Figures non obligées

Recorded at the CND 9 December 2015

Piece for two dancers and four musicians

With their Figures non Obligées, Adeline Lerme and Bruno Benne provide a contemporary perspective on the repertoire of baroques dances transcribed as Beauchamp-Feuillet notation by using it as research source material and providing a creative reinterpretation. In addition to the dancers Concert Etranger quartet performs on the stage.

“Therefore everyone being placed following the same order, when His Majesty wishes to begin, he stands, and the Court stands with him. The King positions himself in the area of the apartment where the dance is to take place” (The Dancing Master, Pierre Rameau – 1725).

During the “Grand Bal” ceremonial during the reign of Louis XIV, a specific protocol was implemented to give political importance to choreographic art, way beyond a mere recreational activity. In hierarchical order following the King, couples followed one by one to dance alone in front of a crowd of enlightened, critical connoisseurs. The minuet, main dance at the time, was composed of standard figures that the dancing couple had to perform throughout that dance.

With their Figures Non Obligées (‘non-standard figures’), Adeline Lerme and Bruno Benne borrow liberally from the codes and repertoire of dances transcribed as Beauchamp-Feuillet to provide a creative, stylish reinterpretation in a highly modern world.

The six performers hijack the representation of the baroque body with its volumes and spirals and recreate the standard curtseys by shifting the looks on the royal couple and rethinking the image of the dancing master and the music score common to baroque musicians and dancers.

Updating March 2016