Trajal Harrell: Sister or He Buried the Body

Ludwig Forum Aachen is pleased to present Sister or He Buried the Body, the latest production by the internationally acclaimed dancer and choreographer Trajal Harrell.  

Trajal Harrell gained international recognition for his works that bring together the tradition of voguing—a modern dance style developed in the late 1980s from the Harlem ballroom scene—with early postmodern dance. In his latest work, the artist combines theoretical ideas from voguing with formal ideas deriving from Butoh dance, which was conceived in Japan during the late 50s and early 60s. This new work presents a speculative remapping of the history of contemporary dance and its composition, weaving the links between two seemingly distant dance cultures. By putting the body at the centre, Harrell explores the ways in which it becomes a receptacle of memory, the past and historical characters.

Trajal Harrell (b. 1973, Douglas, Georgia) has had his work presented at Fondation Cartier, Paris (2021); Sao Paulo Bienal (2021); Lafayette Anticipations (2021), Gwangju Biennale (2021); Impulstanz Festival, Vienna (2021); Manchester International Festival (2019); Ludwig Musem, Cologne (2019); Kanal Pompidou, Brussels (2019); Festival d’Automne, Paris (2019); MUDAM (2018); The Kitchen, New York (2018); The Barbican Centre London (2017); Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (2017); Tanz im August, Berlin (2017); MoMA, New York (2016); Festival d’Avignon (2016); Serralves Museum, Porto (2016); Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2016); Centre Pompidou, Paris (2015); Stedelijk Museum and Holland Festival (2014); Centre Pompidou Metz (2014); MoMA PS1 (2013); Performa Biennial (2011); and The New Museum—New York (2009), among others. He lives and works between Athens, Greece; Zurich Switzerland; and Georgia, USA.

Sister or He Buried the Body is co-produced by Ludwig Forum Aachen in partnership with the Aichi Triennale (JPN), CNS—Centre national de la danse, Pantin (F), the 13th Gwangju Biennale (KOR), Mudam (LUX) and Schauspielhaus Zürich (CH).

In Aachen Sister or He Buried the Body is presented in cooperation with schrit_tmacher Festival.