La Mer - Scapino Ballet Rotterdam - TIP TOE Soho International Dance Festival

The oldest dance company in the Netherlands breathes new life into Claude Debussy's iconic work La Mer

When five pioneering figures from the worlds of dance, music, fashion and digital art join forces, the result is quite simply transformative. The director and choreographer Nanine Linning invited the haute couture designer Yuima Nakazato, the soprano Barbara Hannigan, the digital artist Heleen Blanken and the composer Yannis Kyriakides to collaborate on her multidisciplinary production La Mer. Together they breathe new life into Claude Debussy's iconic work La Mer, an evocative symphonic tribute to the majesty and mystery of the oceans, as well as to Sirènes, from his Nocturnes.

At the heart of this collaboration lies a powerful message about the current state of our oceans. Through hypnotic choreography, voices of breathtaking beauty, state-of-the-art digital projections and 60 unique costumes, the audience is transported to a universe where Debussy's mythical sirens, a symbol of humanity's relentless drive to obtain "faster, more and cheaper", are poetically reinterpreted through theatrical and symbolic means. These images are set against the extraordinary beauty of pristine waters and the imposing force of nature. While Debussy's compositions reflect a romantic, almost naïve, view of the sea, Linning's choreography introduces images of environmental degradation that create an unsettling tension. Her movement language is deeply expressive and draws on iconic references and images that subtly allude to the threats facing the oceans, without depicting them literally.

Founded in 1945 by Hans Snoek, Scapino Ballet Rotterdam is the oldest dance company in the Netherlands and one of the finest in the country, known for its multidisciplinary shows that combine dance, visual arts and music.