The Köln Concert
Trajal Harrell with Zürich Dance Ensemble
September 28-29, 2024
What if iconic Canadian singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell opened for Keith Jarrett playing The Köln Concert—one of most famous solo jazz albums of all time?
Dancer and choreographer Trajal Harrell stages this unlikely meeting of musical geniuses in one of the most emotional works of his career.
Harrell is known for his ability to deconstruct and reimagine dance forms ranging from voguing and runway to postmodern dance and Butoh, creating a singular style infused with humor and poignancy. Returning to FringeArts, Harrell performs alongside six members of his company, the Zürich Dance Ensemble. With precise movements and deep feelings, the dancers find resonances between Michell’s lyrical tracks and Jarrett’s gospel- fused improvisations. At turns statuesque and playful, the international cast delivers a moving exploration of human vulnerability.
“ [Harrell’s] unique combination of Black queer movement and high modernist dance offers hope that some artists will not just make it through this moment of crisis, but come out stronger.“ —Frieze
Performance Information
September 28–29, 2024
September 28 at 7pm
September 29 at 3pm
Pricing
$35 Standard
$15 Students & 25-and-Unders
$2 FringeACCESS
FringeArts Member discounts & benefits available
Venue
FringeArts
140 N. Columbus Blvd.
Philadelphia, PA 19106
About the Artists
Trajal Harrell with Zürich Dance Ensemble
Trajal Harrell is one of the most important contemporary choreographers and in-house director at the Schauspielhaus Zürich. For more than 20 years, Harrell has been creating pieces for international dance- and playhouses as well as museums and art houses on various continents. However, although Trajal Harrell has been working with the same dancers for many years and also maintains long-term partnerships in global art institutions, there has not yet been a single institution until now that has been directly connected to his work and thus, neither has there been a company.
In the meantime, all this has changed. Trajal Harrell has been directing a dance company at the Zürich since 2019: The Zürich Dance Ensemble. After Meg Stuart and her company Damaged Goods had already made a brief but very impressive attempt to create a place for dance at the Zürich under the directorship of Christoph Marthaler in the early 2000s, the Schauspielhaus now has a dance company again. For the Zürich Dance Ensemble, Harrell brought New Kyd, Frances Chiaverini, Seyda Harjo Grahn, Perle Palombe, Songhay Toldon and Ondrej Vidlar to Zurich, where they have been full-time ensemble members since 2019.
The Zürich Dance Ensemble regularly tours internationally; since autumn 2021 it has been invited to Rome, Brussels and Leipzig, with further stops in Paris, New York, Berlin, Vienna, Amsterdam, Venice and many more.
Cast & Creative Team
Trajal Harrell Choreographer/Dancer
Sylvain Rausa Lighting Designer
Katinka Deecke Dramaturg
New Kyd Dancer
Rob Fordeyn Dancer
Thibault Lac Dancer
Perle Palombe Dancer
Songhay Toldon Dancer
Ondrej Vidlar Dancer
Photos (c) Reto Schmid
Supporters
Lead support is provided by the William Penn Foundation.
Festival Executive Producer
Anonymous
Festival Producer
Karol M. Wasylyshyn, Psy.D.
Festival Co-Producer
Nancy Lanham
Accessibility
Wheelchair/Limited Mobility Seating and Assistive Listening Devices.
Health & Safety
Masks are optional, vaccines are not required. More information about FringeArts COVID policies can be found here.
Philly Fringe 2024
This event is presented by FringeArts as part of the 2024 Philadelphia Fringe Festival. To browse programming curated by FringeArts, click here.
The 2024 Philadelphia Fringe Festival runs from September 5–29, and features more than 300 participating artists and companies in venues across the city. Join us all month long for audacious, adventurous, astonishing art.
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