SYLPH by Cullberg & Halla Ólafsdóttir
Premiere: 4 May 2023 at Dansens Hus/Elverket, Stockholm (SE)
In her first work for Cullberg, choreographer Halla Ólafsdóttir starts out from mythological creature the sylph, an ethereal being with the power to shape-shift. Rougher, rawer and louder than humans, the sylphs have a voice and a gigant body. They walk in and out of the ballet’s mysterious forest, dancing, whispering, rustling, knocking and chewing, like creatures or animals.
A “love-hate-relationship” with classical ballet, and a mix of “high and low culture” are in focus in Ólafsdóttir’s new work Sylph created in collaboration with composer Shida Shahabi, set and lighting designer Chrisander Brun, and costume designer Hanna Kisch.
Sylph plays with exorcism and the occult, and examines what happens choreographically when sound, costume, set design, lights and dance have equal roles.