LAURENT CHÉTOUANE Out of Joint / Partita 1 2>3/02/2018•20:30•Kaaitheaterdance/music•70min.

nl/Watalswenaeeuwenvanrechtoplopen,deverticaliteitweerloslaten?DezevraagvormthetstartpuntvandenieuwecreatievanLaurentChétouane.Centraalstaatdemensinalzijnfragiliteit–tegenovereencomplexeenonvatbarewereld.Detoekomstisonvoorspelbaarénonvoorstelbaar,terwijleeneindeloos,perspectieflooshedenhemindehoudgreepheeft.

Tweedanserseneendansereszoekennaarnieuweevenwichtenindezeontwrichtesetting.EenviolistbegeleidthenondertussenliveopscènemetBachseerstevioolpartitainb-mineur.HettollendeenmeeslependemuziekstukwordteendankbaremetgezelindewankelendewerelddieChétouaneetaleert.Misschienbiedthethierendaarzelfstroost.

•LaurentChétouanestudeerdevooringenieur,maarmaaktsinds2007ookindrukalschoreograaf.InhetKaaitheaterpresenteerdehijaleerdereigenzinnigebewerkingenvanbekendemuzikalewerken.ZowashijtegastmetSacréSacreduPrintemps(2013)enBACH/PASSION/JOHANNES(2015).

fr/Etsi,aprèsdessièclesdebipédie,nousabandonnionslaverticalité?CettequestionconstituelepointdedépartdelanouvellecréationdeLaurentChétouaneaucœurdelaquelleilsituel’êtrehumaindanstoutesafragilitéfaceàunmondecomplexeetincontrôlable.L’avenirestimprévisibleetinimaginablealorsqu’unprésentinfinietsansperspectiveletientsoussonemprise.Deuxdanseursetunedanseusepartentenquêtedenouveauxéquilibresdanscedécordésarticulé.UnviolonistelesaccompagneetinterprètelaPartitan°1ensimineurpourviolondeBach.LamusiquevirevoltanteetentraînantedevientuncompagnonreconnaissantdanslemondevacillantquedéploieChétouane.Peut-êtrenousoffre-t-ellemêmede-ci,de-làduréconfort?

•LaurentChétouaneaachevédesétudesd’ingénieur,maisdepuis2007ilfaitégalementunegrandeimpressionentantquechorégraphe.AuKaaitheater,onadéjàpuvoircertainesdesesadaptationstrèspersonnellesd’œuvresmusicalescélèbres,commeSacréSacreduPrintemps(2013)etBACH/PASSION/JOHANNES(2015).

en/Whatwouldhappenifweweretoabandonverticalityaftercenturiesofwalkingupright?ThisquestionisthestartingpointofLaurentChétouane’snewcreation.Hefocusesonthehumanpersoninallitsfragilityandinrelationtoacomplexandincomprehensibleworld.Thefutureisunpredictableandunimaginable,andyetitisinthegripofaninfinite,perspectivelesspresent.

Twomaleandonefemaledancersearchfornewequilibriumsinthisdisjointedsetting.AviolinistaccompaniesthemliveonstagewithBach’sPartitaforViolinno.1inB-minor.ThiswhirlingandcompellingcompositionbecomesathankfulcompanioninthereelingworldthatChétouaneexhibits.Perhapsitisoccasionallyevenasolace.

•LaurentChétouanestudiedengineering,buthasbeenmakingabigimpressionasachoreographersince2007.HehaspresentedhisunusualadaptationsoffamousmusicalcompositionsattheKaaitheaterinthepast,includingSacréSacreduPrintemps(2013)andBACH/PASSION/JOHANNES(2015).

