"Anyone who knows Marco Goecke's works knows that they always have to do with himself and with the time in which they were made. Perhaps his most personal work is The Big Crying, a creation he started in the fall of 2020, shortly after the death of his father. It's a piece about parting and about everything we have to leave behind, says the choreographer, speaking of bodies like broken engines and costumes that resemble the curtains of a hearse. Unsurprisingly, his choice of music includes a Death Lullaby; Blood Roses by the American singer Tori Amos, whose music-sometimes confusing and with not always comprehensible poetry that is very close to Goecke's dance-is a bull's-eye. That this piece is nevertheless accompanied by the enormous fiery power of an entire company, fifteen excellent dancers, is perhaps due to the fact that, despite all the transience, the dance and the choreography celebrate the joy of life and zest for life." -Nadia Kadel

"In April 2020,I lost Anne.She was my mentor,teacher,and friend of 25 years. We had an incredible shared history.When I lost her it was a shock,it was as if I had lost so much of who I was,so much of what my life meant to me. A year after her death,I found myself called to listen to Brahms'Alto Rhapsody,I spent 6 months with the music before beginning to explore the meaning of the lyrics.For the lyrics, Brahms used verses from Goethe's poem Winter Journey in the Harz,a poem that was inspired by the poet's ascent of the Brocken in the Harz mountains during the winter of 1777.The poet ascends the mountain with his grief and isolation as companions,to consult the oracle about his fate,whether he is to live the existence of the unfortunate or the redemption of the loved. Coming through the fog,he is wrapped in golden clouds as he reaches the summit and gazes in gratitude towards the overarching spectacle of nature.

It is by asking the question,and being willing to go all the way through the fog,that his fate is transformed.It is in the asking,not the answering that a question's answer is revealed.In the paradox and circular nature of the human experience,to fall all the way through sadness is to witness a beauty that can only exist on the back of sadness itself.

There is a chance in despair for transcendence.Loss never really leaves us,but rather becomes a part of us,weaving itself through the tapestry of our spirit.If one can move through grief, gratitude oftentimes lies on the other side;if one can ascend past the mist and fog,the arrival at the summit is oftentimes filled with joy and reverence.

Brocken Spectre is a reflection on my own ascent through grief."-Andrew Skeels

A heartfealt thanks go to Marilyne Cyr,Danny Morrissette,Silvia Sanchez,Charles Brecard, Cynthia Dragoni and Robert Vezina.

As a choreographer,Alexander Ekman is interested in humour,and the effect it has on an audience.What do we find funny?What makes us laugh and why?With Cacti from 2010, Ekman amusingly challenges the viewer to reflect on modern dance as a higher art form. Sixteen dancers move,apparently trapped,on large white scrabble tiles.They run,fall,thrash and try to escape their invisible prison.In the end they all manage to get hold of a cactus.But what does all that mean?Cacti can be seen as a cheerful parody of the greater excesses within the dance world.A string quartet performs live the sounds of Joseph Haydn,Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert,while the dancers seem to form the instruments of the orchestra,resulting in a rhythmic whole.

In 2010 Cacti was nominated by the VSCD for a Swan for'most impressive dance production'.