Skip to main content
Back to search
  • Add to playlist

Le prétexte à danser

Le prétexte à danser

Prétexte à danser (Le)

Kelemenis, Michel

French dancer and choreographer born in Toulouse in 1960.


After training as a gymnast, Michel Kelemenis begins dancing in Marseille at the age of 17. In 1983, he performs in the Centre Chorégraphique National de Montpellier with Dominique Bagouet and choreographs his first works, among which Aventure coloniale with Angelin Preljocaj in 1984. He was awarded the Villa Médicis Hors les Murs prize in 1987, and founded Kelemenis & cie (Association Plaisir d’Offrir) in the same year. In 1991, he received the Leonardo da Vinci scholarship and Japan’s Uchida Shogakukin fund. His numerous works (more than 60, of which 40 for his company) are performed throughout the world.


In love with movement and dancers, with those exceptional moments when gesture topples a role, Michel Kelemenis structures his works around the search for a balance between abstraction and figuration.


For his personal style, which combines finesse and athletic performance, the choreographer is invited to work with the ballets of the Paris Opera, the Rhin Opera, the Opera du Nord, the Geneva Opera and the Ballet National de Marseille.


In 2000, he directed the lyric and choreographic drama, L’Atlantide, by Henri Tomasi for the Marseille Opera. He has since collaborated with the Festival d’Art Lyrique of Aix-en-Provence: in 2003, he put to movement 4 animalacrobats in Stravinsky’s Renard, directed by Klaus-Michaël Grüber and conducted by Pierre Boulez; in 2004, he assisted Luc Bondy for the chorus movements in Handel’s Hercules, conducted by William Christie.


Since 2008, he starts a reflexion about narration concept, with an approach of creation for young audience.


Through Franch Institute, he participates regularly with French cultural services abroad in Krakow, Kyoto, Johannesburg and Los Angeles, in India, Korea and China. These trips engender training projects, new productions and bilateral exchanges with foreign companies and artists employing various modes of expression.


Numerous programs are organized in higher education and professional training institutions (Coline, Ecole Nationale de Danse de Marseille, and especially with the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Lyon).


The 10th of december 2007, after 10 years of activity at the Studio/Kelemenis, the Conseil Municipal of Marseille votes in favor of the project Centre de danse en résidence conceived and initiated by the choreographer. Intituled KLAP Maison pour la danse, Construction begins in February 2010 with a completion date planned for spring of the following year.


Source : Kelemenis&cie


More information : http://www.kelemenis.fr/fr/

Picq, Charles

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

Kelemenis & cie

Founded in 1987 by the dancer and choreographer Michel Kelemenis - Plaisir d’Offrir – the association supporting the activities of Kelemenis & cie settled in Marseilles in 1989. Since then, the company produces a new show each year that it presents in international tours. 

Signed by Michel Kelemenis, a repertoire of more than 60 works has been built up. The most prominent include the founding duo Plaisir d’Offrir (1987), the programme of farewell to Dominique Bagouet Clins de lune (1993), 3 poèmes inédits (2001), Besame mucho (2004), the fable for young audiences Henriette & Matisse (2010), the bloodthirsty tale for 8 dancers La Barbe bleue (2015) ...

In 1999, the company inaugurated the Studio/Kelemenis. Located in the 15th district of Marseille, its aim is to support creation. Shared and placed at the disposal of other professional dance companies, it ensures regular activity and a link with the district’s educational establishments. The result was the Educadanse programme.

The desire to support artists in the creative act underwent a new boom in 2006 at the first edition of the Question de danse festival.

The following year, the company celebrated its 20th anniversary and created a unique event Olé !, grouping artists, theatres and partners for 3 festive weeks. That same year, the city voted favourably for the project to construct a Residency dance centre (“KLAP -Centre de danse en residence”) initiated by Michel Kelemenis and supported by the company. 

An altruist, Michel Kelemenis involves his company in international cooperation projects. In 2006, Croisements, backed by the cultural department of the French Embassy in Beijing, linked Kelemenis & cie with the project of the director of the Beijing Modern Dance Company, thereby reconciling traditional culture and new freedom. In 2008, accompanied by the dancer Caroline Blanc, after 2 weeks of classes, the choreographer handed over a flagship work of the company, taking the title of Besame mucho (Kiss me much) to the 6 young dancers of the Moving into dance Mophatong dance company in Johannesburg.

On October 21st 2011, KLAP Maison pour la danse was inaugurated. Immediately, KLAP amplified the actions of Kelemenis & cie around creation, educational artistic sharing, and choreographic culture with the creation of 2 new festivals: +DE DANSE (2012) and Festiv’Anges, a dance festival for children and young people, starting in 2014.

The company expanded its repertoire and explored new areas: territorial irrigation (My Way - 2012) and outdoor irrigation (Zef ! - 2014), young public (Rock & Goal - 2016) and an overview of the repertoire (COLLECTOR - 2017). 

The COLLECTOR programme (created in 2017 for the company’s 30th anniversary) revives the duos and quartets from 1984 to 2017 and overviews the vast and varied repertoire of Kelemenis & cie. 


