Hydra Tempted - the film
Choreography / Music / Film / Costumes: Karola Lüttringhaus 
Hydra + : Breanne Horne (Dawn Shropshire '06/Andrea Lieske '08) 
Hydra - : Karola Lüttringhaus 


Photo above from film by Karola Luettringhaus.
Hydra, in Greek mythology, was a water beast that possessed many heads; for each head cut off she grew two more in its place, her skin and breath were poisonous. The Hydra of Lerna was killed by Heracles as one of his Twelve Labours. Its lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid. Beneath the waters was an entrance to the Underworld, and the Hydra was its guardian. In this piece, Hydra is the guardian of the subconscious. Hydra is in a self-imposed, inevitable predicament. She is a monster, but is there a human side, a loving, flesh and blood, vincible Hydra? Her desires for compassion and vulnerability are inseparably entwined with an inability to accept change, an iron will and an unforgiving demeanor. Hydra cannot escape the struggles between these opposing forces, depicted by the two dancers. The sound score contains the monstrous Hydra's inner dialogue with elements of spoken words in German, French and English. She says: “What do you mean to show me? Love, passion? Did you really believe that I would fall for that? Love is a lie and you composed it. Love and passion do not exist. If you come too close, you must die. I set the rules, I say what is true and what is a lie. I will never give in to another being; I will never give in to myself, even if I wanted it so very much.” Hydra allows herself to be tempted, suffering a constant struggle within herself that renders her numb until she collects her human side and her doubts to hide them in her subconscious to return to her old self. 



Supported by the Winston-Salem Foundation, the Arts Council of Winston-Salem/Forsyth County, the Academy of Dance Arts, The North Carolina Arts Council, The Golden Flower T’ai Chi Center, O’Kelly Design Studios, Madduck Productions Graphic Design Company, alban elved dance company, Dawn Shropshire Webster, the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh,…, and many others. Thank you for your support! *** 

Premiere: work in progress: September 1st, 2006 

premiere: January 2007 
Duration: 5 minutes