Ballet of Croatian National Theater - Rijeka, Croatia

Due to the Coronavirus and closing of the theatres in Serbia, the show of Ballet of Croatian National Theater from Rijeka is rescheduled for 22nd September (Opera Madlenianum) and 23rd September (Serbian National Theater). All tickets are valid.

The Lace

choreography: Maša Kolar

original music and arrangements: Tena Novak Vincek

dramaturgy, choreographer’s assistant: Maja Marjančić

costume design: Petra Pavičić

lighting design: Nuno Salsinha

photo documentation: Fanni Tutek Hajnal

duration: 65’
premiere: HNK Rijeka, 2020

 

In her research on cultural heritage of the region, Maša Kolar seeks inspiration in tradition and folklore - from historical writings, oral and written literature, music, dances and costumes to folk crafts, such as lace making. At the same time, it begs the questions: how alive is our heritage today, how important is it as such to us? If we dive into old customs, we can learn a lot about social setup, human relationships, and face modern truths in a profound way. In the structure and rhythm of the lace from the island of Pag, lies a rich source of creation, both choreographic structure and shaping of its main elements such as spatial paths, vocabulary and rhythm, but also the development of relationships among performers. Through the theme of lace, our time and tradition meet.

Born in Zagreb in 1973, Maša Kolar finished the School for Contemporary dance Ana Maletić in her home town. She attended Vlaamse Dansacademie in Brugge in Belgium and graduated in contemporary dance / teaching department at the University of Zagreb. Her professional dance career began in 1986 at the Zagreb’s Comedy Theatre, and continued in 1992 at Ballet Dresden, where in 1995 she gained status of the soloist. In 1997 she won the Mary Wigman Award for special achievements in choreographies by John Neumeier, Stephan Thoss and Mats Ek. Since 1998, she has been engaged at Thoss TanzKompanie and in 2007 she joined Aterballetto in Italy, where she worked with Mauro Bigonzetti, Ohad Naharin, Marco Goecke… From 2006 she works in Zagreb Youth Theatre as a dance teacher and choreographer and continues her international career as a freelance artist. From 2017, she is artistic director of the Ballet of Croatian National Theater in Rijeka.

 

Balet CNT Ivan pl. Zajc was founded in 1946 as an integral part of the National Theatre house in Rijeka. Since 1947, ballet company has been producing independent works and already in 1953 company performed its first full length evening ballet “Coppélia”. The most significant date in the history of the Ballet Rijeka was September 21st, 1990, when the ensemble got the status of an independent art department. This period Rijeka Ballet begins by rendering ballet classics like “Giselle”, “Swan Lake” and “Romeo and Juliet”. During its 70 years of existence, Balet presented an exceptional variety of dance directions. Today, company is presenting repertoire of choreographers such as Igor Kirov, Mauro Bigonzetti, Giuseppe Spota, Kristian Lever, Andonis Foniadakis, Mauro de Candia, current artistic director Maša Kolar, and others.