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Amsterdam Author Benutzer:AlterVista Licence CC BY-SA 3,0 Source Wikimedia Commons |
On 27 Oct 2025, the city of Amsterdam will celebrate the 750th anniversary of its foundation. Just now, it is in the middle of a year-long festival called "Amsterdam 750" which started on 27 Oct 2024. As part of the festival, the Dutch National Ballet is presenting a programme of dance called "Heel Amsterdam Danst" which ranges from free performances in the city's districts to a spectacular finale in the Music Theatre.
The performance in the Music Theatre is called "Let Amsterdam Dance". According to the Dutch National Ballet's website:
"From each of Amsterdam’s eight districts, a group of residents—of all ages and backgrounds, with or without dance experience—will learn a section of In C, a ballet by Sasha Waltz that blends improvisation with choreography. Each group will first present its own unique performance at a festive (and free!) event in their district. Then, on 15 June, all groups will unite for one spectacular final performance on the stage of Dutch National Opera & Ballet."
Sasha Waltz is a German dancer and choreographer, and the founder of the company Sasha Waltz & Guests.
One of the company's works is In C, and it is easier for them than me to explain the piece in their own words in the YouTube video »In C« by Sasha Waltz & Guests - about the project. There is more information in The Cosmos of »In C« on the company's website. The Dutch National Ballet adds:
"Sasha Waltz’s In C consists of 53 choreographic ‘figures’ and gives the dancers both the freedom and the responsibility to experiment with them. All dancers start at figure 1 and end at figure 53, but they may repeat any phrase as often as they like, as long as they don’t drift more than a few phrases apart from each other. Waltz: “As a result, every performance is different, and each dancer is also a choreographer at the same time.”
The Dutch National Ballet also states that In C earned Sasha Waltz the Deutscher Tanzpreis, which is Germany's most prestigious dance award.
The score was composed by the US composer Terry Riley. Wikipedia describes it as "one of the most successful works by an American composer and a seminal example of minimalism." When one considers the sheer number of distinguished American composers from Bernstein to Copland, that is saying something. Designs are by Jasmin Lepore. Of course, the choreography is by Sasha Waltz.
I have spent many pleasant days in Amsterdam, mostly at the Music Theatre but also at its other auditoriums, museums, historic buildings and restaurants. I wish all its residents, and in particular the National Ballet a happy 750th anniversary.