When the polyptych is presented in its entirety, it is spring that first proclaims itself with Fluid Mechanics, in which nature and the human body alike find themselves in a state of effervescence. This is followed by Tan, smouldering summer, and Moss&Mold, autumn’s decay, and ultimately ICE culminates the seasonal trajectory with winter’s fatal bite and agony.

For this large-scale production, Thierry Smits intentionally plunges into the world of multimedia performance-installations, intensifying his use of screens, projections, lighting, sound and props on stage, as diverse as they are unexpected, but which all punctuate a certain idea of the seasons in all their metaphorical potential with human life that is born, flourishes, withers and dies.

In TAN , devoted to summer, the choreography focuses on the idea of heat and consumption. Electric heaters liquefy small wax sculptures, while a flame, present onstage, burns both skins and various objects, as images of fusing suns and planets scroll across the screen. The frenetic, almost hypnotic dances vainly unfold in a universe where everything is apparently destined to go up in smoke.