When the pandemic started, dance partners Maria Kochetkova and Daniil Simkin found themselves in different countries and unable to dance together. The question was how to dance together while apart. Inspired by silent movies, Diorama unfolds as a bizarre chase after oneself while contending with the distance that exists between artist and audience; artist and muse; artist and life.
Diorama was filmed in both the vast dunes of Skagen, Denmark and inside the empty Deutsche Oper in Berlin with two separate film crews. The film is also a collaboration with Kronos Quartet who were confined and unable to perform just like Maria and Daniil. The two pieces of music that are performed by Kronos Quartet in the film were created for their 50 for the Future — a project in which Kronos Quartet commissioned 50 composers to create works that would be made available online for musicians to download and play for free.
Director Statement
Additional Credits:
Dancers: Maria Kochetkova & Daniil Simkin | Music: Nicole Lizée and Jlin | Music performed by: Kronos Quartet | Director & Choreographer: Sebastian Kloborg | Berlin, Germany Production | DOP: Caspar Hees | Production: Fabian Doering | Skagen, Denmark Production | DOP & Production: Tom Mckenzie | Original Concept & Producer: Mariam Medvedeva | Costumes: Lucas Meyer-Leclère | Editing: Tom McKenzie | Producer: Edward King
A cooperation with Staatsballett Berlin