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Steps: Migros Culture Percentage Dance Festival

«Sphynx»
tanzmainz (DE), Rafaële Giovanola

Dance

A precise and consistently executed study of the movements involved in human locomotion. The award-winning work by the Swiss choreographer is coming to Zurich as part of the Migros Culture Percentage dance festival Steps.

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  • Tue 10/03 20:00 – 20:55

    Moving introduction to «Sphynx» at 7:15 p.m.

    Halle

    Few remaining tickets at the box office

In “Sphynx”, dance creativity meets the individual subtleties of each body on stage. Copyright: Andreas Etter

Walking, running, staggering, stumbling, dragging oneself along: what sounds like simple locomotion to walking humans becomes the central subject of investigation in Sphynx. In her award-winning choreography, Swiss choreographer Rafaële Giovanola, together with fourteen dancers from tanzmainz, explores the seemingly endless and fascinating universe of the human musculoskeletal system.

What sounds simple has a captivating pull. Sphynx is not only a study of movement, but a thoughtful declination of the locomotion of mobile humans – implemented with precision and extreme consistency.

And there is no shortage of imagination: great dance ingenuity meets the individual subtleties of each individual body on stage.

Sphynx was awarded the German Theater Prize DER FAUST in 2022. The choreographer behind this prestigious award is a familiar face at Steps: Rafaële Giovanola was already part of the festival in 2022 with her own company CocoonDance.

‘Sphynx’ is presented as part of the Migros Culture Percentage Dance Festival Steps.

Moving introduction

At 7:15 p.m., there will be a ‘moving introduction’ with a dancer from Tanzmainz in Stall6. The audience is invited to experience the piece in a physical way. In this format, simple movement sequences from the piece will be taught, for example, or central themes will be brought to life through improvisation. The introduction will last approximately 15 minutes.

Information on accessibility and language

  • Stepless access

  • For ages 14 and up

  • The moving introduction will be held in spoken German with translation into sign language (DSGS). If you have any other accessibility requirements, please contact steps@mgb.ch.

  • The piece Sphynx shows how people can move.

    Rafaële Giovanola and 14 dancers make this visible.

    The movements are very different.

    The piece is precise and imaginative.

    Sphynx won the DER FAUST theatre award in 2022.

    Rafaële Giovanola has participated in the Steps festival before.

  • Choreography:
    Rafaële Giovanola
    Choreographic assistance:
    Álvaro Esteban, Bärbel Stenzenberger
    Dancers:
    N.N.
    Dramaturgy:
    Rainald Endrass
    Costume Design:
    Mathilde Grebot
    Composition:
    Tiago Cerqueira
    Lightning Design:
    Wil Frikken
    Rehearsal director:
    Simone Deriu
    Director of tanzmainz:
    Honne Dohrmann
    Production manager:
    Lisa Besser
    Dance management and tour coordination:
    Hannah Meyer Scharenberg
    Assistant dance director:
    Julia Kraus
    Stage and sound installation on tour:
    Luka Curk
    Lighting installation on tour:
    Dominik Hager
    Tour manager:
    Matthew Tusa
    A Production by:
    Staatstheater Mainz

  • Swiss choreographer Rafaële Giovanola was born in the USA and danced in various companies, including William Forsythe's Frankfurt Ballet. In 2000, she founded CocoonDance. Since its founding, she produced fifty full-length evenings that have toured through five continents and been invited to showcase festivals in Germany and Switzerland such as the Danceplattform Germany: 2018/2020, STEPS: 2022 ANTIGEL: 2020/2022. TANZPLATTFORM DEUTSCHLAND in 2018 and 2020 or STEPS in 2022 and ANTIGEL Since 2010 she is working in Switzerland at the Théâtre du Crochetan where she is artiste associée since 2020. Lately the commissioned production SPHYNX with tanzmainz has been nominated for the FAUST 2022. Since 2016 she elaborated a working method strongly focused on improvisation and reflection on the body itself. And create together with her ensemble the MoveApp. The search of the “unthrough body” led Rafaële Giovanola and her ensemble to an expanded understanding of the body and movement.

Copyright: Andreas Etter

Copyright: Andreas Etter

In “Sphynx”, dance creativity meets the individual subtleties of each body on stage. Copyright: Andreas Etter

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