ALEXANDER GARCIA DÜTTMANN ON OUT OF JOINT / PARTITA 1 January,2018 We’rebeginningwithanexercise forall,dancersaswellasaudience,anexerciseofdancersandaudienceindanceandone’svis-à-visonthestage,whichinthesecondpartwillseparatethestagefromthehall,transformingthedancersintodancersandthespectatorsintospectators.Onemightthink thatonewereparticipating in the circlingmore immediately, coming closer to itwhen thedancerscirclethespectatorsonthestage,maketheirwaythroughtheembarrassedandunpreparedspectatorsandyethavetofindintotheircircling.But itmightalsobetheotherwayaround.Thespectatorcircleswhenthedancersoppositehim/heronthestagebegintocircle.Sosomethingisbeginningonthestage,whichatthesametimeisthehallandthereforenotastageyet–somethingthatcontinuestospinwhenstageandhallareeventuallyfacingeachotherrigidly.Thatwhichisbeginningismovements,ofwhichonecanneithersaythattheyareimprovised,northat theyare rehearsedandpreassigned.Thecircling isalwaysdifferentandnew,acirclingwithevents andpeculiarities, openings and shifts, decelerations and accelerations.Never a circling aspattern,neverachoreographyofcircling,butalwayselliptical circling inwhich thechoreographyceasestoexist,thatsealsthedownfallofchoreography.Thecirclingeludesthechoreographer’sandthedancer’sdisposition.Itisacirclingofslightorheavyexhaustion,acirclingthatoriginatesinexhaustion,acirclingofexhaustedbodieswhichneverceasetocircle.Notacirclingyieldingtoarbitrariness,though.Forthiscirclingcreateshumour,isrepeatedlypervadedbyhumour,andhumourfetchesusbackevenifitneverdoessoentirely.Thehumourofaslash:OutofJoint/Partita1.Thecirclingchallengestheverticalandthehorizontal,theraisedarmsandthefall,transcendsbothinordertotouchcirclinginitself.Whilecontrolledcirclingisaconventionalform,aperformanceofcircling,uncontrolledcirclingthatturnsintosheerformlessnessisacirclingthatnolongerbelievesinitself.Perhapsthecirclingwillputusinastateofcontemplation,butinawaythatthereisnodifferenceanymorebetweenactionandcontemplation.Asdancerorasspectatoronedoesnotseeanythingonecouldconsidertobeananswertothequestionofcircling.Forthequestionitselftakesontheshapeofcircling,becomesintegratedasifitcouldonlybeansweredinthismanner.Doesnoteverymovement,beitthatofmusicorthatofthebody,tendtowardscirclingasitsenvisionedperfection,thebeautyofexhaustion?Circlingisafalling-in-love,thedancers’andspectators’contemplationalovingone.Atthebeginningtheydonotyetknowit.Thecirclingfallsinlovewithitself,andthusopensuptowardstheother.ForoneandahalfhoursIfellinlovewithadancerwhoformeonlyexistsin,andas,circling.

TORSADE DE LAURENT CHÉTOUANE parJean-LucNancy Lesdanseursenroulentetdéroulentleurscorpsautourd’unaxeinvisiblequin’estpasleleur,quiestuneverticalefichéeailleurs,dansl’inapparent.Nonseulementleurspasmaisleursbrasquis’élèventetleurstorsesquis’inclinententournantsurleurstaillescomposentdessortesd’hélicesdoublesousimples,desinvolutionsetdesrévolutionssemblablesàcellesdeslierresoudesvignesautourdessupportsqu’onleurdonne,semblablesaussiauxserpentsquis’enroulentautourdubâtond’Asklépios,semblablesenfinauxfeuillagesdonts’entourelethyrsedesbacchantes.Unetorsademobileentraînechaquecorpsautourdelui-même,entraînetroiscorpschacunautourdesautresetdel’espacequ’ilsouvrent,entraînetoutunpublicàs’enroulerpuisàsedéroulerentrescèneetsalle. Outofjoint:horsdesesgonds,pourgarderlatraductiondeShakespeareparBonnefoy.Letempsesthorsdesesgonds,çanetournepasrond,çatourneautrement,çasedétourneetsecontourne,çaseretourne–toujoursaubordduvertige.Çadanseunlentetdouxvertige.Lapartitaestunesuitededansesquis’enchaînentetsetressentl’uneàl’autre.Leviolonisteentreluiaussidanslejeu.Touttournemaistrèslentement,c’estunesarabanderalentie,déliée,quisedécomposeetserecompose.C’estunebacchanaleétirée,apaiséedestorsesployésetdéployés,desthyrsesagitésetreposés.OnentendànouveaucequeBaudelaireécrivaitàLiszt,sousletitre«LeThyrse»: Nedirait-onpasquelalignecourbeetlaspiralefontleurcouràlalignedroiteetdansentautourdansunemuetteadoration?Nedirait-onpasquetoutescescorollesdélicates,touscescalices,explosionsdesenteursetdecouleurs,exécutentunmystiquefandangoautourdubâtonhiératique?

