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Ballet BC X Lyle XOX

The Spirit of Creation

At the company’s final program of the 23/24 season, FOR EVER, an artistic collaboration between Ballet BC Artistic Director Medhi Walerski and visual artist Lyle XOX years in the making was revealed. Stepping out onto the QET stage wearing the creation was company artist Emanuel Dostine.

Themes that were explored for the piece, which was featured in the world premiere of Medhi’s latest creation for the company Pieces of Tomorrow, included loss, reuse, transformation, and reconstruction. A central facet of Lyle’s multi-media work is discovering and utilizing found objects and discarded materials to create something new. For this collaboration, materials were sourced from near and far, including Japan, Mexico, and from within the Ballet BC family itself, giving it special meaning.

Medhi Walerski on the collaborative process:

“The creation of Pieces of Tomorrow began with the concept of legacy. Drawing inspiration from Lyle XOX’s sculptures made from found materials, the dancers and I aimed to create the choreography by exploring themes of destruction, creation, and reconstruction. Just as Lyle transforms materials, we focused on repurposing movement elements to breathe new life into them. Johan Ullen’s recomposed violin sonatas from Bach deepened our exploration with a profound layer. The recycling of musical material echoed our approach, enriching our work with a sense of continuity and growth. Loss, transformation, and rebirth. The cyclical nature of artistic expression, and life.”

Lyle XOX on inspiration and creation:

“Inspiration always begins with the found objects themselves. Objects discovered or gifted from various parts of the globe, including discarded remnants from members of the Ballet BC family. It was essential to use pieces that reflected life in its many facets; embracing all genders and telling a story of creation, transformation, loss and rebirth. A sculpture that encapsulated strength and fragility. Medhi and I were instinctively drawn to the colour gold. A hue that is illuminating, sacred and precious; a colour with a spiritual connection. The sculpture would live in the environment of movement, and so this particular piece was constructed in consideration of that. Watching it come alive on the dancer for the first time was an incredibly moving experience, a moment where two art forms bonded together.”

“Just as Lyle transforms materials, the dancers and I focused on repurposing movement elements to breathe new life into them.”

— Medhi Walerski

Watch the video below for an inside view of Lyle XOX’s creative process.