Severe humidity made the stage at Barcelona’s Teatre Grec increasingly slick during last night’s performance of Brel by Rosas, creating hazardous conditions for the dancers. The amphitheater was filled to capacity for one of the Festival Grec’s most anticipated events. As moisture gathered on the floor, the performers adjusted their movements to the changing surface, but the risk of losing balance remained throughout the show.
Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, the 66-year-old choreographer and founder of Rosas, addressed the audience mid-performance, describing the stage as resembling an ice rink. The slippery surface made it hard to maintain control during complex choreography. De Keersmaeker and her dance partner, Solal Mariotte, carried on. De Keersmaeker later said she hoped to return under better conditions.
The work brings contemporary dance into dialogue with songs by Belgian singer-songwriter Jacques Brel, using musical structure and visual projections to shape its emotional field. De Keersmaeker, known for choreography attuned to music and movement, sometimes pared her actions back to subtle gestures as she negotiated the floor. Mariotte’s breakdance background informed a different response: he worked controlled gliding into his movement, turning the slickness into a striking feature of the performance.
The audience was visibly moved, particularly during “Quand on n’a que l’amour,” delivered with striking intensity. The setlist also featured “La valse à mille temps,” “Les bourgeois,” “Les marquises,” “Les bonbons,” “Les flamandes,” “La chanson des vieux amants” and “Jef,” before closing with “Jojo.” During “Le plat pays,” projections of flooding spread across the stone backdrop. “Rosa” offered a playful reference to the dance company.
One of the evening’s most striking scenes came during “Ne me quitte pas.” De Keersmaeker slowly removed her clothing and stood nude before a projection of Brel’s face, his mouth aligned with her back. The image evoked vulnerability and the passage of time, while her raw vocalizations deepened the sense of loss and exposure. On the slippery floor, the contrast between her restrained movement and Mariotte’s gliding brought out the production’s mix of elegance and daring.
Despite the technical setback, Rosas’ choreography and Brel’s music left a powerful impression. The incident showed the particular demands of an open-air performance, where changing conditions can affect movement and staging. Festival fashion has also adapted to outdoor events, as explored in a feature on developing summer styles at major European festivals.
Brel is scheduled to return to Teatre Grec, and organizers and artists hope the stage conditions will improve. Established in 1976, the Festival Grec is a basic fixture of Barcelona’s cultural calendar, drawing international artists and audiences to the city each summer. The open-air amphitheater is known for its atmosphere, though weather and other outdoor conditions can shape performances there. At this performance, the artists’ adjustments and the audience’s response made the evening a vivid example of live performance under pressure.
