TRIBUTE TO KURT JOOSS’ GREEN TABLE

Manuel Pelmuș and Frédéric Gies revisit Kurt Jooss’s seminal antiwar ballet The Green Table (1932) on the futility of diplomacy in the face of fascism and war. Their tribute—performed as a solo by Gies in reference to Jooss’s original concept—enters into a critical dialogue with the piece, engaging with its choreographic vocabulary and political urgency. The tradition of the danse macabre, where Death dances with members of all classes, plays a central role in this. Pelmuș and Gies address today’s fractured global order, where peace negotiations often serve as performances of control rather than paths to resolution.

Creation: 2025
Premiere: Sept. 18, 2025 * Graz, Austria

Concept & choreography: Frédéric Gies & Manuel Pelmuș
Performance: Frédéric Gies
Music: Fiedel
Lighting design: Thomas Zamolo
Costume: Grzegorz Matlag

Commissioned and produced by steirischer herbst ’25

With the kind support of ERSTE Foundation and Office for Contemporary Art Norway (OCA)