What

Seduced by the beauty of the Arabic-speaking populations and countries of North Africa and the Middle East, to where he regularly travels, Thierry Smits created this piece in order to pay tribute to them at a time they were being stigmatised as a result of reaction to the attacks of 11 September 2001.

 

He selected eight dancers in order to try to reproduce through them the voluptuousness, friendship, and sense of complicity he encounters in the male environments of these sun-drenched lands, which he remembers with wonder and emotion. He delivers a vision, at once sensual, joyful and highly personal, which does not demean itself through Arab-style like stereotypes, but rather suggests the vitality, tumult and trepidation of contemporary urban worlds. From this perspective, the music laden with oriental undertones, pierced by electronic sounds, renders the effervescence of these cities.

Smits brought back from Egypt elements that structure the scenography and punctuate this radiant performance’s three times-spaces: large feather fans for the first scene which evoke, in an atmosphere of half-light and languor, the hammams, the voluptuousness, the caresses, the massages and the flabellations; bales of raw cotton scattered across the stage form an undulating, warm and silky sea that allude to desert sand in the second scene, and finally a vast calico covered with inscriptions reminiscent of calligraphy in order to complete the presentation with a swirling and festive performance of great virtuosity.

DATE CONTENU

Dates

Seduced by the beauty of the Arabic-speaking populations and countries of North Africa and the Middle East, to where he regularly travels, Thierry Smits created this piece in order to pay tribute to them at a time they were being stigmatised as a result of reaction to the attacks of 11 September 2001.

 

DATE CONTENU
2005/03/03 03 > 05.03.2005 Théâtre de Namur Namur
2005/03/10 10 > 25.03.2005 Théâtre Varia Brussels
2005/04/11 11.04.2005 Festival De hel van het Noorden Groningen (NL)
2005/04/17 17.04.2005 Festival De stilte van de sluier Bruges
2005/04/29 29 > 30.04.2005 Biennale Internationale Charleroi/Danses, Les Ecuries Charleroi
2005/05/04 04.05.2005 Rencontres chorégraphiques de Carthage Tunis (TN)
2005/10/08 08.10.2005 Schouwburg Kunstmin Dodrecht (NL)
2005/10/10 10.10.2005 Théâtre Bellevue Amsterdam (NL)
2005/10/14 14.10.2005 De Kortrijkse Schouwburg Courtrai
2005/10/21 21.10.2005 CC Westrand Dilbeek
2005/12/01 01.12.2005 CC de Spil Roulers
2005/12/03 03.12.2005 Stadsschouwburg Arnhem (NL)
2005/12/09 09.12.2005 De Velinx Tongres
2005/12/16 16 > 18.12.2005 Halles de Schaerbeek Brussels
2006/02/01 01.02.2006 CC Genk Genk
2006/02/03 03.02.2006 De Werf Alost
2006/02/07 07.02.2006 Schouwburg Saint-Nicolas
2006/02/18 18.02.2006 Festival Pays de Danse Liège
2006/02/22 22.02.2006 Maison de la Culture Tournai
2006/04/08 08 > 10.04.2006 Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival Ramallah (PAL)
2006/05/03 03 > 07.05.2006 Theatre and Dance Festival Le Caire (EG)
2006/05/12 12.05.2006 Wolubilis Brussels
2006/05/18 18 > 20.05.2006 Festival de Danse Casablanca (MA)
2006/06/10 10.06.2006 CNCDC Chateauvallon Oullioules (FR)
2006/06/30 30.06.2006 Festival Malta Poznan (PL)
2006/07/02 02 > 15.07.2006 Contemporary Dance Festival Bytom (PL)
2007/10/10 10.10.2007 Théâtre de la Ville Duchamp-Villon Rouen (FR)
2007/11/03 03.11.2007 De Meent Beersel
2007/11/08 08.11.2007 De Warande Turnhout
2007/11/25 25.11.2007 CC Ottignies Louvain-la-Neuve
2007/11/28 28.11.2007 CC de la ville de Nivelles Nivelles
2007/11/30 30.11.2007 Maison culturelle de Ath Ath
2007/12/09 09.12.2007 Schouwburg Tilburg (NL)
2008/01/19 19.01.2008 CC Evergem Evergem
2008/03/10 10.03.2008 Al Bustan Festival Beyrouth (LB)
2008/04/04 04 > 05.04.2008 Miami Dade College Miami, Floride (US)
2008/05/03 03.05.2008 Zakharef in Motion, Al Hussein Cultural Center Amman (JO)
2008/06/08 08.06.2008 Festivalul international de Teatru, Union Hall Sibiu (RO)
2008/06/13 13 > 14.06.2008 Kampnagel Hambourg (DE)
2008/08/15 15.08.2008 Sziget Festival Budapest (HU)
2008/08/20 20.08.2008 Uva Grapes, Catania contemporary dance festival 2008 Catane (IT)
2009/02/21 21.02.2009 CC Genk Genk
2009/03/10 10 > 11.03.2009 Arabesque: Arts of the Arab World, Kennedy Center Washington DC (US)
2009/03/14 14.03.2009 De Schakel Waregem
2009/04/17 17.04.2009 Made in Cannes, Théâtre de la Licorne Cannes (FR)

Distribution

— Chorégraphie

Thierry Smits

— Danseurs

à la création: Ziya Azazi, Benjamin Bac, Jaroslav Cemerek, Jorge M. Crecis, Edouard Pelleray, Kare Poutanen, Elie Tass, David Zagari / également en tournée: Jeroen Baeyens, Matthieu Candre, Guillaume Cheverau, Ludvig Daae, Guillaume Gabriel, Peter Kadar, Hervé Koubi, Nitay Lehrer, Werner Nigg, Davide di Pretoro

— Conception scénique

Thierry Smits, Thomas Beni

— Décor sonore et régie son

Maxime Bodson

— Eclairages

Reynaldo Ramperssad

 

— Costumes

Olivier Bériot

— Réalisation toile de fond

Sayed Sayed Tantawi & Sons

— Assistance à la chorégraphie

Muriel Janssens

— Assistant costumes

Luc Gering, Samira Benali

— Coordination technique et régie lumières

Thomas Beni

 

— Production

Compagnie Thor

— Coproduction

Théâtre de Namur

— Avec l’appui de

Charleroi/Danses, Centre chorégraphique de la Communauté française

— Avec le soutien du

Ministère de la Communauté française de Belgique (Wallonie-Bruxelles) – Service de la Danse; Commissariat Général aux Relations Internationales de la Communauté française de Belgique

 

Videos

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