Description

With his »German Requiem« op. 45, Brahms created one of the most unusual versions of the requiem mass: he wanted to rise above the boundaries of all religions, confessions and nations, and would have »very happily left the ›German‹« out of the title and »simply used the word ›human‹«.

Martin Schläpfer’s ballet »Ein Deutsches Requiem« brings one of the most internationally successful works of the Vienna State Ballet’s new director to the Volksoper. In a monumental architecture created by Florian Etti, the dancers are thrown to and fro between above and below, heaven and earth. Like lemurs they creep over the ground, fight vigorously against their being, and still only fall back into a wriggling wobble. But the world of this dance piece also has moments of indescribable lightness: in the joyous leaps, in the powerful flailing of the arms, the subtle exploration of balance or the delicate discovery of the divine in the human counterpart. A »profoundly touching and thrilling evening at the ballet« (Ulrike Burgwinkel, WDR).