BERLIN Intendant of Staatsballett Berlin and choreographer Christian Spuck brings his Zurich production of Winterreise to the premiere, which was honored in 2019 with the Prix Benois de la Danse and which he has now restaged with the Berlin Ensemble. Premiere at the Staatsoper Unter den Linder, 11 May 2025.

Franz Schubert's Winterreise, a cycle of 24 songs for voice and piano set to poems by Wilhelm Müller, is regarded as the pinnacle of German art song. The German composer Hans Zender reworked the cycle under the title: Schubert's Winterreise – a composed interpretation for tenor and small orchestra, revealing the cycle's potential for disturbance.

Much like Hans Zender, Christian Spuck's approach in his staging is less about depicting the external stages of the traveler's journey and more about engaging with the cycle through expansive abstraction. In his interpretation, Christian Spuck abstracts the cycle and embarks on a journey into the inner world of the individual. Through a blend of large ensemble scenes and intimate solo images, he explores themes such as longing, alienation, and abandonment, offering a new perspective on this masterpiece through the expressive power of dance.

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