Compagnie Hervé KOUBI ~ Sol Invictus

Above: dancer Abdelghani Ferradji; photo by Nathalie Sternalski

~ Author: Oberon

Tuesday January 23rd, 2024 – Compagnie Hervé KOUBI returning to The Joyce with “Sol Invictus,” a dancework which brings elements of breakdance, martial arts, capoeira, and acrobatics together. Named after the all-powerful god of the sun, the theme of the piece is the ideal of love as the basis for peace. The original score is by Mikael Karlsson, interwoven with excerpts by Beethoven, Steve Reich, and Maxime Bodson.

Hervé Koubi’s dancers are spectacular athletes who are also artists. The dancing all evening was jaw-droppingly sensational: for seventy-five minutes, the dancers flung themselves into the air, spun on their heads, executed daredevil flips and airborne somersaults, and tossed their fellow dancers heavenward with unflagging energy and commitment. The production was splendidly lit by Lionel Buzonie, and the staging was enhanced by a huge, billowing sheet of cloth-of-gold.

Above: dancer Francesca Mazzucchi; photo by Nathalie Sternalski

While there was a narrative feeling, I could not discern a story line. In a program note, the choreographer said he wanted to make the stage “a playground of all possibilities” and that was indeed the best way for the large and wonderfully attentive audience to relate to the performance. It is impossible to describe the fantastical moves these dancers make: they have to be seen to be believed.

At one point, the nurturing light of the sun goes out; the stage is plunged into smoky darkness, and the dancers appear as silhouettes, bereft of their source of energy.  Then, In the ballet’s most stunning moment, the light slowly returns, and emerging from under the golden shroud a beautiful new sun-king is born.

The community rejoices in the renewed light, and the physical feats this inspires drew gasps from the audience. The dancers cheered each other on which shouts and whoops of joy as insane airborne combinations were daringly executed. 

When the curtain fell, the audience released their pent-up excitement, hailing the dancers with a vociferous standing ovation. Once again, Hervé Koubi has brought life to Gotham.

~ Oberon