For the past week Emma and Cass have been in Stuttgart participating in the 16th International Solo-Dance-Theatre Festival, a special year dedicated to the late Tanja Liedtke. The festival is held in the Robert Bosch studio theatre at Treffpunkt Rotebuhlplatz, a fascinating complex of studios, halls, spaces and staircases.
18 solo works from around the world were presented over three nights and ours, BodySong, was presented as the final work on the second night of performances.
Cass danced Emma’s extremely demanding piece superbly, with heightened energy, charisma and interpretation. It was extremely well received. Following the performance, the dancers and choreographers sat informally on stage to receive audience questions.
The Stuttgart Solo-Dance-Theatre Festival doubles as a “competition” for which between six – eight works are chosen for the fourth night gala and subsequently six awards (three for choreography and three for dance) are given by a jury consisting of five distinguished, international figures from the dance world. Cass and BodySong were chosen to be presented in the gala along with seven other works from Israel, Chad, England, Portugal and Germany. And Cass was most deservedly awarded the third prize for best dancer.
This festival is yet another brilliant platform for new work to be seen, tried, tasted and responded to. It is also a wonderful arena for creators and performers to push their boundaries and experiment a little further conceptually, theatrically and physically.
Such events as this are so important for meeting and networking with other people from your medium – opening doors for new opportunities and creating connections for the future.