Karlsson & Ekman: Eskapist [Blu-ray]

With the complicity of the excellent Royal Swedish Ballet, Alexander Ekman makes dreams dance in a new surprising, lyrical and cosmic choreographical piece. After the instant success of Midsummer Night’s Dream (BAC141 BAC541), exploring the density of traditional mysticism and the maze of imagination, choreographer Alexander Ekman and the Royal Swedish Ballet once again brings us on a dancing journey through the looking glass, beyond our own reality. Known for the spectacular quality of his pieces and the oneiric imagery he tends to deploy, Ekman seamlessly takes us from one unlikely situation from the next, thanks to the incredible technical maestria and versatility of the Royal Swedish Ballet dancers. ‘‘I like creating worlds that have never been seen before’’, Ekman wrote while creating Play with the Paris Opera Ballet (BAC155 BAC555) : without ever sacrificing lyrical beauty and deep contemplation to pointless incongruity, Eskapist proves once again that the theatrical stage truly is a magic place, where the world as we know it shifts shapes only to dissolve into the most poetic fantasies one could envision. Once more, Ekman has sought support from his long-term acolyte, Swedish composer Mikael Karlsson, whose entrancing music follows the wide range of styles mobilized by Ekman: sometimes downright comic and uplifting, and sometimes reflexive, deep, and ultimately cosmic.

HD recording : Royal Swedish Opera | 05/2019