‘CAN WE DANCE IN THIS PLACE? OR FROM THIS PLACE?’ aninterviewwithLaurentChétouane,byEvaDecaesstecker(Kaaitheater,January2018)Wheredidtheideaoflettinggoofverticalitycomefrom?Thisideahasoccupiedmeforthelastfiveyears.MoreorlesssinceSacréSacreduPrintemps.Ihavebeenformulatingitdifferentlyinthepast,butthemainpointisaboutthepossibilitytohaveanotherrelationshiptofrontality.ManychoreographersIadmirehaveworkedonthisquestion,suchasMerceCunningham,DeborahHayorWilliamForsythe.Toorganiseandcreatespaces,oureyesusefrontalityforprimaryorientationandconstructionsystem.Thegazeandtheverticalityarerelatedtoeachother.Youcanfeelitwhenyougetupfromthefloor:thereisamomentwhentheeyestakeoverthemovementofthebodyandguideyourorientation.Soinordertochallengefrontalityweneedtoleaveoutverticalityandtoquestionourrelationshiptooureyeswhilemoving.Notjustasagameforafewseconds,asamomentaryfall–likeBalanchinesobrilliantlydid–butasaperpetualloss.Whatdoesthislettinggoofverticalitymeanforyou?Isitaliberatinggesture?Orisitratherawayoflosingcontrol?Manyquestionsappearwhenyouletgoofverticality:howtoorientateyourself?Whatdoesmovementmeanwhentheeyesarenotcontrollingit?Whatisaspacewithoutanyfront?Whatistheimpactonthespectators?ButwhatIlike–toformulateitinmorepoliticalterms–isthefactthatittakesawaythehierarchicalpositionofthehumanbeingamongthedifferentspeciesinnature.Animalsdonotknowfrontsassuch.Theyareintheworld,theworldisnotinfrontofthem.Theydonotownitwiththeireyes.Takingawayverticalityputsusbackinthemiddleoftheworldwithoutanything‘elevated’anymore.Fragile.Unstable.Likeourtime.Withoutanyoverviewwhichacertainuseoftheeyeswouldaffordus.Weareallabitblindtoday,withoutanyorientationtowardsacommonfuture.Somethingseemstobechangingradicallyintheworld,whichquestionsthehumanbeingdeeply.Ourvaluesandorientationsystemsareabouttodisappear.Newoneswillcome.Butwecannotthink,conceptualisethemrightnow.Forthefirsttimeinthehistoryofthemodernhumanwearenotabletoanticipateandplan,project.Somethingwillend.Canwedanceinthisplace?Orfromthisplace?Ifyes,thenweneedtofall…Inthisperspective,dancelooksveryprecarious,almostimpossible.Wefeeltheconstanteffortoffindingbalancewithouttheuseofoureyes,anditobligesustothinkwiththepurematerialityofthebody,its‘symmetrical’constructioninordertostand.Thebodyappearsassomethingwecannotfullymasteranymore.Weneedtoenterintodialoguewithallourbodypartstogetherinthisveryprecariousstatewhichisnolongersupportedbyaverticalreference.DidBach’sviolinpartitatriggertheidea,orwasittheotherwayaround–thePartitaseemedtofittheconcept?IhavebeenworkingwithBachpiecesforfouryearsnow.I’mlearningtodancethroughhim.Forme,thiscomposeristheperfectexampleofcrossingverticalityandhorizontality.Formeverticalityisaconsequenceofahorizontalfall,ahorizontalchaosbetweenhighlystructuredthinkingandunpredictableevents.Ariverwithalotofturbulences.Andthisproducesan‘unstablestability’in

whichthemovementneverstops.Noends,nobeginnings.Aconstanttransitionlessness.Verticalsareveryfragile!Partita1recallsthischaracterforme.IworkedwithArtiomShishkovonawayforhimtoemphasisethishorizontalityevenmore,creatingsomethinglikealoosespinewithinthemusic.ButitisalreadypartofBach’smusic.Werathersupportit.ThePartita-piecesarestudypieces.Practicepiecesactually.ThatiswhatIlikeintheseshort,modestparts:theyonlylastthreeorfourminutes.Togetherwiththedancers,wesearchedamainthemeforeachofthefourmovements,thatwouldshowtheaudiencewhatthislossofverticalitymightentail:onatechnicaldancelevel,andmorepsychological.Howdowemeet,touchandapproacheachotherwithoutverticality?Takingamusicalpieceasastartingpointisn’tnewinyourwork.YoualreadypresentedBACH/PASSION/JOHANNESandSacréSacreduPrintempsatKaaitheater.Whatmovesyoutodepartfromsuchmasterpiecestocreateachoreography?Ilearnfromthem.Tome,theyproposeamusicalspaceIamenvelopedin.IdonotunderstandthedancespaceasaEuclidianroominwhichmusicsounds.Musicunfoldsveryspecialrulesregardingspaceandcanhelptothinkaboutspacedifferently,withdepth,streams,velocity,thickness,turbulences,waves...SacréSacreduPrintempsproposescollisionsofspaces,andtheflooraspercussivesurface.JohannesPassionmakesyoufeelgravity,weightandvolume.Musicalpiecesalsohelpedmetounderstandhowitispossibletomovewithoutthinkinginpictures,ideality,eyes,butinvolume,body,materiality.ThesepieceshelpedmetofindthebodyIworkwithonstage.Andratherthanreducingordestroyingthesepieces,asitsometimeshasbeenseenorinterpreted,IquestiontheimagesofEuropeanculturewecarrythroughthesemasterpieces.Theexpectationwehavefromthem.Theyemergedatdifferentkeymomentsinthehistoryofthemodernsubject.Theyformedourthinking,ourverticality.InordertofallfromtheverticalIneedtoconfrontthesereferences.ToknowwhatIamfallingfrom.Aretheresimilaritiesinthewayyoucreateachoreographytothesemusicpieces?Allmychoreographicpiecesarebuildingoneachother.AttheendofonepieceIcouldseethestartingpointforthenextone.Theyaredifferent,butpartofthesamequestion.Ifounddifferentanswersineachpiece.Iunderstandapieceasaproblemthathastobesolved.Abitlikeamathematicaldemonstration.(IbrieflywasanengineerbeforeIstudiedtheatre!)Theyarebuiltupverylogically.Untilnow,alltheendswereopen.OutofJoint/Partita1isthefirstpiecewithaclearending.Ifoundsomethingwiththispiece.Finally.Whyisitimportanttohavetheviolinistliveonstage?Theviolinistbringsanotherrelationtothespace.Hehears,andthebodyrefersdifferentlytoverticality.Towardstheend,thepiecebringsallthesebodiestogether.Togethertheyfindawayofbeingwherehearingandseeingarebecomeequivalent.Asimportant.Happeningatthesametime.Maybeautopianplaceforthefuture.

