Introdans combines modernism with traditional ballet

… The first glimpse the public gets of the third piece of the evening is truly impressive. Regina van Berkel choreographed Frozen Echo in 2011 for the Ballet am Rhein in Düsseldorf to the composition of the same name by Theo Verbey. A dinosaur spine curves across the stage, made from 70 old-fashioned tube computer monitors by set designer Dietmar Janeck. A woman in a brown dress stands beneath it, her figure stark against the white backdrop, her bird’s nest updo defying gravity. She seems to be leaning on a gnarled red cane, bringing to mind the figure in the Dali painting The Burning Giraffe. Scattered across the stage, small groups of dancers help bring the composition to three-dimensional life. Verbey’s compelling music is filled with foreboding, with a prominent brass section, and is often strongly reminiscent of Stravinsky – another modernist great.