Toronto, PANAMANIA // Canadian Stage
Betroffenheit
A new creation by Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young
A Kidd Pivot & Electric Company Theatre Co-Production
Co-Produced by PANAMANIA
World Premiere: July 23-25, 2015 - Canadian Stage, Tkaronto/Toronto
Unflinchingly honest. A testament to the transformative power of art.
A state of shock and bewilderment encompasses you in the wake of a disaster. A timeless space where you return again and again, repeatedly responding to the disaster long after it has subsided. Here, a crisis-management team is keeping your emergency situation alive and present, a trusted voice is urging you to come to terms with the past, and a steady supply of The Show is available for all the distraction, escape and pleasure you crave. You are the Survivor.
This is the blockbuster production that launched Olivier Award-winning Crystal Pite and convention-smashing playwright/performer Jonathon Young's pioneering collaboration; two creative forces of nature meeting each other in this unforgettable hybrid of theatre and dance.
Epic, engrossing and visually arresting, Betroffenheit touches on themes of loss, addiction and recovery, exploring what happens to a person in the wake of trauma. Five extraordinary performers provide a glossy cabaret to Young’s tragic central character using contemporary dance, comedy, drama and text.
Electric Company Theatre and Kidd Pivot gratefully acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, the Province of British Columbia, British Columbia Arts Council, BC Gaming, the City of Vancouver, the Vancouver Foundation, the Koerner Foundation, the Charles and Joan Gross Family Foundation, and countless individuals and businesses, including the 2015 Indiegogo campaign supporters
Credits
Created by
Crystal Pite and Jonathon YoungWritten by
Jonathon YoungChoreographed & Directed by
Crystal PiteComposition & Sound Design by
Owen Belton, Alessandro Juliani, and Meg RoeSet Design by
Jay Gower TaylorCostume Design by
Nancy BryantLighting Design by
Tom VisserRehearsal Direction by
Eric BeauchesneAdditional Choreography by
Bryan Arias and Cindy Salgado (salsa), David Raymond (tap)Cast
Bryan Arias (2015-2017)Cast
Christopher Hernandez (2018)Cast
David RaymondCast
Cindy SalgadoCast
Jermaine SpiveyCast
Tiffany TregarthenCast
Jonathon YoungPast Performances
DanceHouse – Vancouver
March 14 – 17, 2018Wellington, New Zealand
March 3 – 4, 2018Taipei, Taiwan
February 23 – 25, 2018The Broad Stage – Santa Monica
February 14 – 16, 2018Juli Danse – Amsterdam, Holland
July 4-5, 2017Théâtre de la ville/La Colline – Paris, France
May 29-June 2, 2017Saint Briesuc, France
May 23, 2017Chalon en Champagne, France
May 17, 2017Maison de la danse – Lyon, France
May 10-11, 2017Mercat de les flors – Barcelona, Spain
April 28-30, 2017Sadler’s Wells – London, England
April 11-12, 2017Belgrade, Serbia
April 7, 2017University of Minnesota, Northrop – Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
March 21-22, 2017University of Michigan – Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
March 17-18, 2017University of California, Berkeley; Cal Performances – Berkeley, California, USA
March 10-11, 2017Adelaide Festival – Adelaide, Australia
March 3-4, 2017Heath Ledger Theatre – Perth, Australia
Feb 23-26, 2017Sadler’s Wells – London, UK
May 31 & June 1, 2016Dublin Dance Festival – Dublin, IRL
May 24 & 25, 2016TITAS Presents – Dallas, TX
April 21 & 22, 2016White Bird – Portland, OR
March 31 – April 2, 2016On the Boards // Seattle Theatre Group – Seattle, WA
March 18 & 19, 2016Dance Victoria & Belfry Theatre, Victoria
March 11 & 12, 2016DanceHouse – Vancouver
February 25 – 27, 2016Canadian Stage – Toronto, ON
February 18 – 21, 2016National Arts Centre // NAC Dance – Ottawa, ON
February 12 & 13, 2016PANAMANIA // Canadian Stage – Toronto, ON
July 23 – 25, 2015 (Premiere)The Banff Centre (In-Progress Showings) – Banff, AB
July 16 & 17, 2015Media
“Emotionally intense and unsettling as it often is, this gripping and visually arresting production exemplifies what can happen when theatre and dance combine to achieve what neither could accomplish alone… it stands as a testament to the redemptive power of art.”
“Betroffenheit is a harrowing representation of trauma and suffering – but it’s also a stunning testament to what can be made when life undergoes a pretty strange and irreducible process – when it’s turned into art… Betroffenheit is rare and staggering. I texted friends the following morning and told them to drop everything and go see it. There is darkness on that stage that will stay with me for a long time.”
★★★★★ "In this raw and riveting drama of mental conflict, words and dance are expertly combined. But the second half of the work, in which Young exits the room for an open stage, is dominated by a section of pure dance whose imagery seems to stage the cathartic process of Young’s recuperation. Pite’s special genius is in choreographing the body language of emotion in the distorted, lifting, folding shapes of her dancers’ bodies. In the sharply specific rhythms of trauma and comfort we can read whole narratives of suffering and recovery."
ARTICLE: “Stepping into contemporary dancer Crystal Pite’s choreographed life”
ARTICLE: “Finding joy within the darkness”
ARTICLE: “Crystal Pite reflects on the trip through trauma that created Betroffenheit”
INTERVIEW: "Betroffenheit dance show, created out of tragedy, explores PTSD and recovery”
