Die Nacht aus Blei

‘Die Nacht aus Blei  is no conventional ballet, but more an event combining music, painting and dance theatre […] a dream and a psychological allegory of the attempt to become an adult.’ This was choreographer William Forsythe’s description of his work at the first performance of this ballet in 1981. The Kinetic Plot is based on a story by Hanns Henny Jahnn: Matthieu is abandoned by his friend Gari in a nocturnal landscape. While he explores the surroundings, Matthieu experiences female seduction, homoeroticism and a deep wound, but ultimately discovers salvation through friendship. Von Bose’s music is not closely linked to the plot, but retains independence in its own right. The score, dominated by percussion instruments, includes quotations from old masters and is a tonal blend of classical instruments and electronic sounds on tape. In 1984, the Czech director Petr Weigl created a surrealist television film of the same name. Heinz Spoerli created the choreography and subsequently directed the Swiss premiere of the complete ballet in Basel.