Source : Kelemenis&cie


More information : http://www.kelemenis.fr/fr/

Prétexte à danser (Le)

Choreography : Michel Kelemenis

Interpretation : Séverine Bauvais, Christophe Le Blay, Michel Kelemenis

Additionnal music : George Gershwin

Lights : Manuel Bernard

Costumes : Philippe Combeau

Sound : André Serré

Production / Coproduction of the choreographic work : Kelemenis & cie / Culturgest, Lisbonne / avec le soutien du Ballet National de Marseille - Pietragalla

Production / Coproduction of the video work : Plaisir d'offrir / Kelemenis & cie

Our videos suggestions
03:38

Yvette Chauviré

Fokine, Michel (France)

  • Add to playlist
02:56

Ligne de crête

Marin, Maguy (France)

  • Add to playlist
02:58

Another look at memory

Lebrun, Thomas (France)

  • Add to playlist
03:12

Têtes d'Affiche

Tchouda, Bouba Landrille (France)

  • Add to playlist
02:40

Cartes postales de Chimère

Bédard, Louise (Canada)

  • Add to playlist
06:30

Sorrow Swag

Lewis, Ligia (France)

  • Add to playlist
03:58

Impair - focus

Brabant, Jérôme (Reunion)

  • Add to playlist
01:31

CIe Pedro Pauwels - DCN 2013

Pauwels, Pedro (France)

  • Add to playlist
01:00:01

Réservé au personnel

Touzé, Loïc (France)

  • Add to playlist
31:09

Klimsbeu

Le Doaré, Patrick (France)

  • Add to playlist
01:33:50

L'Effraction du silence

Bouvier, Joëlle (France)

  • Add to playlist
05:55

Dance, if you want to enter my country!

Matsune, Michikazu (France)

  • Add to playlist
04:55

Slow, heavy and blue

Carlson, Carolyn (France)

  • Add to playlist
01:19:53

Undici Onde

Carlson, Carolyn (Italy)

  • Add to playlist
05:59

STAYIN ALIVE

Tompkins, Mark (France)

  • Add to playlist
02:57

BROTHER

Da Silva Ferreira, Marco (France)

  • Add to playlist
06:03

La Langue brisée (3)

L. Boulba, Pauline (France)

  • Add to playlist
05:17

Les Serrenhos du Caldeirão, exercices en anthropologie fictionnelle

Mantero, Vera (France)

  • Add to playlist
07:18

Je me souviens

Hoghe, Raimund (France)

  • Add to playlist
05:18

Reusable Parts/Endless Love

Gerard, Brennan (France)

  • Add to playlist
Our themas suggestions

Roots of Diversity in Contemporary Dance

Exposition virtuelle

fr/en/

LATITUDES CONTEMPORAINES

Exposition virtuelle

fr/en/

les ballets C de la B and the aesthetic of reality

Exposition virtuelle

fr/en/

Meeting with literature

Collaboration between a choreographer and a writer can lead to the emergence of a large number of combinations. If sometimes the choreographer creates his dance around the work of an author, the writer can also choose dance as the subject of his text.

Parcours

fr/en/

When reality breaks in

How does choreographic works are testimonies of the world? Does the contemporary artist is the product of an era, of its environment, of a culture?

Parcours

fr/en/

Dance in Quebec: Untamed Bodies

First part of the Parcours about dance in Quebec, these extracts present how bodies are being used in a very physical way.

Parcours

fr/en/

The Dance Biennial Défilé

Exposition virtuelle

fr/en/

Improvisation

 Discovery of improvisation’s specificities in dance. 

Parcours

fr/en/

Black Dance

James Carlès, dancer and choreographer and specialist of Afro-American dance, evokes the origin of current-day urban dances. From Africa to the United States via Europe, he emphasizes their hybrid style and puts their social and political dimension into perspective. A myriad of videos, photos, illustrations and additional resources complement this interview.

Webdoc

fr/en/

Why do I dance ?

Social dances, anti-establishment, protest dances, rhythms or identities, rituals or pleasures... There are a myriad of reasons for dancing and a myriad of points of view. A webdoc to discover, enhanced with extracts from performances and accounts from amateurs... all the right reasons for dancing!

Webdoc

fr/en/

Genesis of work

A dance show is created in multiples steps between the enunciation of an initial desire which launch the project and the first representation. This parcours presents diff

Parcours

fr/en/

Bagouet Collection

Exposition virtuelle

fr/en/

The national choreographic centres

Exposition virtuelle

fr/en/

Carolyn Carlson, a woman of many faces

Exposition virtuelle

fr/en/

Western classical dance enters the modernity of the 20th century: The Ballets russes and the Ballets suédois

If the 19th century is that of romanticism, the entry into the new century is synonymous of modernity! It was a few decades later that it would be assigned, a posteriori, the name of “neo-classical”. 

Parcours

fr/en/
By accessing the website, you acknowledge and accept the use of cookies to assist you in your browsing.
You can block these cookies by modifying the security parameters of your browser or by clicking onthis link.
I accept Learn more