Dear Camille —
I flail in your shadowy sea, trying to find light in your story.
A lost search for only a glimmer of the woman inside…
Gina Patterson
Those words reflect the creative process, one that is engulfing choreographer Gina Patterson as she strives to reveal the very essence of famed sculptor Camille Claudel.
The Pittsburgh native calls it “Trinity Bust: Sculptor. Clay. Muse.” And Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre goers will see the first kernel of what will hopefully become a full-length ballet about the French artist during the current Open Air series on Flagstaff Hill.
Claudel is unfortunately most famous for her tumultuous love affair with Auguste Rodin, best known for “The Thinker.” But her own story stood on its own. She ultimately became Rodin’s artistic rival, then arguably descended into mental illness and was locked in an institution for 30 years, where she died. It has inspired three movies, plus several books and stage productions.
Patterson was inspired by Claudel many years ago. “I thought, ‘Where is the light? How do I find the light in this darkness? Are there any cracks in the shell of the woman she became?” One starting point was Claude’s most notorious sculpture, called “The Waltz,” originally a sweeping plaster work depicting a nude couple engaged in the dance. It caused an uproar in Parisian society and Claudel adjusted it slightly in subsequent plaster and bronze forms without muffling the momentum.
More questions followed. “She lived in the shadows of so many men — a father’s daughter, [French poet] Paul’s sister, Rodin’s lover. How do you step out of the shadows? How did this society define who she should be? Is there a point where we can find peace and acceptance with a those fractured pieces— just be who we are?”
Patterson would also like to convey universal themes, like gender discrimination or the imbalance of women’s power in history. In Claudel, she wants to find moments that are “emerging and dissolving,” similar to waves on the ocean, peaking and then falling back. Sensuality. Passion. Genius.
She calls the 10-minute solo “a head start” and a ballet that will continue developing this fall during a month-long residency at the Bogliasco Foundation in Genoa, Italy.
Here, for the Pittsburgh premiere, she added a sound design by her husband, former dancer Eric Midgley, using church bells and gongs “that will bring you to center and peace.” The accompaniment that Patterson chose is by Venezuelan virtuoso pianist and composer Teresa Carreño, who actually lived in the same Romantic era. And PBT costumier Janet Groom Campbell designed a standalone skirt, gray as the clay that first served as Claudel’s inspiration, and reminiscent of the late 1800’s.
Patterson will use it to convey the density and intensity of her complicated subject. She wants it to “unlock the shells that are hiding your voice,” for the dancers who perform it and women everywhere today.
For more information on Gina, visit http://www.ginapatterson.com/bio.
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