Deborah Colker has created for the company a short, graphic work. From the initial semicircle or isolated in their pool of light, the dancers weigh up the space before coming together and pulling away time and time again. The space is filled with a real choreography of panels and veils, both at the back and front of the stage. The bodies intertwine. A real geometry takes shape and develops, invading and then expelling the dancers themselves. In this tremendous graphic retranscription of the evolution of a country, you cannot help but think of that fantasy of modernity that is omnipresent in Brazilian culture. The sound track is played live on stage, a dialogue between alto and sampler.

Source : Maison de la Danse

It was not merely by chance that restlessness and a love of cultural diversity became features of Deborah Colker’s work. Raised in the solitude of classic piano study and the excitement of a collective sport – volleyball, the Rio born choreographer was initiated into contemporary dance by Uruguayan Graciela Figueiroa and her group Coringa, famous in Rio de Janeiro in the 1980s. In 1984, at the invitation of Dina Sfat, an actress of mythological contours in Brazilian theater, she started what was to become the principal element of her career for the next ten years – director of movement – a title especially coined for her by stage director Ulysses Cruz, to underline the relevance of her share in the final results of dozens of theatrical productions in which she collaborated during this period.  The title, which was later incorporated into Brazilian theatrical jargon, can also be applied precisely to her role, for example, in creating movements for the dog characters in TV Colosso – a landmark in Brazilian children’s TV programs in the 1990s.                                    

Before and after founding, in 1994, the company that carries her name, Deborah Colker also imprinted her mark on spheres as distinct as video clip, fashion, the cinema, the circus and showbiz. She also inscribed her name in the history of the greatest show for the masses on earth – the parade of the Samba Schools in Rio de Janeiro, major symbol of Rio’s Carnival, to which she contributed repeatedly, choreographing the “comissões de frente” or leading dance groups, for famous names such as Mangueira, Unidos do Viradouro, and more recently Imperatriz Leopoldinense.

Widely recognized among international critics, the excellence of her work as a choreographer was rewarded in 2001 with the Laurence Olivier Award in the category “Oustanding Achievement in Dance".
 
Five years later, this brought an invitation from FIFA to create the only dance performance to figure in the cultural activities connected to the 2006 World Cup in Germany –Maracanã – incorporated later into the Cia Deborah Colker repertoire under the title of Dinamo.

In 2009, she choreographed the new show for the Cirque de Soleil – "Ovo", an entertaining voyage into the world of insects.

One of the greatest honors, to be Director of Movement of the Olympic Games of Rio 2016 showing a representative visual spectacle of the energy of the Brazilian people. This show also included iconic elements of her work as a choreographer.

Source : Cie Deborah Colker 's website

More information

ciadeborahcolker.com.br 

Author, filmmaker and video artist Charles Picq (1952-2012) entered working life in the 70s through theatre and photography. A- fter resuming his studies (Maîtrise de Linguistique - Lyon ii, Maîtrise des sciences et Techniques de la Communication - grenoble iii), he then focused on video, first in the field of fine arts at the espace Lyonnais d'art Contemporain (ELAC) and with the group « Frigo », and then in dance.
   On creation of the Maison de la Danse in Lyon in 1980, he was asked to undertake a video documentation project that he has continued ever since. During the ‘80s, a decade marked in France by the explosion of contemporary dance and the development of video, he met numerous artists such as andy Degroat, Dominique Bagouet, Carolyn Carlson, régine Chopinot, susanne Linke, Joëlle Bouvier and regis Obadia, Michel Kelemenis. He worked in the creative field with installations and on-stage video, as well as in television with recorded shows, entertainment and documentaries.

His work with Dominique Bagouet (80-90) was a unique encounter. He documents his creativity, assisting with Le Crawl de Lucien and co-directing with his films Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux and 10 anges. in the 90s he became director of video development for the Maison de la Danse and worked, with the support of guy Darmet and his team, in the growing space of theatre video through several initiatives:
       - He founded a video library of dance films with free public access. This was a first for France. Continuing the video documentation of theatre performances, he organised their management and storage.
       - He promoted the creation of a video-bar and projection room, both dedicated to welcoming school pupils.
       - He started «présentations de saisons» in pictures.
       - He oversaw the DVD publication of Le tour du monde en 80 danses, a pocket video library produced by the Maison de la Danse for the educational sector.

       - He launched the series “scènes d'écran” for television and online. He undertook the video library's digital conversion and created Numeridanse.

His main documentaries are: enchaînement, Planète Bagouet, Montpellier le saut de l'ange, Carolyn Carlson, a woman of many faces, grand ecart, Mama africa, C'est pas facile, Lyon, le pas de deux d'une ville, Le Défilé, Un rêve de cirque.

He has also produced theatre films: Song, Vu d'ici (Carolyn Carlson), Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux, 10 anges, Necesito and So schnell, (Dominique Bagouet), Im bade wannen, Flut and Wandelung (Susanne Linke), Le Cabaret Latin (Karine Saporta), La danse du temps (Régine Chopinot), Nuit Blanche (Abou Lagraa), Le Témoin (Claude Brumachon), Corps est graphique (Käfig), Seule et WMD (Françoise et Dominique Dupuy), La Veillée des abysses (James Thiérrée), Agwa (Mourad Merzouki), Fuenteovejuna (Antonio Gades), Blue Lady revistied (Carolyn Carlson).

Source: Maison de la Danse de Lyon