The ballet «Night on Bald Mountain» by Eric Gauthier is an artistic exploration of themes around passion, power relations and the symbiotic relationship between humans and nature. The haunting music by Modest Mussorgsky vividly and programmatically describes the meeting of witches on the mountain, and an intense world is created with the dancers and their partners.

The ensemble piece for five couples captivates with its dynamic choreography. In a neoclassical movement language, featuring women en pointe, a nuanced portrayal of the dancers unfolds. Mussorgsky's music, with its driving rhythms and melodies, draws the audience into a fascinating world where the boundaries between reality and fantasy blur.

Modest Mussorgsky described his diabolical orchestral work “A Night on Bald Mountain” as a depiction of a gathering of witches, Satan's train, Satan's glorification and the Sabbath. Drawing inspiration from a variety of sources, including Michail Hotinsky's sorcery, Baron Georgi Mengden's horror drama and Nikolai Gogol's story “St. John's Night”, Mussorgsky composed the piece in the summer of 1867. It presents the orgiastic goings-on in a realistic manner, with folksy dance themes setting the infernal pace and abrupt changes of colour and mood giving the work a collage-like character. Despite criticism from Mily Balakirev, Mussorgsky stuck to his compositional vision and later revised the piece for various projects, including the ballet opera “Mlada” and the opera “The Fair at Sorochinsky”.

ABOUT ERIC GAUTHIER
Eric Gauthier has garnered attention as the “rock star of ballet.” In 2006 he founded the Gauthier Dance//Dance Company Theaterhaus Stuttgart, which has worked with internationally renowned choreographers in recent years and thereby gained notoriety. The success of the company, which is celebrated by audiences and critics alike, is not only due to Gauthier's charismatic charm, but also to his direct way of addressing the audience and presenting dance evenings that never fail to delight.

World Premiere performed by the Bavarian Junior Ballet Munich as part of a Heinz-Bosl-Foundation Matinee at Munich’s National Theatre on 14th April 2024