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NORTH AMERICAN PREMIERE
“To say Holzinger’s work isn’t for the fainthearted is to undersell it somewhat … It’s not just provocative, it’s a deliberate affront … It is also, in the most surprising way, thoughtful, hilarious and occasionally very beautiful. It takes a serious artist to navigate so many modes and keep the audience on side.” – The Guardian
ABOUT THE WORK
Prepare to experience a contemporary masterpiece that defies conventions and reimagines the art of movement. Florentina Holzinger’s TANZ is a breathtaking fusion of classical ballet, raw physicality, and high-octane performance. Known for her fearless and unorthodox approach, Holzinger invites audiences into a realm where discipline meets chaos and elegance intertwines with power.
Featuring an all-female cast of eleven performers ages thirty to over eighty from various dance backgrounds, and set against a backdrop of theatrical spectacle, TANZ delves deep into the limits of the human body, exploring themes of strength, vulnerability, and the relentless pursuit of perfection. This daring and unapologetic work is as much a celebration of dance as it is a challenge to its traditions. Expect the unexpected, as each moment brims with intensity, humor, and awe-inspiring energy.
PRODUCTION GUIDANCE
Please note that the performance contains strobe lights, explicit nudity, blood, needles and hooks, and self-harming body acts.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Florentina Holzinger studied choreography at the School for New Dance Development (SNDO) at the Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten, Amsterdam. Her diploma solo Silk won the Prix Jardin d’Europe at the lmPulsTanz Festival 2012. She collaborated with Vincent Riebeek on a trilogy of pieces between 2011 and 2015. While still touring worldwide, TANZ (2019) won several awards, including the Austrian theatre prize “Nestroy” in the category “Best Direction”. For the Ruhrtriennale in 2021, Holzinger created her first large-scale work, A Divine Comedy. Her most recent creation, Ophelia’s Got Talent (2022), was created as an artist-in-residence at the Volksbühne in Berlin. Her first opera project, SANCTA premiered in 2024. In the same year, she starred her first leading role on the cinema screens in the movie MOND, directed by Kurwin Ayub, which won the Special Jury Prize at the Locarno Film Festival.
CREATIVE CREDITS
Concept, performance, choreography: Florentina Holzinger
Performance by and with: Renée Copraij, Beatrice Cordua, Sophie Duncan, Lucifire, Annina Machaz, Suzn Pasyon, Steffi Wieser, Veronica Thompson, Jessyca R. Hauser, Florentina Holzinger, Xana Novais
Video design, Live camera: Josefin Arnell, Jessyca R. Hauser
Sound design, Live sound: Stefan Schneider
Light design, Technical director: Anne Meeussen
Stage design: Nikola Knezevic
Stage assistant: Camilla Smolders
Technical assistant: Koen Vanneste
Dramaturgy: Renée Copraij, Sara Ostertag
Coaching: Ghani Minne, Dave Tusk
Music coach: Almut Lustig
Outside eye: Michele Rizzo, Fernando Belfiore
Theory, research: Anna Leon
Costume advisor, tailor: Mael Blau
Prosthetic, mask: Students of Wigs, Make-up and Special Make-up Effects for Stage and Screen, Theaterakademie August Everding (Munich), Marianne Meinl
Stunt support: Haeger Stunt & Wireworks
Stunt instructors: Stunt Cloud GmbH (Leo Plank, Phong Giang, Sandra Barger)
Management & International Distribution: Katharina Wallisch & Giulia Messia – neon lobster
A production by: SPIRIT
Co-produced by: Tanzquartier Wien (Vienna – AT), Spring Festival (Utrecht – NL), Theatre Rotterdam (Rotterdam – NL), Mousonturm (Frankfurt – DE), Arsenic (Lausanne – CH), Münchner Kammerspiele (Munich – DE), Take Me Somewhere (Glasgow – UK), Beursschouwburg (Brussels, BE) deSingel (Antwerp – BE), Sophiensaele (Berlin – DE), Frascati Productions (Amsterdam -NL), Theater im Pumpenhaus (Muenster – DE), asphalt Festival (Düsseldorf – DE)
Supported by: O Espaço do Tempo (PT), Fondation LUMA (FR) and De Châtel Award (NL)
Thanks to: CAMPO Gent, ImPulsTanz – Vienna International Dance Festival, Eva Beresin, Stefanie Leitner, Tanz-Archiv MUK Wien, Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie, Mochi Catering Vienna, Andres Stirn
Funded by: Cultural Department of the City of Vienna, Arts and Culture Division of the Federal Chancellery of Austria, Performing Arts Fund NL and Norma fonds NL
With the support of the: Republic Austria Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sport, Section IV – Arts and Culture
RUN TIME
Approximately 2 hours and 10 minutes with no intermission.
SUPPORT
This project is made possible in part with support from the Harkness Foundation for Dance and the Austrian Consulate General New York.
NYU Skirball’s programs are made possible in part with support from the National Endowment for the Arts; the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature; and the Howard Gilman Foundation; Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels; Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater; Collins Building Services; Harkness Foundation for Dance; Villa Albertine; General Delegation of the Government of Flanders to the USA; Goethe Institut; Austrian Consulate General New York; Marta Heflin Foundation; as well as our valued donors through memberships, commissioning, and Allies for Arts Access Fund support.