Ballet des Porcelaines
Performance
The University of Chicago presents Chicago Premiere of Ballet des Porcelaines
Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts (Theater East)
915 E 60th Street
Chicago, US 60637
March 2-3, 2022
The University of Chicago presents Chicago Premiere of Ballet des Porcelaines (or, The Teapot Prince) – A Contemporary Reinterpretation!
The Center for East Asian Studies (CEAS) at the University of Chicago has partnered with UChicago Arts, the Committee on Theater and Performance Studies (TAPS), the Office of the Provost, and the Department of Music to bring Reimagining the Ballet des Porcelaines: A Story of Magic, Desire, and Exotic Entanglement to Chicago audiences.
In 1739, a group of artists and aristocrats staged a ballet pantomime known as the Ballet des Porcelaines. It tells the story of a prince searching for his lover on a faraway island ruled by a magician, who has transformed the inhabitants into porcelain. NYU Associate Professor of Art History Meredith Martin and choreographer, arts activist, and Final Bow for Yellowface co-founder Phil Chan have revived this lost gem and updated the ballet for multiracial and contemporary audiences, mainly flipping its script and putting Asian protagonists front and center. By reimagining the production with a team consisting primarily of artists of Asian descent, they explore the meaning and relevance of historical artworks for the present, and communicate the profound sense of mystery, luxury, and seduction that porcelain held in the past.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2
7:30pm CT Welcome
7:40pm CT Performance
Dancers: Daniel Applebaum (Prince), Georgina Pazcoguin (Princess), Tyler Hanes (Sorcerer)
Musicians: Adriane Post (violin), Wendy Benner (violin), Craig Trompeter (viola da gamba), Brandon Acker (theorbo), Andrew Rosenblum (harpsichord)
8pm Reimagining the Exotic Panel with Q&A
Moderator: Julia Rhoads (UChicago)
Panelists: Phil Chan (Choreographer, Arts Activist), Georgina Pazcoguin (Dancer, Author), Irene Hsiao (Writer, Dancer, Photographer), Lisa A. Freeman (UIC)
THURSDAY, MARCH 3
7:30pm CT Welcome
7:40pm CT Performance
Dancers: Daniel Applebaum (Prince), Georgina Pazcoguin (Princess), Tyler Hanes (Sorcerer)
Musicians: Adriane Post (violin), Wendy Benner (violin), Craig Trompeter (viola da gamba), Brandon Acker (theorbo), Andrew Rosenblum (harpsichord)
8pm Porcelain, Material Culture, and Embodiment Panel with Q&A
Moderator: Wu Hung (UChicago)
Panelists: Meredith Martin (NYU), Judith Zeitlin (UChicago), Alicia Caticha (Northwestern), Ellen Huang (ArtCenter College of Design)
In addition to the performances, panel discussions and Q&A sessions, there will be a ballet masterclass (limited spots available) with Daniel Applebaum, a soloist in the New York City Ballet, on Thursday, March 3 from 3:30-5pm and the concurrent exhibition Porcelain: Material and Storytelling (February 15-March 6, 2022), curated by Wu Hung, Adjunct Curator at the Smart Museum of Art.
In partnership with
University of Chicago
For more than 125 years, the University of Chicago, one of the world’s leading research universities, inspires scholars to pursue field-defining research, while educating students in the sciences, medicine, economics, law, business, history, culture, the arts, and humanities focused on careful reading, analytical writing, and critical thinking. The University of Chicago Center in Paris is an intellectual destination for faculty, students, and alumni worldwide, and important convening point for the University’s collaboration with universities and research institutions across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. As the University’s first facility for study abroad programs, the Center in Paris serves as a model for scholarly engagement worldwide.
