Stars of the International Ballet Stage
As seen at New York City Center, New York. Photographs by Steven Pisano
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At 74, Germaine Acogny, the Paris-based, Sénégalese matriarch of contemporary African dance, still has the power to astonish, making the solo, “Mon Élue Noire” (My Black Chosen One): Sacre #2,” choreographed for her by Ballet du Nord director, Olivier Dubois in 2015 and set to Stravinsky’s musical shocker, “Le sacre du printemps,” equally electrifying—and surprisingly relevant. From the score’s hauntingly familiar solo bassoon opening to the closing chord, which Stravinsky himself disparagingly referred to as “a noise,” this dance, first choreographed by Nijinsky in 1913 for the Ballets Russes and tackled by scads of terpsichores since, jolts with a singularity not soon forgotten.
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Germaine Acogny performing “Mon Élue Noire (My Black Chosen One) sacre #2.” Photograph by Francois Stemmer
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As seen at New York City Center, New York. Photographs by Steven Pisano
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