Nacho Duato was inspired by the nature of Valencia, surrounded by sea and sun, and by Mediterranean aromas, colors and flavors, to create Gnawa. The Gnawas are a mystical Islamic fellowship. Duato is interested in gravity and the use of the solo as key elements in constituting his dance. This interest is renewed in a ritualistic tone involving a musical trance that leads to (and is driven by) the movement of the bodies. 

Source : São Paulo Companhia de Dança

Born in Valencia/Spain, Nacho Duato began his professional dance education at the age of 18 at the Rambert School in London. He continued his studies at the Mudra School of Maurice Béjart and eventually completed his education at the Ailey American Dance Center in New York.
 

In 1980, Nacho Duato signed his first contract at the Cullberg Ballet in Stockholm. A year later, Jiří Kylián hired him for the Nederlands Dans Theter in Den Haag. For his achievements as a dancer, Nacho Duato was awarded the « VSCD Gouden Dansprijs » in 1987. His talent soon led Nacho Duato beyond being a dancer to devote himself to choreography, too. His first choreography for the Nederlands Dans Theater in 1983, « Jardí Tancat » featuring Spanish-Catalonian music by Maria del Mar Bonet became a highly praised success and earned him the 1st prize of the International Choreographic Competition in Cologne. In 1986, Nacho Duato was appointed house choreographer of the Nederlands Dans Theater together with Hans van Manen and Jiří Kylián. During his time at the Compañía Nacional de Danza, Nacho Duato also worked for other companies.  In 1992, he created "Duende" for the Nederlands Dans Theater featuring music by Claude Debussy. At the American Ballet Theatre, he created "Remanso" featuring music by Enrique Granados in 1997 and "Without Words" (Franz Schubert) in 1998.
 

One year after his 20thanniversary at the Compañía Nacional de Danza, Duato left Spain and was appointed Artistic Director of the Mikhailovsky Theatre in St. Petersburg on January 1st2011. There, he staged two world premieres in 2011, „Nunc Dimittis“ and „Invisible“, and developed his own versions of „Sleeping Beauty”, „Romeo and Juliet” and „The Nutcracker”. His newest production „Depakine“ was created for the Martha Graham Dance Company in 2014. Starting with the 2014 / 2015 season, Nacho Duato has become Artistic Director of the Staatsballett Berlin. After staging his choreographies "Sleeping Beauty", "Multiplicity", "Forms of Silence and Emptiness”, "White Darkness”, "Herrumbre”, "Castrati” and a new piece called "Static Time”, he will present “The Nutcracker” and another new creation in the ongoing season.

Source: Staatsballett Berlin 's website

More information : staatsballett-berlin.de

Born in 1977, Fabien Plasson is a video director specialized in the field of performing arts (dance , music, etc).

During his studies at the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts de Lyon (joined in 1995) Fabien discovered video art. He was trained by various video artists (Joel Bartoloméo Pascal Nottoli , Eric Duyckaerts , etc).
He first experimented with the creation of installations and cinematic objects.

From 2001 to 2011, he was in charge of Ginger & Fred video Bar’s programming at La Maison de la Danse in Lyon. He discovered the choreographic field and the importance of this medium in the dissemination, mediation and pedagogical approach to dance alongside Charles Picq, who was a brilliant video director and the director of the video department at that time.

Today, Fabien Plasson is the video director at La Maison de la Danse and in charge of the video section of Numeridanse.tv, an online international  video library, and continues his creative activities, making videos of concerts, performances and also creating video sets for live performances.

Sources: Maison de la Danse ; Fabien Plasson website

More information: fabione.fr

Artistic direction: Inês Bogéa

Creation: 2008

Created in January 2008 by the Government of the State of Sao  Paulo, The São Paulo Dance Company (SPDC) is directed by Inês Bogéa,  doctor of arts, ballet-dancer, documentary maker and writer.

Throughout this period, the Company has been seen by an audience of  more than 1.000,000 people in different countries (Argentina, Austria,  Belgium, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, Holland, Israel,  Italy, Luxembourg, Paraguay, Switzerland, the United States of America,  Uruguay, Mexico, the United Arab Emirates), experiencing approximately  150 cities, totaling more than 1,100 performances. The Company has a  varied repertoire, ranging from classical to contemporary. Recognized by  specialized critics as one of the main dance companies of Latin  America, since its creation, the Company has produced more than 80  choreographies, including commissioned new works  of important names of international dance like Edouard Lock, Richard  Siegal and Marco Goecke, and Brazilian choreographers, as Rodrigo  Pederneiras, Henrique Rodovalho e Jomar Mesquita; and restages of works from Jirí Kylián, William Forsythe, George Balanchine, Nijinska, Nacho Duato among others.

SPDC searches for a connection with the audience by curiosity and  perception of the dance world in motion. The programs show the variety  of the repertoire of SPDC and the dynamics of Brazilian dancers. The  dancers are versatile and able to move from classical to contemporary  dance with a particular accent. The Company is a meeting place of  distinct artists – such as choreographers, light designers,  photographers, guest lecturers, restagers, writers, artists,  cartoonists, musicians, costume designers and others.

The Educational and Audience Awareness Programs, another strand of  action of SPDC, are divided into: Lecture For Educators, in which we  have the opportunity to dialogue about the backstage of this art; Dance  Workshops, a meeting to experience the daily life of the dancers; Open  Performances for Students and Senior Citizens, in which the proposal is  to see, hear and perceive the dance world; Programs focus on social  institutions and organizations aimed to take the dance culture to  different audiences and spaces; Dança em Rede (Dance Network), an online  dance encyclopedia on the Company’s website and a series of 39  documentaries about the History of Dance in Brazil.

Source: The São Paulo Dance Company 's website

More information : spcd.com.br