Department
_ Biographical Information
After various engagements as an actor and first productions at GDR city theatres Jo Fabian has been an independent director and choreographer since 1987. With productions in Leipzig and at the Bauhaus-stage in Dessau he founded his reputation as the director of an unusual "theatre of moved architecture" which persistently defies the genre limits of acting, dance, performance, concert and installation. In 1994 he founded the Department Theater Ltd. In 1999 Jo Fabian received the "3. German producers' award for choreography" for his work as director and choreographer.
Jo Fabians genre transcending productions are distinguished for their highly artificial aesthetics and lavish visual imagery. He produces dance theatre as Gesamtkunstwerk. The context of images, signs, texts, sounds and movements is defined anew for each production. Fabian's method balances intellectual penetration and elementary scenic action. "Blown Away" (1999) was The startingpoint to develop a new language of movement which was based on the system of rules of writing: the alphasystem. The aim of the continuing project is the transference of texts into body language. This provides an opportunity to connect even complex meaningful structures with dance. The dancers will be able to write with their bodies and the audience learns to read anew.
_ Current Production
"LIGHTHOUSE [alphasystem 04]" deals with the reality of images. It points out something which is seldom noticed because it seems so obvious in order to make the spectator once again consciously aware of it, namely: the shadows of the figures who step into the light (or out of the video). No doubt, the shadow of a dancer on stage is just as real as her body - but what about its projection? Is the shadow eventually just an element of art, or just a more or less disagreeable by-product of the light? As in "Blown Away", Jo Fabian's dancers again work with the method of the ALPHASYSTEM which was developed by him.
"The Dark Side of Time" 2001
_ Repertory
"Lighthouse" (2000), 4 Dancers, 1 Actor, 1 Musician, 75 min., Minimum stage: 12 x 12 m
"Steinberg" (2000), 4 Actors, 5 Musicians (Rockband), 120 min., Minimum stage: 12 x 12 m
"Blown Away" (1999), 4 Dancers, 1 Actor, 1 Musician, Minimum stage: 16 x 14 m
"Die Krähe" (1998), 1 Singer, 1 Dancer, 4 Musicians, 60 min., Minimum stage: 12 x 14 m
"Fast Feet" (1998), 1 Dancer, 1 Musician, 12 min., Minimum stage: 3 x 5 m
"Alzheimer Light" (1996), 7 Actors, 1 Musician, 90 min, Minimum stage: 12 x 12 m
_ Links
www.jofabian.de