My Fierce Ignorant Step

Christos Papadopoulos challenges audiences to experience music and movement in a more profound way. His highly acclaimed show Larsen C, presented at Julidans 2022, was a meditation on the human position in times of change. The performance showed the subtle, often almost invisible movements of ice masses.

For Papadopoulos, the inspiration for My Fierce Ignorant Step lies in the sounds and memories of his childhood - memories that, although subtle, are inextricably linked to the fate of his country. The choreographer focuses on the resilience of the individual. How can we recover the sense of hope from our youth and turn it into the full realisation: together we can handle anything?

Music and bodies merge on the waves of collective memories. Can sound combined with movement become a pure, indivisible experience? The dancers move as one body, their breathing becoming a voice guiding them - sometimes powerful and grand, at other times, small and subtle, yet always flowing and self-evident. A rhythm that steadily expands, like an unstoppable race through life.
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With My Fierce Ignorant Step, Papadopoulos incorporates the influence of Axion Esti, the monumental 1964 oratory by Mikis Theodorakis. This work, based on the poem by Nobel laureate Odysseas Elytis, combines classical, folk and Byzantine music and narrates the history and struggles of the Greek people. This piece of music has a strong cultural and political message and was a symbol of national identity and resistance, especially during the years of the military dictatorship (1967-1974).

Christos Papadopoulos created dance pieces for Dance On Ensemble and the Ballet de l'Opéra de Lyon, among others. Last season, he created an extraordinarily well-received work for Nederlands Dans Theater. Ten years after his first choreography and shortly after receiving the prestigious Rose International Dance Prize, he presents his most personal work to date with My Fierce Ignorant Step.

concept & choreography Christos Papadopoulos
dancing and collaborating Themis Andreoulaki, Maria Bregianni, Amalia Kosma, Georgios Kotsifakis, Sotiria Koutsopetrou, Tasos Nikas, Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, Danae Pazirgiannidi, Spyros Ntogas, Adonis Vais
dramaturgy consultant Alexandros Mistriotis
original music Kornilios Selamsis
associate composer Jeph Vanger
set design Clio Boboti
costumes design Angelos Mentis
lightning design Stefanos Drousiotis
vocal training Apostolis Psichramis
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assistant to the choreographer Sevasti Zafeira
coordination and line production Zoe Mouschi, Rena Andreadaki
commissioned and produced by Onassis Stegi
co-producers Theatre de la Ville (Paris), Julidans (The Netherlands), Romaeuropa Festival (Italy), Theatre D'Orleans (France), Lac Lugano Arte e Cultura (Switzerland), December Dance Concertgebouw Brugge (Belgium), One Dance Festival (Bulgaria), Festival de Marseille (France) and I Teatri di Reggio Emilia (Italy)
supported by The Onassis Stegi "Outward Turn" Cultural Export Program
with financial support of The Ministry of Culture

Christos Papadopoulos with My Fierce Ignorant Step is nominated for the Fedora van Cleef & Arpels Dance Prize 2025