The Latvian National Ballet company will take you along to a variety of worlds abounding in emotions, colour, elements, and beauty. Four one-act ballets light up the universe of dance: Maskats's Tango (choreography by Krzysztof Pastor), Pugni's Pas de quatre (choreography by Jules Perro and Anton Dolin, staged by Inese Dumpe), Saint-Saëns's and Pugni's Maria's Dream (choreography by Petr Zuska) and Vasks's Erda (choreography by Youri Vámos).

Synopsis

ERDA

In Germanic mythology they weave the threads of Fate: the Norns. Youri Vamos unites them in the form of a capricious fate-player. His Norn is unpredictable and domineering. She inexorably follows her urge to create and to destroy; but she also shows a willingness and weakness for adventures. With her enticing games she provokes people to rebel against their fate. But their successes cannot hold, because their existence is finite. To the music of the Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks, Youri Vamos translates his ideas on Destiny into tremendously powerful optical language.

Erda stage directions by Youri Vamos
The monolith lowers itself. A woman becomes visible. She personifies human destiny, we call her the Norne. She is surrounded by a battlefield covered with lifeless bodies.
After the initial pleasure derived from her victory, she begins to feel a void. As she wishes to go on playing with the destiny of human beings, she starts to resuscitate her victims - the women first. The horizon opens, men are lying on the floor. The Norne starts to revive the dead men. The first man begins to live, others follow. Guided by the Norne, the woman approaches. Men and women begin to meet.
HE, the first boy, emerges from one of the adult couples. The family lives in loving harmony. Another couple gives birth to a daughter, HER. The two young persons find their way to each other and withdraw from their parents. The deserted mother dies. HE and his father are in mourning. HIS father also eliminated by the Norne. In his loneliness, the young HE manages to find HER again. The two walk about in the crowd and lose sight of each other again. HE becomes an adult man, and, driven by the Norne's power, all other human beings gradually begin to grow up, too. As a climax, the humans build a pyramid, a living monument. The Norne leaves her holding position and causes the pyramid to collapse. With her help, the construction of a rival second pyramid is begun. The atmosphere becomes hostile. In the chaos, HE finds HER, who in the meantime has become a woman, and together they try to find a way through the crowds of people. The strong counter current cannot be overcome. So the loving two drift away from each other. The struggle for survival becomes harder and harder, and is finally lost. In the end, HE is the only one to remain.
The Norne approaches the tired man. She finds him an easy prey to her seductive powers. She embraces him until he almost faints. Having nearly lost the fight, he manages to defeat his tormentor in a last effort. Along the horizon, open graves become visible. HE and SHE on their own resolve follow the other humans into the graves. Out of the lifeless bodies the remaining Norne creates a young man. The monolith appears, devours the young man and departs with him.