In fact, his avant-garde “Cherry-brandy” has been inspired by Chekhov’s one-act play “Chant du cygne”, centering on an old actor left alone in the theater at night.

It is a multi-layered mix of choreography and drama, poetry and silence, tradition and experiment.

The performance, involving 13 actors, has been brought together by the trailblazing French choreographer of Hungarian origin – Nadj – the director of the Centre Chorégraphique National d’Orléans.

Chekhov’s story is a meditation on time, reflection and solitude.

Nadj’s approach to the timeless Russian classic, whose 150th anniversary of birth is being widely celebrated this year, is a melancholic mélange or rather a balancing act of hidden emotion and bare feelings.

image from www.josefnadj.com

It is not the first time Nadj’s performances have been showcased in Russia. Back in 2000, one of his signature acts, “Les Veilleurs”, picked up the Golden Mask award for the best foreign performance presented in Russia, while “Woyzeck” received the same award two years later.

Nadj’s childhood hobbies spanned from wrestling and accordion to soccer and chess. Meanwhile, one of his teachers in Paris later became none other than Marcel Marceau!

Modern dance, the art of acting and pantomime, improvisation skills…It seems that the multi-talented artist/choreographer/stage director has managed to synthesize perhaps all of these in his creative vision of contemporary theater.

You can have a taste of his “Cherry-brandy” on the 5th, 6th and 7th of July in Moscow or/and afterwards in St. Petersburg.

Valeria Paikova, RT