Presentation Announcement by Ruth Lijtmaer (USA)

Lijtmaer, R. (2024). The trauma of war: Homage to Ukraine portrayed though classical ballet [Presentation]. International Forum for Psychoanalytic Education Annual Conference: Friends, Enemies and Allies, October 17-19, Seattle.

Classical composers have served in, survived, and written about war for generations. Some were strongly criticized and banned from their countries of origin due to the theme of their compositions criticizing government policies. Others went into exile. In classical ballet, a few ballet choreographers have shown through movement the devastating effects of war and the aftermath trauma. Alexei Ratmansky, in Solitude, shows the pain of a father whose son was killed in Ukraine. Inspired by a 2022 photo of a Ukrainian father kneeling before the body of his dead son, Ratmansky filled the stage with bodies expressing the tangible ache of grief and love. Set to the Third Movement (Funeral March) from Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 and the Fourth Movement (Adagietto) from his Symphony No. 5, Solitude makes us experience loss, trauma and helplessness through movement.

Ruth Lijtmaer, Ph.D.
Ridgewood, New Jersey, USA
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