She works with soloists, choreographs groups or takes to the stage herself: Isabelle Schad is an established name in the Berlin dance scene.She has made a name for herself far beyond the city’s borders and has won numerous prizes. Her finely crafted projects offer a unique aesthetic made up of body language and movement.

The contrast between light and dark
Contrasts play a major role: light bodies against dark backgrounds, stripped of disturbing clothing, from a moving single act to a teeming group picture, following their own rhythm, amazing mechanics of arms, legs, hands, feet, heads and hair.

Now a printed monograph has been published that offers a beautiful overview of the diverse works of her artists and groups. Beautiful because the imagery of the large-format photographs echoes and condenses the typical aesthetic of Schad’s stage works.

An idea from barren times
Printing dance is as difficult as writing about dance. It is only about the catalogue, not about the works on stage. The idea for the monograph was born at a difficult time, when Corona was closing its dance theatres. The fact that the catalogue was finally completed is a testament to the perseverance of the artist, her collaborators and fellow artists.

The book is an enrichment. It complements her presence on stage with an exciting presentation of her choreographies from the last decade. The result is a successful mixture of photos and texts. It is a feast not only for the eye, but also for the brain.

Those who do not know Isabelle Schad’s work will be inspired by this book. There is no doubt about that. And for those who are already familiar with her work, the images and descriptions will deepen existing impressions.

Collective creativity as a red thread
The idea of collective creativity is particularly striking. It runs like a red thread through the book and the projects presented in it. The title Isabelle Schad WITH outlines the aspirations of the choreographer, who always sees herself as a team player. In the past one would have said folk art collective or dance brigade. The I takes a back seat to the WE, in all modesty.

In this way the monograph becomes a bit like a brigade diary, it comes alive because it focuses on the creative process. It is not primarily about the final presentation on stage, but about the continuous creation of choreographies in the group. Sometimes the team consists of just you and/or a soloist. Sometimes there are twenty artists floating around the room.

The list of participants is long, very long. Nevertheless, the catalogue appears to be a unified whole. Fortunately, all the texts are in German and English. The first-class photographs, of course, need no translation.

Schad’s choreographic style is understood worldwide, even without words. To sum up: printing dance, describing dance – this difficult undertaking is more than successful.