In “Artifact”, William Forsythe dissects the vocabulary of classical ballet and reassembles individual movements into a new language. By doing so, he modifies the sequences of movements of classical ballet. He skips individual sections, whilst constructing new arrangements. Forsythe’s perception of dance is not a story of movements, but a story of relations: “In my work, relations are new. The individual movements remain the same in every ballet, and have always been so.” It is about the history of ballet as an art form, about exhausting limits and searching for new, contemporary movements. Considered to be work in progress, “Artifact” has witnessed diverse mutations since its premiere in 1984. The audience can therefore look forward to how dancers of the Zurich Ballet stand up to the challenge. 

WITH Margot Kazimirska (Piano), Kate Strong (Actress / Actrice), Nicholas Champion (Actor / Acteur) , Zürcher Ballett CHOREOGRAPHY William Forsythe MUSIC Johann Sebastian Bach, Ferruccio Busoni, Eva Crossman-Hecht SET DESIGN William Forsythe PHOTO Peter Schnetz WORLD PREMIERE Opernhaus Frankfurt/Main 12/1984 PREMIERE Opernhaus Zürich 08/2008 SUPPORT Davidoff, UBS - Partner des Zürcher Balletts

Heinz Spoerlis Zürcher Ballet 
Under the direction of Heinz Spoerli, 40 dancers from around the world form Switzerland’s largest ballet company, a permanent ensemble of the Zurich Opera House. Together with Heinz Spoerli, the Zurich Ballet has managed to thrill an ever-growing audience not just in Switzerland, but also worldwide.