On stage, only white planks remain – an austerity that can become a classroom, a checkpoint, a banquet hall, or a drifting raft: it is the raw material with which Maxine Doyle constructs Hubris, created for sixteen student dancers at the College.
The title draws on the ancient Greek concept of hubris, the arrogance of those who defy the limits set by gods or other humans, and applies it to the architecture of power in the contemporary world. Trained with a master’s degree in choreography at London’s Laban Centre, Doyle has been the choreographer and co-artistic director of Punchdrunk since 2002, with which she has created immersive productions such as Sleep No More and, more recently, The Burnt City. In recent years she has also collaborated with visual artist Es Devlin on large-scale installations such as Salamander, bringing into dance the same attention to space and architecture that defines her theatrical work.
The scenography by Livi Vaughan and the choreography by Maxine Doyle transform the white planks into contested territories, vessels, tentacular spaces: a stage-continent where power is performed, challenged, and ultimately dismantled piece by piece. Lighting by Yuka Hisamatsu sculpts the space with near-surgical precision, stretching the dancers’ shadows until they become threats or autonomous presences.
26 July h. 6 pm
27 July h. 9 pm
Teatro alle Tese
