Fringe first timer
A raw, loud and anti establishment howl of dissent from Frédérick Gravel, the enfant terrible of Canadian dance and Étienne Lepage, one of their most in demand novelists. They team up to create a piece that explodes the conventions of theatre and dance to a backdrop of the music of Jimi Hendrix.
www.danielleveilledanse.org
King's Hall in Association with Summerhall, 2-27 Aug (not 7, 14, 21) 19.30 (70 mins)
Étienne Lepage and Frédérick Gravel of Thus Spoke…
Frédérick’s answers
What was the inspiration for this performance/show?
The inspiration was the meeting between us, the creators. What could we do together, that would not be the choreographer directing a text of the author, or the author doing the dramaturgy of the choreography. We wanted to find a space that would be our space, that we would both understand and that would interest us both. In a sense this first show that we created together is the result of our meeting but also a bit of a manifesto of what we could do in the future of our collaboration.
Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas?
Yes it is. The live presence is something that cannot be replaced. Being in the same space in the same time creates this forced complicity. The show needs an audience to work, to be effective, even if the audience is not totally into it. But if we manage to bring the audience into the logic of the show, it makes everybody think about the same ideas/problems/situations at the same time, without telling anybody how to think. Because the performers are characters, characters that are thinking these things, and not the voice of the reason, or the voice of the author. Thinking about something, and having fun doing it, is a good starting point of a conversation.
How did you first become interested in making performance?
I guess I was interested in performing since I was having a band at school... But I got interested in performance and dance and theatre when I was 20, when I actually started to train in dance and discover this infinite universe. We don't hear that much about the vast underground scene unless somebody or something pulls you into it.
Is there any particular approach you took to the making of the show?
I guess this answer is already up there somewhere.
Does the show fit with the style of your other productions?
I guess so. If we don't mind the fact that our other productions are dance for the choreographer, and written plays for the author. Our style is still recognizable.
What do you hope that the audience will experience?
I hope that they will enter this as an invitation to go through everybody's thoughts about the meaning of the world and how funny we are in the way we think we are right about everything. It can be quite funny to put spontaneous ideas to the test of going further into the logic of these ideas.
Étienne’s answers
What was the inspiration for this performance/show?
We are not the first to try, but making a show that involves different disciplines, and trying to make it in a complete collaboration, and not everybody standing in his expertise, is an inspiration in itself. Just put the conditions of creation in place and let the things go where they can.
Is performance still a good space for the public discussion of ideas?
Of course! It might even be the best place, the only place, considering the disappearance of public spaces everywhere in Occident. I would even say it's a shame people have to pay to get the opportunity to work their mind and face live challenges together. It should be free (and compulsory!).
How did you first become interested in making performance?
I always wanted to shine, but without contributing to the cultural ocean of crap that surrounds us. I always wanted to create stuff very critical, intelligent and creative people would admire. Half ego half hero.
Is there any particular approach you took to the making of the show?
Well the thing is, putting movements and words together doesn't work like putting movements and music together. Movements and words tend to explain one another, once put side by side, even when you don't want to, thus killing each other's magic. They also have the bad habit of taking to much place, even when they're alone. So together, it's like watching to shows at the same time. Our work quickly became a trial and error sort of game, where we would throw texts and movements at each other until intersting combinations would rise. Ones where each of them would collaborate with the other.
Does the show fit with the style of your other productions?
Yes and no. It does certainly in spirit. It's all about criticising common sense about humanity, good faith, love and happiness, in a provocative dark humoristic way. But also, it's very different, considering Frédérick usually does dance and Étienne theater in a more orthodox way.
What do you hope that the audience will experience?
A mix of pleasure and discomfort, I guess. The show is an invitation to fun and games and humour and rock and roll. But it’s also stabbing a little knife in the back of the head.
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