'Decadance' in March, Inger is the latest high-profile figure in the company's bold lineup for this year. 'In Korea, you're opening new dance companies, and in the West, people are closing (them). I think it's a great initiative and should be really highlighted,' said Inger during a press conference Wednesday in Seoul. Inger, who began his career with the Royal Swedish Ballet before joining the Netherlands Dance Theater under Jiri Kylian, made his choreographic debut with NDT 2 in 1995. He went on to win the prestigious Benois de la Danse award for choreography in 2016. Inger said the two works, created 25 and 10 years ago respectively, are very different. 'I think it's an exciting evening because they show two sides of me as a choreographer,' he said. The evening begins with "Walking Mad," a more theatrical and emotionally charged piece set to Ravel's Bolero. Inger described it as 'a journey into the unknown,' full of humor, drama and human emotion. 'To me, it is a journey of a man going through a world, or a dream, or a state of mind and encountering different personalities but (still) searching. It's a little bit like Orpheus and Eurydice, being pulled back into another place and keep on searching.' The second piece, 'Bliss,' set to Keith Jarrett's Koln Concert, reflects a more stripped-down, introspective side of Inger's choreography. 'I wanted to create something very pure and simple -- just present in the moment,' he said. 'It also represents a time for me, something carefree. I wanted to capture that spirit of the time, in the costumes, in the playfulness and in the improvisation.' For Inger, music is at the heart of every work: He sees it as a partner with which he engages in conversation. He encouraged audiences, especially those unfamiliar with contemporary dance, to approach it as they would music. 'I think dance is very much like music. You hear a piece and have one interpretation of what it means to you, but the person next to you may have a completely different one,' he said. 'So if I have done my work right as a choreographer, it will tap not into the logical parts of your brain, but into the emotional parts.' What continues to drive his work, Inger said, are human beings and human relationships. 'Our strengths, our weaknesses, our ugliness, our beauty -- all the contradictions that make us who we are. That inspires me. I think that's the fuel that keeps me going, that keeps me exploring stories,' he said. hwangdh@
Korea Herald
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Interview: Tall and assured, Lee Sang-eun finds freedom in contemporary ballet
English National Ballet lead principal Lee Sang-eun performs in Asia premiere of Johan Inger's 'Walking Mad' with Seoul Metropolitan Ballet Dancers move tirelessly to the gradually intensifying beat of Ravel's "Bolero" -- climbing over, crashing into or vanishing behind a large wooden wall. In the midst all this seeming chaos, one dancer stood out: tall, assured and unmistakably at home. At 181 centimeters tall, Lee Sang-eun, lead principal dancer of the English National Ballet, is impossible to miss. Lee is in Seoul to perform as a guest artist in the Asian premiere of 'Walking Mad,' part of a double bill with 'Bliss' by acclaimed Swedish choreographer Johan Inger. The Seoul Metropolitan Ballet's production runs from Friday to May 18 at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. "I first encountered 'Walking Mad' in 2013 as an understudy at the Semperoper Ballett Dresden,' Lee recalled in an interview with The Korea Herald at a rehearsal studio on Nodeul Island. 'I was promoted to principal in 2016, and that's when I finally had the chance to perform on stage. Coming back to it now -- nearly a decade later, and here in Korea -- feels deeply meaningful and joyful.' Having spent many years with ballet companies in Europe, she is no stranger to Inger's works. She performed in several, including "Peer Gynt" and 'Carmen,' for which the choreographer won the Benois de la Danse in 2016, and the experience has made her quite familiar with his movement language. 'Inger's works capture universal stories that resonate emotionally, with a visceral, honest and deeply human quality. That's why I feel his works have such a grounded essence,' said Lee. She suggested audiences tune in closely to the music. 'There are moments where movement and emotion connect through feeling alone. The music becomes a bridge, deepening the narrative. As a performer, I find myself most inspired when that synchronization between music, choreography and dancer happens naturally. That's when it becomes magical.' Seoul Metropolitan Ballet, a contemporary ballet company which inaugurated its season just last year, had sought Lee for a collaboration, as she perfectly aligns with the company's identity. Lee joined Universal Ballet in 2005 but left Korea to pursue more diverse and contemporary opportunities in Europe. In 2010, she joined Semperoper Ballett Dresden, where she danced until 2023. She then joined the English National Ballet when Aaron Watkin, the former artistic director of Semperoper, took the helm at the ENB. Over the past 20 years, she has performed in major repertory works, with choreographic luminaries such as Ohad Naharin and William Forsythe. This is the first time she is presenting a full-length contemporary work to a Korean audience, and Lee is particularly excited about the evolving dance scene in her home country. 'I left Korea partly to pursue more contemporary ballet, and now to see a company here embracing that, with legendary choreographers coming to Korea for the show, it's truly encouraging.' When she left, contemporary ballet was still a fringe interest in Korea, but it was when she danced a contemporary ballet piece that she 'truly felt free.' That sense of freedom was also closely tied to her physicality. Standing at 181 cm, Lee struggled to find compatible partners and roles in Korea. "Unlike classical ballet, where you must perfect your technique within a fixed framework, contemporary ballet is a collaborative process where both the choreographer and the dancer create in an open, evolving world. I really enjoy this creative process." Ironically, she said that after years of dancing contemporary ballet, she found a sense of freedom even within the constraints of classical ballet. 'Because of my height, I did wonder if I could continue ballet and eventually accepted that there might be limits," said Lee. "But despite that, it was still so rewarding. It was always a new challenge, constantly learning, and continuously failing -- and all those processes were all part of the growth.'
