The Ogresse of the archives and her dog

FEAR, VIOLENCE AND POWER

In this group piece, Christian and François Ben Aïm draw on and reinvent the fairy tale to help them investigate contemporary life.

Like escapees from classic fables, a variety of legendary characters invade the stage and coexist in this surreal fable. The fairy tale characters are updated so that they can become an extension of us all and of our inner reality.

Their excesses enable the choreographers to explore human emotions and probe the dark side of our human nature. Christian and François Ben Aïm thus explore the themes of fear, violence and power by examining how we all react to them. Often addressed in literature and fairy tales, these subjects are also recurring themes in the choreographers’ work.

The choreographers give rise to an unusual universe of strange beauty, where nothing is really what it seems.

UNUSUAL AND STRANGE

Throughout the piece, the viewer oscillates between dream and reality. Reality is continually subverted and disrupted by the superimposition and surreal arrangement of the events represented. Different dimensions and proportions appear alongside each other: the infinitely small and very large, the multiplication of characters and unity.

The dancers embody this strangeness in choreographic roles that exude offbeat attitudes and behaviours. The moves are unstructured, engaged and naïve, sweet and deformed, with an uncertain rhythm, monstrous jerks and absurd dance steps.

The concept of metamorphosis, which is at the core of the piece, also drives this subversion. We witness various transformations, from princess to Little Red Riding Hood, from the Big Bad Wolf to the Sleeping Beauty, from the Ogre to Tom Thumb.

Through costume changes and soft, sensual movements, the male performers embody a succession of different female figures, playing with their ambiguities.

LIVE MUSIC

A cellist and percussionist share the stage with dancers and circus artists. Combining dance and music with the theme of fairy tales reinforces the poetic elements of the piece.

The music of the show is the second original création of Jean-Baptiste Sabiani for Christian and François Ben Aïm.