Best of Italian Theatre 2017: From Bory to Imhof

Artribune's year-end roundup highlights ten standout theatre and dance productions from 2017. Aurélien Bory's 'Espaeces' draws on Georges Perec's 'Espèces d’espace' to explore movement between spaces, performed by three dancers and two opera singers. Noé Soulier's 'Performing Art' at Centre Pompidou features museum installers assembling and disassembling exhibitions as choreography. Théo Mercier's 'La fille du collectionneur' blends visual art with traditional theatre, featuring François Chaignaud. Milo Rau's 'Five Easy Pieces' confronts the Marc Dutroux child abduction case through young actors, winning the Ubu Award for best foreign production. Enzo Cosimi's 'Thanks for Hurting Me' examines female identity across three generations with echoes of concentration camps. Apichatpong Weerasethakul's 'Fever Room' creates a hypnotic space without actors, exploring colonial echoes. Jan Martens' 'Rule of Three' critiques social media-era perception with live music by NAH. Lucia Calamaro's 'La vita ferma' narrates loss from a deceased protagonist's perspective, nominated for Ubu best text. Marco Tutino's opera 'La Ciociara', co-produced by San Francisco War Memorial and Teatro Lirico di Cagliari, revives Italian melodrama. Anne Imhof's 'Faust' won the Golden Lion at the 2017 Venice Biennale, featuring performers in the German Pavilion with dogs and props, evoking a post-romantic, post-human condition.