Context. Diana Vishneva is an annual international festival of modern choreography, held since 2013 under the direction of its founder and art director, prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theater Diana Vishneva. The program of the festival includes performances by world-class choreographers and dance companies, productions by young Russian choreographers, educational events and a film program.
The first festival Context. Diana Vishneva was held from 4 to 6 December 2013 in Moscow. Diana VishnevaâÂÂs performance in a duet with Marcelo Gomes, a premiere of the American Ballet Theatre, became the key event of the festival. They performed Vertigo choreographed by Mauro Bigonzetti to the music of Shostakovich and Nuages by Jià ÂàKylián to the music of Claude Debussy. The first festival was presented by productions of Richard Alston Dance Company (UK), Suzanne Dellal Center for Dance and Theater (Israel), Introdans (Netherlands), Gauthier Dance (Germany), Korzo Productions (Netherlands)
The second Context festival was held in Moscow from November 26 to 29, 2014. It was four days longer than in 2013. The participants in the international program were: Nederlands Dans Theater [NDT II] (Netherlands), Gauthier Dance (Germany), Ate9 dANCE cOMPANY (United States), Ballet Preljocaj (France), Nanine Linning / (Netherlands).
Diana Vishneva performed almost in all the festivalâÂÂs productions: âÂÂThe Old Man and Meâ by Hans van Manen (partner â Erik Gautier), Subject of Change by Sol León & Paul Lightfoot (partner â ), Tué by Marco Goecke.
The third festival, dedicated to the memory of Maya Plisetskaya, was held in Moscow from November 24 to November 28, 2015. Such venues as Mossovet Theater, , Gogol Center and hosted more than 30 events of the festival which lasted for five days.
That year the Martha Graham Dance Company, established by one of the founders of modern dance Martha Graham, was invited to Russia for the first time by the festival. The international program of the festival was presented by Introdans (Netherlands), Brenda Angiel Aerial Dance Company (Argentina) and an Israeli choreographer Itzik Galili. Diana Vishneva made her debut in the production of Live by Hans van Manen.
In 2016 the festival Context expanded its geography and was held from November 14 to 19 in Moscow and St. Petersburg, where the gala closing took place at the historical stage of the Mariinsky Theater. The festival included three programs in the theater plus the film and the educational programs.
The key event of the gala evenings of the festival was the performance of Diana Vishneva and Aurélie Dupont, the artistic director of the Paris Opera Ballet Company. They performed the production of choreographer Ohad Naharin B/olero to the music of Maurice Ravel in the arrangement of Isao Tomita.
The participants of the international program were Béjart Ballet (Switzerland), Tanz Luzerner Theater (Switzerland), Alonzo King LINES Ballet (USA), Introdans (Netherlands).
In 2017, the fifth festival was held from November 12 to 19. In the anniversary year Goyo Montero, the head and chief ballet master of , created and presented the Asunder ballet to Wagner's music (arranged by Uri Caine), Chopin (adapted by Owen Belton) and Belton's original music, performed by the best dancers of the Perm Opera and Ballet Theatre. The festival expanded its educational program and launched a series of lectures âÂÂWhat is modern dance?â developed together with and Sberbank.
Alessandra Ferri (Italy) and Herman Cornejo (Argentina), Gauthier Dance / Dance Company Theaterhaus Stuttgart (Germany), Company Wayne McGregor (United Kingdom), Bodytraffic (USA), Jeanette Delgado, Gonzalo Garcia (USA, Spain), Drew Jacoby and Matt Foley (USA), Dutch National Ballet participated in the international programme.
The competition for young choreographers âÂÂContextâ was created to support and develop modern choreography in Russia.
Since 2013, in spring the festival starts accepting applications for the festivalâÂÂs competition of young choreographers. Students of dance schools, choreographic colleges and institutes as well as choreographers who have already created several productions are invited to take part. At the initial stage of the contest, in summer, the curator of the competition Anastasia Yatsenko and art director of the festival Diana Vishneva select several finalists. In autumn, during the festival, the finalists of the Contest showcase their works to the general audience in Moscow and St. Petersburg, as well as to the international jury.
