WELCOME
18th FULL MOON DANCE FESTIVAL 21-25 JULY 2009

The 2009 Full Moon dance festival focuses on displaying a rich selection of Finnish contemporary dance as leading contemporary dance artists bring their new works to the festival. The big stage will host the internationally acclaimed male choreographers Tommi Kitti and Jyrki Karttunen with their much praised group pieces Riff and Situation Room, as well as the Finnish premiere of Destruction Song by artist professor Kenneth Kvarnström, who has made a comeback as a choreographer. All of these works rely on their creators’ unique movement language and pure dance as they aspire to depict the relationship between the individual and society.

The small stage will host an original series of dance works from Finnish female choreographers. This selection of works by these dancing choreographers paints a highly interesting, bold and personal picture of women’s role in today’s society. The festival presents Liisa Pentti’s Mabel or the Queen of Bones, Johanna Tuukkanen’s Huippusuoritus - Outstanding Performance, and the premiere of A Friend of The Pianist by the multi-talented young choreographer Elina Pirinen. In addition, Danish choreographer Palle Granhoj brings her solo work, (...it’s a very big secret...), to the festival. This is a new addition to her series of solos for women, which focus on the performer’s personality. The piece, which includes both movement and singing, will be performed by the Norwegian dancer Anne Eisenseen.
In this summer’s main programme the audience gets an interesting opportunity to reflect on the impact of gender on the choice of topic and realisation.
2009 artist-in-residence is Japanese choreographer Anna, her solo piece can be seen on the same night as internationally successful Hiroaki Umeda’s new group work, which began as part of Full Moon Dance Festival’s Finnish-Japanese residence exchange programme, and this joint evening will be the climax of the 3-year collaborative work and residence exchange programme between Finland and Japan. Full Moon Dance Festival will also present performances and works by young local artists.

Pyhäjärvi and the Full Moon Dance Festival have a special significance for Finnish contemporary dance as a place to encounter contemporary dance and update one’s knowledge about its latest directions. Full Moon Dance is internationally recognized as a high-standard and exotic dance festival, which everybody who is connected with the dance field should attend at least once in their life. Welcome to Pyhäjärvi to experience the latest works by artists from Finland and abroad and nourish yourself with different courses, and you also get the chance to take part in the discussions with the artists that take place after the performances. The miracle of Pyhäjärvi is alive and kicking – thanks to the interaction with our audience.

See you at the Full Moon Dance Festival!

 

Harri Kuorelahti
Aristic director