Black narcissus

In this powerful stage work, the bodies of experienced dance artists resonate together with live music!

24.10.2024

Dance House

55 min

Black Narcissus captivated its audience at its premiere at Tanssin talo in Helsinki.

Black Narcissus explores narcissism and its manifestations in human interaction, placing music and movement at the center. Performed by four dancers and four musicians, Black Narcissus features music composed for four instruments, with live performance deepening the piece into a multisensory experience.

Living in the terrain of dance theatre and contemporary dance, Black Narcissus brings to the stage the bodies of experienced dance artists, in which a lifelong dance and movement are visible. The work combines art and research. To provide a deeper exploration of the theme, Academy Professor Anssi Peräkylä contributed research perspectives from the project The Faces of Narcissism (2019–2023), which investigated how narcissistic tendencies affect social interaction.

Black Narcissus is a co-production with the Regional Dance Centre of Western Finland. The work has received support from Svenska Kulturfonden, Föreningen Konstsamfundet, the Arts Promotion Centre Finland, and the Varsinais-Suomi Fund of the Finnish Cultural Foundation.

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Choreography and direction: Marjaterttu Willman
Composition: Ulf Långbacka
Lighting design: Anne Salmi
Costume design: Aapo Siikala
Sound design: Kari Mäkiranta
Research consultant: Anssi Peräkylä

Dancers: Jonna Aaltonen, Jonna Eiskonen, Tuovi Rantala, Satu Tuittila
Musicians: Ulf Långbacka, Helmi Malmgren, Iida-Vilhelmiina Sinivalo, Mikko Väärälä

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Lataa käsiohjelma (PDF)

Why book this piece?

Black Narcissus is a powerful and distinctive dance theatre performance that examines its subject matter in a multidimensional way.

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The performance features live music played on stage by a four-member ensemble. The music is an original composition written specifically for the piece.

The dancers are experienced, distinctive, and expressive dance artists from different generations.

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Katsojien kommentteja

A work true to its serious subject matter. In a good way, there was no forced attempt to include trendy themes. Thank you, creators.

Great piece!

The interpretation of the dances, both with expressions and diverse, magnificent movements, made a great impression. Overall, very creative interpretation!!

It was truly worth hearing and seeing! Wonderfully versatile music. I have never before heard a cello capable of such colorful versatility.

Unique, strong recommendation!

A fine delve into narcissism, thank you for that. Precise examination, timing, internalization.

It's great and rare to see dance accompanied by live music! A difficult topic, but an interesting approach.

This work was something completely exceptional compared to what is currently seen in the contemporary dance field.

Choreographer Willman has her very own, strong artistic world.