Korea Herald
13-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Ohad Naharin's 'Decadance' invites audience to break out of 'body jail'
Seoul Metropolitan Ballet kicks off season with ever-evolving masterpiece by Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin has one rule: no mirrors in the rehearsal studio. 'The use of mirrors in the dance is a mistake. They spoil the soul of the dancer, (making them) look at himself instead of look at the world,' the 73-year-old Israeli choreographer said at a press conference Wednesday in Seoul, where he was overseeing final rehearsals for Seoul Metropolitan Ballet's 'Decadance.' So when the Seoul Metropolitan Ballet began preparing for its season opener running from Friday to March 23 at the Sejong Center's M Theater, every mirror in the studio was covered with curtains. 'We need to see the world. We need to sense the world when we move,' Naharin said. 'If you want to be exact and clear, you need to find it through the scope of sensation, not by correcting your movement by looking at it.' For nearly three decades, Naharin has shaped the landscape of contemporary dance, leading the renowned Batsheva Dance Company from 1990 to 2018. He is currently the company's house choreographer. His artistic journey has been chronicled in the documentary 'Mr. Gaga' and featured in Netflix's documentary series, 'Move.' He is best known for creating 'Gaga,' a unique language of movement that heightens physical awareness. Naharin likens it to strengthening one's "engine": Life is difficult, and if you have a weak engine, lifting the weight is hard. But with a stronger engine, what was heavy feels lighter. 'What I look in Gaga is not just the movement but the quality of movement,' he said. 'When you see two dancers doing the same movement -- one of them will make you cry and one of them will make you fall asleep. And you ask, 'Why is it? What is it?' I'm curious to find what it is that makes me cry.' Constantly evolving masterpiece 'Decadance' is a curated collage of Naharin's works, stitching excerpts from his past choreographies into a single performance. Originally created in 2000 to mark his 10th anniversary as Batsheva's artistic director, it has since been performed worldwide, including by the Paris Opera Ballet and the Gothenburg Opera Dance Company. No two productions are the same, as each is a unique version tailored to the company at that time. The Seoul Metropolitan Ballet's 2025 production of "Decadance' features eight pieces, spanning from 'Anaphaza' (1993) to 'Anafase' (2023), set to an eclectic soundscape ranging from Israeli folk music to Latin rhythms like cha-cha and mambo. One of its most iconic moments involves dancers in black suits using chairs as props, while other segments blend humor, improvisation and direct audience interaction. 'The work I'm doing here is a piece that is constantly evolving, changing and taking on many different versions.' Naharin described this reconstruction as a game on a playground and emphasized the ongoing sharing of his discoveries, both with dancers and audiences. ''Decadance' is an opportunity for me to share what I do now, but with a strong remembering of where I'm coming from. A lot about dancing is connected to being at the moment, but (it) also includes everything that has happened to me to this moment.' Beneath the work's dynamic evolution, Naharin's message remains simple: everyone should dance. 'Many of us know the feeling of being locked inside the body. The body becomes a jail. But actually, if you think of dancing, it becomes the means to get out of the jail. It's the dancing that gets us free,' he said. 'And 'Decadance' invites people not just to watch but also (embrace) the idea that we all need to dance.'
