Stravinsky and the Body

Directed and designed by Kate Nordstrum and Dimitri Chamblas, with Steven Mackey, Simon Morrison, Adam Tendler, New England Conservatory students, and curated food and beverage. Stravinsky never approached music as a solitary, cerebral act. He built it in company, through conversation and friendship; he changed how dance moved by reshaping how music could be felt in the body; and his scores still live to be studied, argued over, and understood anew. So rather than a single pre-concert event, we're offering five.      Gather with food, drink, and music at Higginson Hall (seated dinner) or O'Block/Kay Bar (drinks and curated small bites), honoring the cafés and dinner tables where Stravinsky's own circle, Picasso, Diaghilev, Cocteau among them, fed each other's thinking. Move with choreographer Dimitri Chamblas and pianist Adam Tendler in an all-ages and abilities workshop, feeling firsthand the irregular rhythms and physical jolts that changed dance forever. Learn with Princeton Music Professor and Stravinsky scholar Simon Morrisson for a close look at the collaborations with Fokine, Nijinsky, and Balanchine, that built these ballets from the ground up (February 25 only). Explore with Grammy-winning composer and guitarist Steven Mackey as he delves into the direct link between Stravinsky's "emancipated dissonance" and Blues/Rock performance styles, with guitar in hand (February 27 only). We'll also feature a special vodka and cocktail flight experience at the Champagne Bar, located in the stairwell alcove by the coat check and snack bar. This will offer guests an additional opportunity to explore thoughtfully selected beverages in a unique setting.     Five events, five ways in, running together at Symphony Hall. Combined, they offer a fuller way of knowing a composer whose music was never meant to be received by the ears alone.