In Shakespeare’s works, love cannot exist without jealousy, malice, or hatred. However, with Shakespeare & Love, Mannheim’s ballet director Stephan Thoss focuses primarily on longing, passion, and grief. Inspired by Plato’s myth of the spherical being—according to which the gods tore an originally round, four-legged, four-armed, two-headed creature apart into man and woman—the dance evokes the quest for lost wholeness.
Rather than focusing on plot, Thoss is primarily interested in individual characters and motifs. In the first part, he works through six plays and a prologue—comprising 13 scenes—in the span of 75 minutes; it is a whirlwind tour where it is not always easy to tell which drama is currently unfolding. Othello is explored in particular detail, almost like a miniature narrative ...