The winners of the competition of young choreographers from 2013 to 2017:
Every year the festival presents a film program, during which documentary films about famous choreographers, performers and dance companies are shown at the .
In 2013, the Documentary Film Center hosted screenings of the films âÂÂPina: Dance of Passion 3Dâ by Wim Wenders, as well as Car Men and âÂÂBetween the Input and Outputâ by Boris Paval Konen.
One of the central films of the festivalâÂÂs film program in 2014 was âÂÂBallet boysâ directed by Kevin Elvebak, a film about the difficult way of becoming the students of the ballet school. âÂÂBefore We Goâ by George Leon, âÂÂForward (Avant)â by Juan Alvarez Neme, and âÂÂEverything is possibleâ (Los posibles) by Santiago Mitre were also in the program.
Within the framework of the film program in 2015, some of the movies of the San Francisco Dance Film Festival were shown: âÂÂRare Birdsâ by T.M. Rives, âÂÂNever Stopâ by Ron Honsa, âÂÂThe Man Behind the Scenesâ by Kersti Grunditz, âÂÂThe Ballet Classesâ by Mary Jane Doherty, as well as the Russian premiere of Andrei Severny's film âÂÂGravitation: Variations in Time and Spaceâ with Diana Vishneva in the leading role.
During the 2016 festival there were shown Reset by Thierry Demaizière and Alban Teurlai, âÂÂRudolph Nureyev - Dance to Freedomâ by Richard Curson Smith, âÂÂAlonzo King, the Poet of Danceâ by Marita Stoker, âÂÂSasha Waltz: A Portraitâ by Brigitte Kramer, âÂÂMr. Gagaâ by Tomer Heymann and âÂÂThe choreographer Mats Ekâ by Andreas Söderberg.
A documentary âÂÂL'Opéra de Parisâ by a Swiss director Jean-Stéphane Bron was first shown in Russia in 2017, within the framework of the festivalâÂÂs film program. The film got the âÂÂBest Documentaryâ award at the XXXIX Moscow International Film Festival. Other films shown in 2017 were âÂÂA BallerinaâÂÂs Taleâ by Nelson George, 'Anatomy of a Male Ballet Dancer' by David Barba and Jamie Pellerito, âÂÂBobbi Jeneâ by Elvira Lind, âÂÂIngmar Bergman Through The Choreographer's Eyeâ by Ingmar Bergman Jr. and Marie-Louise Sid-Sylwander, âÂÂMaiko: Dancing Childâ by àse Svenheim Drivenes and âÂÂIn Californiaâ by Charles Redon.
Educational program is an important part of the festival, it includes meetings with leading choreographers, lectures, master classes and a series of workshops.
Since 2013 there have been lectures by a theatrical and literary critic and a ballet critic and theoretician Leila Guchmazov, as well as creative masterclasses of a Swedish choreographer Mats Ek, a Russian choreographer Alexei Ratmansky and others.
In 2016 the festival launched specialized courses of workshops: there were the âÂÂLaboratory of Dance Criticismâ for the critics-to-be by Vita Khlopova, the researcher of contemporary dance and the founder of the portal No fixed points, and âÂÂTheatrical shootingâ workshop by Mark Olich [29] for the photographers.
In 2017, together with the British Council and the dance company Studio Wayne McGregor, the Context Festival launched a two-day intensive course (November 13âÂÂ14) for choreographers from all over Russia. Following the results of the work of the Mind and Movement laboratory, seven choreographers received a grant from Studio Wayne McGregor and the British Council to create their own choreographic work using the method of British choreographer Wayne McGregor. Their names were announced In January 2018.
Art director Diana Vishneva is responsible for the creative plans of Context: she makes out an international program, selects participants for the contest of young choreographers Context Lab, and drafts the educational and film programs. All other issues are managed by the Festival's General Director Sofya Kapkova and her team.