Christian Spuck is currently working on his production of Winterreise with Ballett Zürich. At the same time, he is preparing his first production for the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow. In the new podcast, he talks, among other things, about the choreographic freedom that Hans Zender's version of Winterreise opens up for him.
Winterreise
Ballet by Christian Spuck
Music by Hans Zender (1936-2019)
Schubert's «Winterreise». A composed interpretation
Cast
Choreography Christian Spuck
Musical director Benjamin Schneider
Stage design Rufus Didwiszus
Costumes Emma Ryott
Lighting designer Martin Gebhardt
Dramaturgy Christian Spuck and Michael Küster
Tenor Mauro Peter
Cast Dancers as PDF
Ballett Zürich
Philharmonia Zürich
Partner Ballett Zürich 
This streaming is made possible through the generous support of the Friends of Zurich Ballet.
Franz Schubert’s Winterreise, a cycle of 24 songs for voice and piano set to poems by Wilhelm Müller, is not only regarded as the zenith of Schubert’s song composition, but as the pinnacle of German art song in its entirety. In 24 snapshots, Schubert reveals, kaleidoscope-like, the mood of a lost, injured, and lonely character. Few works of art have grappled with the fragmented nature of the human experience in such a shocking way.
German composer Hans Zender arranged the cycle in 1993 with the title: Schuberts Winterreise – eine komponierte Interpretation, or a composed interpretation. Zender’s version for tenor and chamber orchestra is much more than just an orchestration. As sensitive as it is radical, it reveals the cycle’s potential to disturb, and approaches Wilhelm Müller’s poems in its own way. Zender pushes into the darkest regions of human existence. With his interpretation, he brings to light emotions that pulsate just beneath the surface in Schubert’s work, uncovering the uncanny layers in the depths of the music.
Like Hans Zender, Christian Spuck’s production, which was awarded the renowned «Prix Benois de la Danse» in 2019, concerns itself less with illustrating the external stations of the traveler’s journey. Instead, it approaches the cycle with thoroughly comprehensive abstraction. Using a mixture of large ensemble scenes and intimate solo images, Christian Spuck undertakes a journey into the innermost self. As he does so, he explores such timeless themes as love, longing, alienation, and abandonment, allowing the medium of dance to provide new perspectives on one of the greatest works of classical music. We return Christian Spuck’s ballet to the program thanks to great public demand, and in memory of Hans Zender, who died in 2019.
Christian Spuck – Winterreisen zwischen Zürich und Moskau
Impressions from the stage calls
Pressestimmen
«Fraglos, selbst enormsten künstlerischen Widrigkeiten trotzt das Ballett Zürich und steht auf dem Zenit seines Könnens.»
Tanznetz vom 17. Februar 2021
«Faszinierend, dieses Ballett Zürich! Grossartig die Bilder! Unglaublich symbolstark die Choreografie von Christian Spuck!»
NZZ am Sonntag vom 31. Oktober 2018
«The ballet ensemble, orchestra and accompanying opera tenor integrate beautifully in this theatrical work that reveals new layers of emotion embedded in Schubert’s dark masterpiece.»
Dance Europe, 12/18
Winterreise
