Claire Cunningham
| Choreographed and performed by: | Claire Cunningham |
“There is so much heart and intellect, courage and integrity here: Cunningham pushes boundaries not just for disability rights, but for us all”.Herald Scotland
Unfettered dance takes to the stage of the Sala Cuarta Pared as part of the XXXIV Festival de Otoño a Primavera thanks to Scottish choreographer and dancer Claire Cunningham, who will premiere her acclaimed piece Give Me a Reason to Live in Madrid in February. Cunningham explores her physical impairment in a solo piece inspired by the Dutch medieval painter Hieronymus Bosch, a brazenly stunning piece on transcendence and struggle.
Give Me a Reason to Live explores the role of people with disabilities in Bosch's apocalyptic paintings in order to challenge our perspectives on otherness and difference. With brutal generosity and immediacy, Give Me a Reason to Live is a 40 minute dance solo wrapped in a beautiful soundtrack created by musical artist Zoë Irvine. As if it were a test of body and faith, the piece explores subjects like religion and religious art and focuses on questions like the prosecution of the body and human livelihood.
With a style packed with transcendence and motivation paired with great strength and authenticity, Give Me a Reason to Live uses Bosch's portrayal of disabilities in his most apocalyptic paintings as a departure point for delving into such issues as presence and confrontation with each other and with what is different. The result is a work of enormous impact for the audience. Contemplating Cunningham's extraordinary physical strength and her emotions stripped bare, the public accompanies the artist –who is open, freely intimate and generous– on an inner journey and reflection on empathy, sympathy and indifference toward the other.
BWV 4 Cantata: Christ lag in Todesbanden III. Versus II
| Choreographed and performed by: | Claire Cunningham |
| Lighting design: | Karsten Tinapp |
| Sound design: | Zoë Irvine |
| Additional music: | Nesciens Mater by Jean Mouton and Den Tod de J. S. Bach |
| Cello: | Matthias Herrmann |
| Costume design: | Shanti Freed |
| Mentors: | Kristin De Groot (Bosch Project) and Janice Parker (Scotland) |
| Technical producer and lighting redesign: | Gregor Knüppel |
| Executive producer: | Nadja Dias |
| Production assistant: | Sheena Khanna |
| Executive producer and distributor in Spain: | Ana Sala (IKEBANAH Artes Escénicas) |
| Produced by: | Claire Cunningham |
| Supported by: | Bosch 500 Foundation, Dance Umbrella, Comune di Bassano del Grappa, La Briqueterie / CDC du Val de Marne, D.ID Dance Identity, Festival CEMENT (NL), Dansateliers Rotterdam, The Work Room (Glasgow), Dance House (Glasgow) and //Buzzcut// |
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The Madrid premiere of Give Me a Reason to Live is brought to you in part by the British Council: |
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