The fashion and lifestyle company Breuninger Düsseldorf and the Ballett am Rhein jointly presented an extraordinary cultural cooperation from September 8 to 9: In the curved shop windows of the iconic KöBogen, designed by New York star architect Daniel Libeskind, dancers from the Ballett am Rhein performed choreographies created especially for this event by Wun Sze Chan and Daniel Smith. Along the fifty-meter-long storefront in the Düsseldorf flagship store, the floor was covered with a special dance floor for these events, transforming it into a large dance floor for the dancers.
"Events by the Opera and Ballet on the Rhine at popular locations in the city represent our self-image of providing spontaneous, low-threshold access to music and dance. I am therefore delighted about the innovative cooperation with Breuninger as a direct neighbor," emphasizes Prof. Christoph Meyer, General Director of Deutsche Oper am Rhein. The shop windows in the Kö-Bogen, otherwise an imaginatively designed exhibition space for innovative fashion and lifestyle trends, were transformed for a total of five slots on September 8 and 9 into a stage for unexpected dance experiences while shopping.
Ballet director and chief choreographer Demis Volpi: "We want to connect with the people in the city in a very direct and surprising way. The Ballett am Rhein with its 45 dancers is part of the city's society and would like to be present beyond the stages, also to arouse the curiosity of those who have perhaps not yet come into intensive contact with dance. Wun Sze Chan and Daniel Smith are two experienced dancers and choreographers from our own ranks who have created an extraordinary ballet for this special place."
In an ambience that combines dance with urban life, company members Camilla Agraso, Paula Alves, Yoav Bosidan, Philip Handschin, Samuel López Legaspi, Marco Nestola, Dukin Seo, Courtney Skalnik, Kauan Soares, Imogen Walters and Long Zou performed. Musical accompaniment for the performances was provided by specially installed speakers inside and outside the store. "Breuninger is not just a fashion and lifestyle company - rather, we consider ourselves an integral part of the city. That's why it's also important to us to take up all the city's concerns and share the finer things in life with the Düsseldorfer:innen on a local level. Of course, this also includes the city's important art and culture scene. We want to create something in Düsseldorf that has not yet existed in this form," says Andreas Rebbelmund, Managing Director of Breuninger Düsseldorf.
The Ballett am Rhein started its new season in Düsseldorf with this event, after opening the season in Duisburg with "Giselle" the week before. The next premiere at the Düsseldorf Opera House is "Three Masters - Three Works" on October 6, with choreographies by George Balanchine, Hans van Manen and William Forsythe.
