UK theatre & dance |NZ International Arts Festival

..Any production from Peter Brook, one of our greatest modern [UK] directors, is sure to be a wonder to behold.” The London Times

“Britain’s greatest director has pulled off one of his most densely spiritual creations to date.”
The Financial Times (UK)

Legendary theatre director Peter Brook is currently in rehearsal with his latest work Eleven and Twelve ahead of its world premiere in Paris at the end of November, then subsequent tour to Poland and London then direct to the New Zealand International Arts Festival in March.

“It is hard to imagine that New Zealand has not yet seen a production from Peter Brook, one of the finest directors and innovators of stage and screen. It is indeed a privilege to bring his latest work to these shores,” says Lissa Twomey, Artistic Director of the New Zealand International Arts Festival.
Eleven and Twelve is based on the true story of Sufi mystic Tierno Bokar, written by Amadou Hampaté Bâ about his real life teacher. French-ruled Africa in the 1930s is shaken then torn apart by colonialism and internal strife. A tiny disagreement over the meaning of the number eleven as opposed to the number twelve results in a series of tragic events that link a small African village to the highest political decision of the Second World War.

Secondly, direct from the original Shaolin Temple in China, Shaolin warrior monks perform the breathtaking dance work Sutra by of one of Europe’s most exciting choreographer-dancers, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, in its only Australasian performances at the New Zealand International Arts Festival next year.

Sutra is inspired by the monks’ skill, strength and spirituality, and Cherkaoui follows his life-long exploration of the philosophy and faith behind the Shaolin tradition, its relationship with Kung-Fu, and its position within a contemporary context. Cherkaoui has collaborated closely with Turner Prize-winning artist Antony Gormley, whose stark set design consists of 21 wooden boxes that continually reconfigure throughout the performance, becoming solemn pillars, a vast ocean, a maze, stacked dormitory beds or the opening petals of a lotus flower.

Sutra is set to an original score by Polish composer Szymon Brz?ska that is played live during the performance with piano, percussion and strings.

“Impossible to resist … astounding” ... Le Monde

“This unique, profoundly imagined show takes the concept of cultural exchange to a whole new level” ...The Guardian

Buy tickets for 11 & 12 here, and Sutra here.