Press Release: High floors and high fashion in double bill from GöteborgsOperans Danskompani featuring work by Sharon Eyal and Damien Jalet

[Jan McNulty]

GöteborgsOperans Danskompani       Damien Jalet / Sharon Eyal            SKID / SAABA  Sadler’s Wells Theatre, EC1R 4TN                                                       Thursday 11 – Saturday 13 May 2023 Tickets: £12 – £55   Ticket Office: 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com

SKID, image credit Lennart Sjöberg   GöteborgsOperans Danskompani presents the UK premiere of SKID/SAABA, an evening of works by French Belgian choreographer Damien Jalet and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Sharon Eyal in Sadler’s Wells Theatre from Thursday 11 – Saturday 13 May 2023. SKID’s set features a dance floor tilted at 34° to challenge the dancers beyond gravity. Epic, humorous, and moving, Damien Jalet’s work creates a new landscape of physical possibilities. The slope, created by New York artist Jim Hodges and Carlos Marques da Cruz, is inspired by the measurement of earth’s gravitational acceleration of 9.8 meters per second squared. There are only two entrances and exits to the performance stage, one above and one below. SKID is set to a backdrop of electro-acoustic music by Christian Fennesz and lighting design by Joakim Brink, with costumes by Jean-Paul Lespagnard.   SAABA is a mesmerising dance blending muscular and sensual choreography with a hypnotic, pulsating power. Sharon Eyal continues her creative partnership with Dior’s Creative Director Maria Grazia Chiuri, who designs the costumes for this production. The duo have collaborated several times, primarily on Dior’s seasonal fashion collections. SAABA marks the third collaboration between GöteborgsOperans Danskompani and Sharon Eyal following Untitled Black (2012) and Autodance (2018). Katrín Hall, Artistic Director of GöteborgsOperans Danskompani, said: ‘Right from the start we knew that SKID and SAABA are creations that communicate with audiences in a very powerful way. Damien Jalet challenges the dancers physically in their encounter with gravity and vulnerability. Sharon Eyal’s intense world and strong signature movement vocabulary demands details, clarity and form – but still leaves space for individual interpretation, passion and commitment. Both works strongly reflect GöteborgsOperans Danskompani’s constant motivation to push boundaries, take risks and create art as beautiful, vulnerable and unpredictable as life itself. To bring this program to London and Sadler’s Wells – one of the world’s truly amazing dance venues, where we had such a fantastic time in 2018 – feels very special for us. We just can’t wait!’   Damien Jalet is an independent French Belgian choreographer and dancer, whose work has been presented internationally. He is interested in the capacity for dance to constantly reinvent itself by collaborating with other artforms including visual arts, music, cinema, theatre and fashion. He has worked as both a dancer and choreographer for such companies including les ballet C de la B, Sasha Waltz and Guests, Chunky Move, Eastman, NYDC, Hessisches Staatsballetts, Paris Opera Ballet, Scottish Dance Theatre, Icelandic Dance Company, and GöteborgsOperans Danskompani. Jalet received international critical acclaim for his numerous choreographed sections of the film Suspiria, directed by Luca Guadagnino. He also choreographed Paul Thomas Anderson’s short film Anima, starring Thom Yorke. Sharon Eyal is an internationally renowned choreographer and Co-Founder and Co-Artistic Director of L-E-V. She is a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist. Eyal danced with the Batsheva Dance Company between 1990-2008, and served as an Associate Artistic Director for the company from 2003–04, and as a House Choreographer for the company from 2005–12. In 2013 Eyal launched L-E-V with her long-time collaborator Gai Behar, and the company’s creations have toured the world to great acclaim. Eyal has been commissioned to create work for companies including Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT), StaatsBallett, Royal Swedish Ballet, GöteborgsOperans Danskompani, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. In 2023, Sharon Eyal was awarded a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of the French Republic.  UK Premiere Audio Described Performance on Saturday 13 May 7:30 pm with accompanying Touch Tour at 6 pm NOTES TO EDITORS Listings Information  GöteborgsOperans Danskompani                                              SKID / SAABA   Sadler’s Wells Theatre, EC1R 4TN                                                                     Thursday 11 - Saturday 13 May Tickets: £12 - £55 Ticket Office: 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com About Sadler’s Wells  Sadler's Wells is a world-leading dance organisation. We strive to make and share dance that inspires us all. Our acclaimed year-round programme spans dance of every kind, from contemporary to flamenco, Bollywood to ballet, salsa to street dance and tango to tap.  We commission, produce and present more dance than any other organisation in the world. Since 2005, we have helped to bring close to 200 new dance works to the stage, embracing both the popular and the unknown.    Each year, over half a million people visit our three London theatres - Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Lilian Baylis Studio and Peacock Theatre. Millions more attend our touring productions nationally and internationally or explore our digital platforms, including Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage. In 2023 we’re opening a fourth London venue in Stratford’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Sadler’s Wells East will house a 550-seat mid-scale theatre, as well as facilities for the Choreographic School and Hip Hop Theatre Academy.     Supporting artists is at the heart of our work. We have associate artists and companies, which nurture some of the most exciting talent working in dance today. We host the National Youth Dance Company, which draws together some of the brightest young dancers from across the country. Sadler’s Wells Breakin' Convention runs professional development programmes to champion and develop the world’s best hip hop artists, as well as producing, programming and touring groundbreaking hip hop performances.     Around 30,000 people take part in our learning and engagement programmes every year. We support schools local to our theatres in Islington and Stratford, designing experiences for children and young people to watch, explore and critically engage with the arts. We also run Company of Elders, a resident performance company of dancers aged over 60 who rehearse with renowned artists to make new work for public performances locally, nationally and internationally.    Sadler’s Wells is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation.     www.sadlerswells.com     Stay up to date with everything Sadler’s Wells on social media  Facebook: @SadlersWells  Twitter: @Sadlers_Wells  Instagram: @sadlers_wells  YouTube: Sadler’s Wells Theatre