Jonah Bokaer: Other Myths

Other Myths is a site-specific creation by the internationally renowned dancer and choreographer Jonah Bokaer. This performance was created specifically for the space of the Ludwig Museum and it is realised in the international collaboration of five dancers of Croatian, Hungarian, Austrian and Slovenian nationality.
The Beyond Front@/Bridging New Territories is a collaboration between dance organizations in Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary as well as other associated partners from: Greece, Serbia, Slovakia, Portugal, and Italy. The project aims to promote interest for contemporary dance among audiences while mobilising dancers and choreographers across Europe.

As a part of this program the dancers of Other Myths are selected through an international call. During the two weeks of the project the selected five dancers will be able to work with the acknowledged choreographer of museum spaces getting a first hand experience from Jonah Bokaer himself. The colaboration does not end after the premier as the choreography will be performed in Zagreb as well.

In 2002 Jonah Bokaer began to stage his choreography in visual gallery spaces. Other Myths will be performed in a museum setting as well. The concept of the performance is based on the exhibiton ‘Hantai’ where Other Myths takes place.

The Ludwig Museum - Museum of Contemporary Art will present the first major exhibition of Simon Hantai in Hungary. The large-scale retrospective surveys the key aspects and periods within the oeuvre of the internationally renowned artist of Hungarian origin, from his early paintings executed in Hungary, through to his final works.

Jonah Bokaer

Born to Tunisian and American parents in Ithaca, NY, Jonah Bokaer is an international choreographer, media artist, and artspace developer. His work, which integrates choreography with digital media, is often the result of his cross-disciplinary collaborations with artists and architects.

The author of 33 choreographies, ten videos, three motion capture works, three interactive installations, two mobile applications, and one film, Bokaer’s work been produced throughout theaters in Belgium, Canada, Cuba, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, India, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Recent performances include two seasons at the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival (2011-2012), the Festival d’Avignon in France, Théâtre de la Cité Internationale in Paris, and the BAM Next Wave Festival, for which he was commissioned for the inauguration of BAM Fisher, with artist Anthony McCall. Upcoming works include a commission from the Ludwig Museum of Budapest, BAM Next Wave Festival, and the inauguration of Frank Gehry's newly designed LVMH Foundation in Paris.

Choreography

Beginning in 2002, Jonah Bokaer began to stage his choreography in visual gallery spaces in New York City, and abroad. What this allowed him was a series of discoveries about the visual proximity between the dancer and the viewer, which is made possible in visual spaces – as opposed to proscenium theatres. The minimal economy of technical elements available, as well as the relatively bare performance conditions provided him a source of both inspiration, and restraint.

In 2014, in preparation for a commission from the Ludwig Museum of Budapest, Jonah Bokaer plans to continue this line of inquiry, with five performers from different european countries including his two longtime collaborators, Szabolcs Pataki, and Irena Misirlic´. Three additional performers are invited to submit a letter or statement of interest, and after selection, their mutual participation will unfold together in Budapest.
Each of the 5 performers are meant to bring a Carpathian Myth to the production, which will be researched, explored, and discussed during the creation period. Every dancer’s own myth will be included equally into the Other Myths.

Choreography and Direction: Jonah Bokaer (USA) and the dancers: Pataki Szabolcs, Karolina Šuša (HR), Evin Hadžialjević (SLO), Katharina Illnar (A), Mikó Dávid

Parntners: Beyond Front@/Bridging New Territories, Croatian Institue for Movement and Dance (HR), Flota (SLO), Pro Progressione (HU), Dance Identity (A), Ludwig Múzeum – Kortárs Művészeti Múzeum

Program ticket: HUF 2 200

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