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Graz, Bregenz

Follia! & New Earth

A case of "dancing mania" from Strasbourg has been recorded from the 16th century: Initially, a single woman danced through the streets of the city, soon more and more people joined her, and after a few days, a collective hysteria had pervaded society. At Oper Graz, Maura Morales explores the connection between ecstasy and dance. Her piece Affects premieres on 4 April, together with Broken Lines by Iratxe Ansa and Igor Bacovich, under the title: Follia! ("folly"); www.oper-graz.buehnen-graz.com. Just one day later, on 5 April, Batsheva descendant Shahar Binyamini will present the world premiere of his piece New Earth at the Bregenzer Frühling festival, as well as the Austrian premiere of his interpretation of a modern dance classic: Bolero X.

Bregenz Festspielhaus until 26 June; www.bregenzerfruehling.com

Leipzig

Die Mondprinzessin

Taketori Monogatari is a romantic Japanese fairy tale in which a childlike princess comes to Earth from the moon, is raised by a bamboo collector, and, having matured into a young woman, rejects several noble suitors before returning to her heavenly homeland. The story, created around 900, has been adapted for films, manga, and computer games; the most well-known in the West is probably the 2013 Studio Ghibli film adaptation of The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. Now comes the ballet version: In Leipzig, Martin Chaix, once a dancer at the opera house himself and now a busy choreographer, particularly in the field of classically inspired narrative ballet, is adapting the original. With The Moon Princess, Chaix tells "a story of family and home, of belonging and obligation in a challenging world."

Premiere on 12 April at the Opera House; www.oper-leipzig.de

Vienna

Pathétique & Nureyev’s Dog

At the end, he has nothing left to prove, and so Martin Schläpfer, Vienna's outgoing ballet director, will go all out once again: He will choreograph Tchaikovsky's rousing Pathétique, along with two gems from New York — Merce Cunningham's Summerspace and George Balanchine's Mozartissimo Divertimento No. 15.

Wiener Staatsoper, from 9 April; www.wiener-staatsoper.at plus: a free live stream of the premiere with a 72-hour viewing time.

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A little later, a ballerino's mascot will appear at the Volksoper: Nureyev's Dog, captured on paper by Elke Heidenreich in 2007 and now brought to life on stage by choreographer Florian Hurler. Wow — or rather, woof?

Premiere on 27 April, further performances on 2, 4, 11, 19, 22 May and 13 June; www.volksoper.at

Stuttgart

Mixed Doubles

Once again, Stuttgart is the hotspot of the dance republic, as Stuttgart Ballet and Gauthier Dance are performing a mixed doubles performance, so to speak. At the Schauspielhaus, Vittoria Girelli, Simone Repele & Sasha Riva, Marco Goecke, and Fabio Adorisio present a finely nuanced Night/Dreams, starting 17 April; www.stuttgarter-ballett.de. At the Theaterhaus, Eric Gauthier ignites FireWorks to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the theatre, under whose roof his company is based. Ten choreographers (from Mauro Bigonzetti to Stijn Celis to Sofia Nappi) contribute premiere snacks before the champagne flows. Santé!

Premiere on 30 April, further performances from 1 to 4 May; www.theaterhaus.com

Amsterdam

Lady Macbeth

Not exactly a subject that has made it to the dance stage countless times: Shakespeare's nefarious Lady Macbeth is now getting an exclusive performance in Amsterdam, choreographed by Helen Pickett. The American, alongside director and dramaturge James Bonas, will tell the story from the perspective of the woman who incites her husband to murder, then gradually drifts into madness and ultimately commits suicide. Playing the title role is the one and only Olga Smirnova. The ballerina is guaranteed to show whether the Lady is truly as manipulative and devious as theater traditionally claims.

Premiere on 5 April, further performances until 22 April; www.operaballet.nl

Gothenburg

Dusk to Dawn

A small change in the title transforms the movie into a dance evening: From Dusk Till Dawn is the title of Robert Rodriguez's 1996 horror grotesque, while Dusk to Dawn is the name given by the GöteborgsOperans Danskompani to their latest double production. Anyway: Both titles indicate that this is a celebration of a nighttime atmosphere. The Gothenburg evening will consist of Crystal Pite's Frontier, known from NDT and Ballet BC, among others, and a world premiere by Bobbi Jene Smith and Or Schraiber. I cannot love without trembling is about the power that keeps people hoping despite all adversities. "People do what they can to avoid becoming numb," is how Smith and Schraiber describe the motivation behind their piece.

Premiere on 3 April, further performances until 27 April; www.opera.se


Background photo: Contre-nature by Rachid Ouramdane with the Compagnie de Chaillot at Bregenzer Frühling; photo: Patrick Imbert