Retour en Avant / Past Forward Biennale de la Danse Lyon - France

Aïcha M’Barekand Hafiz DhaouIn Tunis, Aïcha M’Barek and HafizDhaou are part of the contemporary choreographicscene. They trained at Sybel BalletThéâtre in Tunisia.In 2000, Aïcha M’Barek gained a bursary tostudy at the Institut Français de Coopération,and took classes at France’s national centre forcontemporary dance (CNDC) in Angers, whereshe met Dominique Dupuy, Angelin Preljocaj,Alvaro Restrepo and Joëlle Bouvier. A while later,she received a carte blanche invitation to createa work. The result was Essanaï, for four dancers;and then a solo, Le Télégramme. In 2004, sheperformed Sophie Tabakov’s Temps de Feu atla Biennale de la Danse de Lyon. She settled inLyon to study for a master’s degree in arts andculture professions at Lyon-2 University.Hafiz Dhaou came to France at the same timeand in the same conditions as Aïcha M’Barek.He started choreographing in 2002 with a triotitled Inta Omni; then with a solo, Zenzena(“The Cell”). He then made two short films,Au-delà des mots and 5ème étage au bout ducouloir, in collaboration with Rolando Rocha.In 2003, he created h.M for six male and onefemale dancers at the French National ChoreographicCentre (CCN) in Montpellier. In 2004, hedanced Cutting Flat for Abou Lagraa’s companyLa Baraka. Since 2005, he has been an associateartist at the National Choreographic Centre(CCN) in Caen, and performs for Héla Fattoumiand Eric Lamoureux.In parallel to their performance pathways, theyare developing a joint style of choreographic writing.In 2004, Aïcha M’Barek and Hafiz Dhaoumade the duet Khallini Aïch (“Let Me Live”) aspart of the Repérages de danse event in Lille,and pursued their collaboration as part of DominiqueHervieu’s project, L’Art de la Rencontre.In 2005 they founded Compagnie Chatha, withwhich they created the quartet Khaddem Hazemfor the 2006 Biennale de la Danse de Lyon. Theyhave since been mindful to evolve their choreographiclanguage and create an anchorage thatreflects their bipolar performer/choreographerpathway. They also make a point of touring theirworks around the world: in Africa, Europe, theMiddle East and North America.VU / premiering at the BiennaleVU (“Seen”) is a two-letter, one-syllable wordthat also signifies the infinitely intimate insightswe gain into the other; the other whom we areaddressing.VU stemmed from thinking about our bodies,which think they have said it all.Bodies that secrete an appearance. Bodies readyto deal with every situation, despite the fragilityand doubts that dwell in them always.What does the piece put before the audience?Emotion, purity, experience, passion, fear, generosity,ego, brotherhood, vice, rigour… Peopleforge a self which regulates their relationshipswith others.VU is the perceived shell that we see as goldenand silvery, like copper. A raw material, easy todisguise as gold or silver; a robust material thatshapes itself to every posture; a material thatsounds and resonates. Perhaps it reflects eachperson’s ability to create their own, uniqueplace.There is a hidden side to VU; the sideour bodies carry inside and do notventure to consider unprompted.Most of our attitudes andbehaviours – conditioned bysociety, by the weight oftradition, and by the dogmaof religion – are constructed“out of field” andunveiled in public.For this project wehave brought togetherfive performers, twocomposer/musiciansand a lighting designer– an array of facetsand stances. Throughtheir sensibilities andviewpoints, VU willtake form.Aïcha M’Barek and HafizDhaou, september 07How can the past shape the future?In each person’s past, there is a date of creation anda cognitive transmission that helps construct a bodily,personal and collective memory.Today, each person can tap this past to decide on theirchoices, take decisions and plan for the future.Aïcha M’Barek and Hafiz DhaouExtra info:World premiereCo-produced by the BiennaleThe company performed at the 2006 Biennale35