A new take on a Viennese tradition premiered Wednesday at Halle E of the Museumsquartier, but the “Imperial Ball”-a co-production with the Grand Théâtre de Genève-left at least one critic questioning its artistic cohesion. Billed as the culmination of the Johann Strauss season, the performance reportedly blended waltzes and polkas with Japanese compositions, creating a visually striking but conceptually challenging experience.This review explores the production’s bold juxtaposition of themes and its exploration of empire,power,and mortality through dance and music.
The “Imperial Ball,” billed as the culmination of this year’s Johann Strauss season, proved more enigmatic than convincing in its Wednesday premiere at Halle E of Vienna’s Museumsquartier. The co-production with the Grand Théâtre de Genève, with further performances scheduled for Friday and Saturday, was visually opulent but lacked a cohesive narrative. The performance juxtaposed waltzes, polkas, and marches with Japanese compositions, creating a striking, if sometimes jarring, contrast.
Tim Yip, the Hong Kong set designer who won an Oscar for his work on “Tiger & Dragon,” has created a lavish setting featuring a large, heavily laden dining table positioned before a cathedral-like backdrop. Flickering candles and colorful stained-glass windows offer a wealth of visual spectacle, reminiscent of the films of Peter Greenaway, which Yip describes as “New Orientalism,” and initially feels overwhelming.
What appears more a banquet than a ball is immediately imbued with additional meaning: the ballroom also serves as a training ground for soldiers in historical uniforms practicing close combat. Soon, flashing sabers come into play. The sabre dances, set to the music of Johann Strauss rather than Aram Khachaturian, are martial in nature. Again and again, opponents playfully have their throats slit or their bodies pierced. Here, dancing and dying are one, and death, appearing as a blend of Conchita and Sissi in a black ballgown, is almost always at the center.
At times, “Imperial Ball” feels like a choreographed summary of historian Philipp Ther’s new book, which explores the relationship between power and music. The intoxicating joy of the waltz is meant to distract from the fact that a vast empire, unable to recognize the signs of the times, was stumbling toward collapse. Death occurs in the ballroom, which repeatedly transforms into a battlefield, but not to the strains of the Radetzky March – a piece that has become synonymous with the bloody suppression of emancipation and freedom movements – but to “Tik-Tak Polka” and “Unter Donner und Blitz.”
And now: All Danube Waltz!
After roughly two-thirds of the 90-minute performance, the ensemble of the Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève, which demonstrates far more skill on stage than the Vienna Chamber Orchestra under the direction of Constantin Trinks in the orchestra pit, takes its position for the Danube Waltz. Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, a multiple-time winner of the title of Choreographer of the Year, thereby recommends himself emphatically for all relevant ballet interludes around New Year’s Eve and the New Year’s Concert – and nothing more. Gender fluidity and social criticism – everything that is needed these days is present!
However, a sense of saturation soon sets in, against which Asian asceticism might be the right remedy. The purpose of the contrasts introduced by three Japanese musicians, with whom Cherkaoui has long collaborated (percussionist Tsubasa Hori, multi-instrumentalist Shogo Yoshii, and singer Kazutomi “Tsuki” Kozuki) remains unclear on stage.
“When you stop fearing unfreedom, and reconcile your spirit with it, you experience true freedom,” reads a text recited in Japanese at the conclusion, the translation of which can be found in the program. It is about “not stopping the waves, but living as a wave.” As a Danube wave, perhaps? Then: All Danube Waltz!
(By Wolfgang Huber-Lang/APA)
(S E R V I C E – “Imperial Ball,” Choreography: Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Stage and Costume Design: Tim Yip, Ensemble of the Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève, Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Musical Direction: Constantin Trinks. A production of the Grand Théâtre de Genève, Johann Strauss 2025 Vienna and the Eastman Dance Company in cooperation with ImPulsTanz and the Tanzquartier Wien. MuseumsQuartier – Halle E. Further performances on December 5 and 6, 7:30 p.m.)
