Ballet Preljocaj headlines this year's Auckland Festival, AK07, with a daring take on one of the most familiar pieces of classical music, Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons.

Company founder and choreographer Angelin Preljocaj spoke to The Big Idea about his gypsy roots, and how he brings new 'secrets and surprises' to Vivaldi's 'tainted' work in Les 4 Saisons...Ballet Preljocaj headlines this year's Auckland Festival, AK07, with a daring take on one of the most familiar pieces of classical music, Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons.

Company founder and choreographer Angelin Preljocaj spoke to The Big Idea about his gypsy roots, and how he brings new 'secrets and surprises' to Vivaldi's 'tainted' work in Les 4 Saisons...Isaac Davison: How do you provide a new slant on such a timeworn piece of music?
Angelin Preljocaj: This music is so commonplace. It is like elevator music, or like a mobile ringtone. So I asked myself, "How can I make such well known music sound as fresh as when it was heard for the first time?"

We were never going to approach the work in a mainstream way. Instead we took a side-road. I asked [sculptor] Fabrice Hyber, an incredible artist, to help with the set and costumes, and bring an element of the unexpected to the dance. You may go to a picnic on a good day and suddenly clouds and thunder appear unexpectedly. That is what Hyber is to the creation of this piece.

We made a rule that when he brought a prop into the studio, I was not allowed to reject it. He used some very unusual objects. These were the impetus to bringing new form to The Four Seasons. If we can get people to listen with fresh ears it may give them a fresh conviction that the music is fantastic.

Hyber's work has been described as chaotic. How did this fit with the tight structure and traditional music of Vivaldi?
The props are unconventional, but the choreography is more structured and stable. The structure is strong so that the dancers can put plenty of energy into it. If the structure is weak, their energy will be broken up, and lifeless.

How would you describe the final result? What did you draw from the music?
I played with ideas of meteorology and ecology. At the beginning of the show, two bears emerge covered in inflated plastic. I wanted to express that you can keep your own heat close to you, and not make the atmosphere around you dirty. So the image is one of harmony with nature.

In what way has your Albanian origins influenced your work?
My parents left Albania to escape Communist rule while my mother was pregnant with me (1957). I was born after we had been in France just a few weeks. So I grew up with two streams of culture and inspiration. At school I learnt the French meaning of culture, and at home my parents dove into Albanian traditions, desperate to keep their origins alive.

There is a special Albanian mood and pace of life which affected my parents. I discovered this when I first heard Stravinky's "Les Noces". Albania feeds off the famous Russian ballet culture. The music, which is based on a peasant wedding, reflects our Albanian traditions - it is ritualistic, and folklore-ish. I try and inject these elements into my choreography. The dark and instinctive side of Albania finds its way into my work, and is balanced with the structure of French culture.

We initially intended to live in America. But while waiting for a visa my parents began to work, and found a small apartment in Paris. After a year, they said, "we have started a small story here, let's continue".

I am lucky now to have my dance company (Ballet Preljocaj) based in Aix-in-Provence. Ten years ago a political movement aimed to spread serious arts outside of Paris. It was proposed in 1996 that I settle my dance company in Aix-in-Provence, and I loved the idea. It is the home of Cezanne, and there is a great tradition of art there.

What inspires you?
Everything. I used to paint on Sundays, but not professionally. Music, cinema...but also the world outside, and what cannot be captured by a frame.

What projects are you working on now?
I have been commissioned to choreograph a work to the music of Karlheinz Stockhausen, one of the last great composers of the 20th century. Several years ago I asked permission to use a piece of his, "Helikopter", and now he has given me new music to work with. I appreciate the contrasts of the two pieces. "Helikopter" was hard, noisy and intense, but this new music very mythic, light and spiritual.

15/3/07