Vibrations
Czech National Ballet

A vibrant contemporary ballet triple bill

The encounter between the Prague and Warsaw national ballets is not a one-off trip, but a dialogue between two leading companies.

The Czech National Ballet brings to Warsaw the special triple bill Vibrations: Fly Paper Bird (Marco Goecke), Frank Bridge Variations (Hans van Manen), and Bill (Sharon Eyal, Gai Behar). The contemporary works span a broad stylistic and emotional range—from taut vibration through refined musicality to hypnotic pulse—and offer a novel perspective on the physical and emotional resonance at the heart of the evening.

The Czech National Ballet is returning to Warsaw after nearly half a century. Within a tour of Poland (1978), the company performed Romeo and Juliet at the Teatr Wielki – Opera Narodowa on 29 May (choreographed by Miroslav Kůra, directed by Petr Weigl). It also gave two performances in Łódź: on 26 May Romeo and Juliet, and on 27 May a mixed bill made up of Lachian Dances and Taras Bulba. The current visit, featuring Vibrations, links up to that historic tour and will be hosted at the home stage of the Polish National Ballet (Polski Balet Narodowy).

The evening opens with Fly Paper Bird, created by Marco Goecke in 2021 for the Vienna State Ballet. Set to the fourth (the widely popular Adagietto) and the second movements of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 5, it pursues a parallel, tense dialogue with the music, in which intimate lyricism alternates with abrupt surges of tumult. Goetze’s characteristic movement vocabulary—fluttering, trembling, jerkiness and vibration—blends with angular gesture, nervous phrasing and moments of deliberate stillness. The result is an intense, almost palpable atmosphere of vulnerability and inner tension that opens the evening with electrifying urgency.

Frank Bridge Variations remains a masterful tribute to tradition in the form of contemporary innovation, abounding in sculptural poise and refined musicality. In the wonderful 2005 ballet classic, Hans van Manen shows in all clarity what may be happening between people. He has removed all ballast to arrive at the pure essence of a relationship. Together with an immaculate musical ear, refined simplicity is Van Manen's forte. The choreography draws upon the Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge by the British composer and pianist Benjamin Britten.

The final choreography, Bill, an impressive work by Sharon Eyal and Gai Behar, gives the evening a new intensity and hypnotic pulsation. The creators’ signature choreographic idiom—marked by synchronised group movement, trance-like repetition and sharp emotional contrast—imbues the triple with a whole new impulse. Combined with Van Manen’s elegant neoclassicism and Goecke’s edgy expressionism, the production spans an even broader emotional and stylistic spectrum.

Vibrations, a new configuration of Beyond Vibrations, is an eloquent dialogue between control and freedom, structure and chaos, precision and instinct. The performance showcases the Czech National Ballet’s artistic versatility and its commitment to presenting cutting-edge choreographic voices. It invites audiences to experience the physical power, emotional depth, and creative diversity of contemporary ballet in a fresh and resonant way.