Whatinfluencedoeshavingstudiedengineeringhaveonyourchoreographicpractice?Doyounoticeawayoflookingoralogicthatcanbetracedbacktothisstudy?Oraretheresimilaritiesbetweenengineeringanddance?Theconstructivesideofitmaybe?Thelogic.Tryingtofindreasonsformovementswhichareclosertophysicalsystemsthantosubjective,visualdesires.Thenecessityofthingsisimportanttome.Thelogicwithinasystem,andthatthesystemthinksbyitself.UnderstandingtheseconstellationswhichallowthistohappeniswhatIlovedinmathematics,physics,chemistry.Youareindialoguewithsomethingbiggerthanyou.Youtrytounderstand,toanswerthequestion. credits danceFlorenceCasanave,MooKim,MikaelMarklund|musicArtiomShishkov(violin)|costumeSophieReble|lightPhilippeGladieux(KlausDust)|productionPartitaGbR|tourassistantJuliusGraupner|productionmanagementChristineKammer,HendrikUnger|communicationk3berlin|co-productionHAUHebbelamUfer,Kampnagel|sponseredbyBasisförderungderBerlinerSenatsverwaltungfürKulturundEuropa|supportedbytheNationalesPerformanceNetz(NPN)Co-productionFundforDance,whichisfundedbytheFederalGovernmentCommissionerforCultureandtheMedia

#tender is the night when you love subtle performances

BENOÎT LACHAMBRE/

PAR B. LEUX

Lifeguard

BenoîtLachambreagainasksyoutolistentoyoursensesandgenuinelytoexperiencethe

consciousnessofyourbody.Bordersbetweendanceandmovementgraduallyblurwhenaglance,amovement,orthe

touchofsomeoneintheaudiencecontinuestoresonateinthechoreography.

Kaaitheater • 7>9/02 • dance/performance

BENJAMIN VERDONCK/ TONEELHUIS

Liedje voor Gigi

Likeanengineeratacontrolpanel,BenjaminVerdonckconjuresavisualelegyonthestage.Fromasequenceofminiature

landscapestoanendlessseriesofpanelsthatappearanddisappear,openandclose.Accompaniedbytwomusicians,Verdonck

graduallygetslostinhisownimages.

Kaaistudio’s • 15>18/03 • theatre • in Dutch

LA PISCINE

LaPiscineisacollectiveprojectthatgathersdifferentartisticpracticesandworks

addressedtoasinglespectator.Goingfromawalkwiththeeyesclosed,toaconversation,toabath,asinglespectatorandoneoftheartistswilltunetoeachothertodrawa

singularpathintoLesBainsduCentre–attheheartoftheMarolles.

Les Bains du Centre • 20>24/03 • performance • in French & English

DOLORES BOUCKAERT

Galop. Biography of a Body

Galoptellsthebizarrestoryofthelifecycleofabodyintentableaux.Dolores

Bouckaert’sco-starsinthissoloareabed,tenrecordplayers,and–viafilmandaudio–afastandpowerfulhorse.Thetwoareoneanother’soppositesuntiltheybecomeinterchangeable,whenthehorse’gallop

coincideswiththerhythmofherheartbeat.

Kaaistudio’s • 20>22/03 • performance • in English