Zaubernacht

Ballet

19 Jun

Written By Davide Levi

“Work which reminds us of the horrendous cruelty man can inflict on... fellow man is really important...one could easily ignore what went on and still goes on in other parts of the world.” — Rt Hon. Lord Clarke of Windermere

In 1920s Germany, millions live in abject poverty subjected to violent street battles. Starving children watch as mothers burn bank notes for fuel or make them into toys. The 1929 Wall Street crash and Europe-wide unemployment feed the rise of the Nazis, a decade of terror ending in war. Within these terrible upheavals, composer Kurt Weill creates his first surviving theatre-work, Zaubernacht, in 1922. In 1933, persecuted for being a socialist Jew, he flees to France first, then to the United States, creating hugely significant work for the 20th Century.

Weill spent a major part of his life under extreme threat, and rose above it through creativity. The recently discovered ballet has no full scenario, merely suggestions in the score - two children falling asleep, then waking up to the sound of their toys coming to life - leaving it open to interpretation. No contemporary context exactly matches the time in which Weill lived, but the plight of refugees in 2022 mirrors similar conditions: the rise of extremism and economic collapse resulting in flight for those fearing for their lives; the xenophobia and stigma they face from their homeland and often, the countries in which they seek refuge. The plight of children and young people who will bear the scars of trauma for decades to come.

Atelier Armonico's interpretation of Weill's Zaubernacht tells a poignant tale, suspended between dream and reality, of a group of young people who find solace in their imagination to escape the harsh realities of their circumstances. Amidst the challenges they face, they embark on a magical journey, using their creativity and fantasy as a source of hope and resilience in the face of adversity. Composed following the horrors of the Great War and the Spanish Flu Pandemic, Atelier Armonico’s production places the piece in a context where wars continue and the world struggles to recover from another pandemic. But out of this modern-day trauma, despite the terrible pain and hardship, new things can yet again be created.

We have collaborated with UK asylum seekers, particularly from Ukraine, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Iraq, Albania, Moldova, Nigeria, Ghana, fleeing from persecution where human rights are threatened. The production keeps Weill’s children’s fantasy-journey but places it in a contemporary context, perpetuating Weill’s concern for social justice.

“Whilst a full picture is to be established, 84 million (people) are reported forcibly displaced.” (UN Refugee Agency 2021)