The Rite of Spring Concert and Dance
[Date] 24 – 25 June 25 2024 | 19.30
[Admission] Free of charge
* Pre-registration needed
[Venue] Small Hall at Thailand Cultural Centre
The Rite of Spring Concert and Dance, directed by Pichet Klunchun, is a collaborative performance featuring pianists Tamayo Ikeda and Gwendal Giguelay alongside the Thai dance troupe "Pichet Klunchun Dance Company." This project is co-organized by the Pichet Klunchun Dance Company, Ambassade de France en Thaïlande, the Japan Foundation, Bangkok, Office of Contemporary Art and Culture and Department of Cultural Promotion Ministry of Culture with support from Siam Music Yamaha, Mekhong, Koh-Kae and Baanlaesuan (Media Partner).
The event begins with a traditional Thai dance (Khon), followed by a French piano piece, and culminates in a joint choreography around The Rite of Spring. The dance is directed by Pichet Klunchun.
Khon, Thai masked dance theatre, is a traditional performing art that combines
musical, vocal, literary, choreographic, ritual and crafted elements. Khon performance is always praised by its graceful dance movements, skilled vocal and instrumental presentations, and dazzlingly glittering costumes. Khon dance depicts scenes of “Ramayana” the story of “Rama"- the incarnation of Vishnu who brings order and justice to the world. Many episodes tell the story of Rama's life including his journey through the forest, his monkey army, and his battles against the army of “Thosakan”, the demon king. In Thai traditional culture and history, khon was strictly performed in the royal and princely courts by the master Thai classical dancers.
Takemitsu, a self-taught composer born in 1930 in Tokyo, was discovered by Igor Stravinsky during his visit to Japan, who helped him gain worldwide recognition. During his visit to Chicago, Takemitsu encountered the painting ‘Les Yeux Clos’ by the French painter Odilon Redon, which inspired him to compose a piece of the same name. It evokes the union of the concepts of time and space, translated into Japanese by the word ‘MA’.
Claude Debussy's Epigraphes antiques are six pieces for piano four hands composed between July 1914 and 1915. Debussy initially intended to use these epigraphes antiques as a suite for orchestra. The piano writing successively evokes the flute, the harp and the crotales (ancient cymbals). He plays with atonality, thus blurring the tonal feeling and sometimes evoking Stravinsky.
The Rite of Spring is a ballet composed by Igor Stravinsky. The work was conceived as a kind of sacred ceremony, presenting a community that sacrifices one of its own, a young woman, to glorify the divinity of Spring. The Rite is considered a major work of modernity in both dance and music.
The choreography of The Rite of Spring will be imagined and worked on by Pichet Klunchun Dance Company inspired by the story of Sita's Trial by the Fire from Ramayana Epic.
