Jérôme Bel
Gala
Devised by Jérôme Bel
Assisted by Maxime Kurvers
Devised and performed by alternatively, Taous Abbas, Cédric Andrieux, Sheila Atala, Michèle Bargues, La Bourette, Vassia Chavaroche, Houda Daoudi, Raphaëlle Delaunay, Diola Djiba, Nicole Dufaure, Chiara Gallerani, Nicolas Garsault, Stéphanie Gomes, Marie-Yolette Jura, Aldo Lee, Françoise Legardinier, Magali Saby, Marlène Saldana, Oliviane Sarazin, Frédéric Seguette
Costumes, the dancers
An R.B Jérôme Bel – Paris production // Co-produced by Dance Umbrella – London ; TheaterWorks Singapore/72-13 ; KunstFestivaldesArts – Brussels ; Tanzquartier Wien : Nanterre-Amandiers Centre Dramatique National, Festival d’Automne à Paris ; Theater Chur – Chur ; TAK Theater Liechtenstein – Schaan – TanzPlan Ost ; Fondazione La Biennale di Venezia ; Théâtre de la Ville – Paris ; HAU Hebbel am Ufer – Berlin ; BIT Teatergarasjen – Bergen ; La Commune Centre dramatique national d’Aubervilliers ; Tanzhaus nrw – Düsseldorf ; House on Fire supported by the EU cultural programme // In association with Théâtre du Rond Point ; Théâtre de la Ville ; Festival d’Automne à Paris // With support from the CND centre d’art pour la danse – Pantin ; La Ménagerie de Verre – Paris as part of Studiolab, for the studio rehearsal space // Wit thanks to the partners and participants of the Ateliers danse et voix ; NL Architects ; Les rendez-vous d’ailleurs // The company receives support from the DRAC – Direction Régional des Affaires Culturelles d’Ile-de-France – Ministère de la culture et de la communication, as a recognized IF Institut Français recognized choreographic company – Ministère des Affaires Etrangères – ONDA for its overseas tours – Office National de Diffusion Artistique for its tours in France
Partnership with France Inter
Gala, at the crossroads between choreographic instant and portrait gallery, is about lots of people showing their dance just much as their dance shows them. Amateurs, professionals, and people of all ages and walks of life will be coming together for a jubilatory gala, in which moving bodies take possession of their representations.
How can we open up onstage representation to individuals and bodies all too often excluded from it? How can we make of use of all the various resources of this unique apparatus, the theatre, in order to enlarge the perimeter of what can be shown in it? And how can we (re)shape it into a democratic means open to all those drawn to dance, singing and the performing arts?
Jérôme Bel has set down a flexible, portable framework which gives rise to a wide variety of formats. He wanted it to be accessible to dance lovers from all different horizons, to provide them with the opportunity to involve themselves fully and make the project their own. In doing so, he took that most 'commonplace' of theatrical experiences: the gala, that festive, group occasion, which harks back to end-of-year shows. He then subverted the genre in order to cover different styles and fragments of stories so as to build up an inventory of a dance 'with no particular qualities' and bring out all the possible relationships that are unique to the body and voice. What is it that makes us dance? How do we look upon dance that might be fragile and precarious without indulging in notions of judgement, such as 'well done' or 'badly done'? The result is a gala that is bitty, patched up, and traversed by moments of reflection, like galleries of living portraits. With its 'Fail again. Fail better' emphasis, Gala goes from one theatre to the next, like 'a mirror taking a stroll by the side of a road', and brings home to us something about the making of those we are watching as well as the way we watch.
In the same place
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Committing moving bodies to a contemporary form of orality, Soa Ratsifandrihana, the guitarist Joël Rabesolo and performers Audrey Mérilus and Stanley Ollivier draw on their diasporic narratives and origins to tell a story they would have liked to hear or see. The three Malagasy words Fampitaha, fampita, fampitàna, meaning comparison, transmission and rivalry, form variations in which the performers slide in and out of different states and seem to follow a movement in perpetual metamorphosis.
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Mohamed El Khatib furthers his passion for documentary theatre by tackling a subject that he brings from out of the shadows, namely that of eroticism and the love lives of “oldies”. Put together in a daring yet tender way, his new piece explores this theme from the perspective of desire, thereby going against the usual connotations associated with old age.
Jeanne Balibar Les Historiennes
Three women return from the past thanks to three female contemporary historians who bring them back to life via three separate accounts. Here, the actress Jeanne Balibar uses them as the basis for a staged reading. Four women from today’s world take a particularly eloquent and incisive look at three emblematic female destinies.
Talents Adami Theater, Mohamed El Khatib Stand-up
What will it be this time: thunderous applause or icy silence? In Mohamed El Khatib's opinion, the inherently risky nature of stand-up comedy elevates it to a theatrical art in its own right. A framework for expression of all kinds, it clears the path for transgressive laughter, in a cathartic space which brings us all together.
Vaiva Grainytė, Lina Lapelytė, Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė Have a Good Day!
Have a good day! arises from the collaboration of Vaiva Grainytė, Lina Lapelytė, and Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė. The three artists turn their focus toward the inner lives of cashiers in a shopping centre. “Good afternoon!”, “Thank you!”, “Have a good day!” : this opera examines what lies behind mechanical statements and their associated perfunctory gestures.
Mohamed Bourouissa, Zazon Castro Quartier de femmes
At the crossroads between theatre and stand-up, the first show by the visual artist Mohamed Bourouissa brings to the stage the different phases in the life of a woman in prison and its transformations. In the absence of pathos, the piece uses humour to circumvent the arduous nature of its subject matter.
Nacera Belaza La Nuée
With a reputation for minimalist and captivating choreographies, Nacera Belaza continues the exploration of the circle and rhythm she initiated with Le Cercle (2019) and L'Onde (2021), both landmarks in her choreographic language. Following on from an initial period of creation in Brussels in May 2024, the choreographer then enlarged the creative process of La Nuée by inviting ten new performers to the stage.
Stefan Kaegi, Rimini Protokoll This is not an embassy (Made in Taiwan)
Rimini Protokoll's roving director Stefan Kaegi takes us, in the company of three native performers and residents, to the island of Taiwan. The fictional element of this show, in which the onstage action filmed live takes us through the twists and turns of a miniature décor, points to a somewhat grotesque geopolitical reality.
Lina Majdalanie, Rabih Mroué 33 tours et quelques secondes
Who is Diyaa Yamout, the Lebanese human rights activist, artist and blogger whose suicide shook the nation? We will never really know and this is not what matters. Indeed, what is far more fascinating here is the profusion of assorted reactions on Facebook, the television, and in the form of SMS and answering machine messages
Rosana Cade, Ivor MacAskill The Making of Pinocchio
Drawing upon Collodi's tale, the Cade-MacAskill duo uses theatre to investigate the little- explored realms of queer love and affection. In doing so, they tell the story of gender transition and its repercussions on the couple. The piece itself, The Making of Pinocchio, becomes a burlesque-inspired manifesto for different forms currently under construction.
Joël Pommerat Marius
Inspired by the work of Marcel Pagnol, this show explores the theme of escape. Some of the actors had their first experience of theatre at the Maison centrale d'Arles prison. Marius provides audiences with a unique opportunity to discover a little-known but crucial dimension of Joël Pommerat's art.