Christos Papadopoulos Company

dancers: Georgios Kotsifakis, Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, Maria Bregianni, Amalia Kosma

Opus; A performance based on classical music. The word “classical” derives from the Latin word “classicus” and the Greek word “κλασικός”, and describes a composition that is produced according to the principles and ideals of the ancient Greek and Roman cultures. Classical music often describes a “superior” form of musical composition (opus) characterized by a strict structure and an artistic complexity. The thematic focus of this dance performance is to study this very structure and to present it visually on stage. The main intention is to investigate the central norms of instrumental music and how they apply in an utterly different form of art that is dance. The body becomes a visual version of the musical instrument, and the musical score becomes the physical score that dictates the choreography. Sometimes the body follows the rhythms and sometimes the melodic lines, sometimes it focuses on only one musical instrument and sometimes on two or more, in a way that offers a new code for deciphering the musical composition. One of the major characteristics of classical music is that it consists of highly complex melodies, lines and rhythms that create a sense of narration and result in our sentimental reaction. This performance does not care to elucidate the sentimental aspect of the art music and its psychological impact on the audience. On the contrary, the main endeavor is the performers to detach from the sentimental impact of a musical composition, to resist the tendency for interpretation of the music, and to consider the musical piece as sophisticated series of sounds that create a harmonic logic. It is really an attempt to investigate our automatic response to hearing music.

Christos Papadopoulos was born in Nemea 1976. Graduated from the School for New Dance Development (SNDO) of the Amsterdam School of the Arts, Holland, Bachelor of Dance – Choreography (2003) and from the Dramatic School of the National Theatre of Greece (1999). He is undergraduate of the International and European Studies Department (B.Sc.) of Panteion University of Athens. Founding member of the dance company “Lion and the Wolf”. His personal creations were performed at Onassis Cultural Center in Athens, Theatre Vidy in Lausanne, Theatre de La Ville in Paris, as well as on different stages and festivals in Dublin, Barselona, Cagliari, Sofia, Stockholm, Bassano del Grappa, Rome, Amsterdam, Darmstadt… As a performer has participated in dance projects of Dimitris Papaioannou (“2”, “Pouthena”, “Mesa”), Noema Dance Company, WEGO Dance Company, works of Robert Stain,Ria Higler, Fotis Nikolaou, Natassa Zouka , Marousso Karaleka , Saskia van de Heur, Martin van de Drift , Mariella Nestora, Vasso Giannakopoulou… Being equally interested in theatre productions has collaborated as a choreographer and movement designer with many important theatre directors. Also, he has been a member of the choreography team responsible for the opening ceremony in the European Games in Baku (2015) and opening/closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games in Athens (2004). Since 2013, he collaborates with Odeion Athinon theatre academy as an teacher of choreography, composition and improvisation. He has also taught workshops on technique, composition and improvisation in Athens, Chania, Thessaloniki, Copenhagen…