William Forsythe's
IMPRESSING THE CZAR
UK Premiere
Royal Ballet of Flanders
William Forsythe Choreography
Thom Willems, Leslie Stuck, Eva Crossman-Hecht, Beethoven Music
Michael Simon Scenic design
Impressing the Czar photo gallery
William Forsythe's work is celebrated for re-orientating classical ballet into a dynamic 21st century art form. In his virtuosic masterwork, Impressing the Czar, he uses dance to reflect on itself.
The action focuses – with a great sense of humour – on nothing less than the history of Western civilization! A great variety of genres and styles, ranging from ballet en pointe to break-dance, combine with dazzling feats of athleticism and hilarious spoken passages to make a wild, theatrical and witty parody of classical ballet.
What the critics say:
‘Alarmingly impressive... ballet is full of surprises again!’
- DE MORGEN
‘Impressing the Czar is a milestone both in Forsythe’s oeuvre and in twentieth century ballet. It is a virtuoso collage of passages and techniques from the great ballets of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, from Petipa to Balanchine.’
- DE TIJD
