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Mark Morris Dance Group with Cal Performances, Berkley; Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Chicago; Hopkins Center for the Arts; The Kennedy Center; Krannert Center for the Performing Arts at Illinois; Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts; Sadler's Wells, and the University of Washington World Series
This new work is set to a chamber arrangement of Azerbaijani composer Uzeyir Hajibeyov’s 1908 opera, Layla and Majnun, the first in the Muslim world. Based on the 7th century Arabian tale, it features revered mugham singers Alim and Fargana Qasimov, the Mark Morris Dance Group and the Silk Road Ensemble sharing the stage designed by Howard Hodgkin. The work explores the themes of love, madness and mysticism through Morris’ musical choreography and the profound depth of sorrow and ecstasy of the mugham style of improvisatory song. Though the story has been reinterpreted in countless poems, paintings, plays, songs and films, an adaptation of this scale has never been presented in the West.
60-70 minutes (no intermission)
16 dancers, 10 instrumentalists, and 2 vocalists
September 2016
Zellerbach Hall, Cal Performances Berkley
$195,000 - $245,000 all-inclusive per week
We are seeking international commissioning partners to join at a minimum of $50,000
