The point of departure of Beauty I-X is a score of ten choreographic poems - a poetry that possesses a choreographic capacity, and which can be read as both poetry and dance. This score will be trans-created through the dancers' and pianist’s reading and practice, as they establish a sensorial relationship to the text. 

Time and light, movement and sound interweave into a cycle where simplicity, intimacy and transience create patterns and textures – with a precision leaving us open for the unimagined. 

The project has roots in the so-called New York School of the 1950s and 60s. It consisted of a group of composers, musicians, visual artists, performance artists, choreographers and dancers who contributed to the expansion of traditional art concepts through finding new ways of collaborating and creating works – with John Cage being said to be a kind of «manager» of the group. Scores written in experimental notation such as graphic symbols or text instruction, so-called “open form scores”, was developed, calling for an extended performer role as there was not one, but rather a multitude of possible interpretations of the score. Working in this way requires courage, trust and curiosity of both choreographer and performer.

Together with her in Beauty I-X, Lyster has pianist Ellen Ugelvik, described as one of the most significant performers of contemporary music, as well as the distinguished dancers Cecilie Lindeman Steen, Catharina Vehre Gresslien and Karen Lynne Bjerknesli.

 The ten parts of the performance: 

I             Transparency A 

II            Transparency B 

III           Circle 

IV          One hundred missteps 

V           Love 

VI          How to speak A 

VII         How to speak B

VIII        Flowers 

IX          Secret Horse

X           Time

There will be an exhibition of the choreographic score in the foyer.

Janne-Camilla Lyster (b. 1981) is a dancer, writer and choreographer. She is currently an artistic research fellow at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts, the department of Dance. Through her fellowship project she develops literary scores for dance. She has published several collections of poetry, most lately Herostratos (2017, poem for the stage) and Melk kåpe sand måpe (2015). Latest stage productions include Dynamic (adaptation of solo score by Deborah Hay, The Norwegian Opera & Ballet, 2014), Nordic Score: Escape and Transformation (Dansens Hus, 2015) and Herostratos (Det Norske Teatret, 2017, directed by Øyvind Osmo Eriksen).