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.

Christian and François Ben Aïm studied dance, physical theatre and circus skills before setting out to develop their performing careers independently in Canada and France.

They began collaborating in 1997 when they co-created their first piece, and went on to form their own company, CFB 451, in 1999. To date they have choreographed some twenty pieces together.

Their first piece, A l’abri du regard des hommes, avant d’aller mourir ailleurs, represents a cornerstone in their production. It is a hybrid piece in which dancers and actors feed off each other’s raw physical energy. La Frontera and Ne vous fiez pas au titre, il peut encore changer followed in the same vein, showcasing a style of dance that blends subtle humour with elements of surprise. In 2004 and 2006 they worked on a diptych inspired by the work of playwright Bernard-Marie Koltès, Carcasses, un œil pour deux and En plein cœur. The set designs and original musical scores of both pieces resonate with the texts. 

Music has since played an increasingly significant role in their creations. Many of their choreographies are performed to original musical compositions (You're a bird, now!, Amor Fati Fati Amor, Louves, Résistance au droit, L'ogresse des archives et son chien, La forêt ébouriffée). In You're a bird, now! and L'ogresse des archives et son chien, the musicians and/or singer are part of the stage set and perform their music live.

The score for La légèreté des tempêtes (2014) was composed before the choreography was written, a first for the company. This allowed composer Jean-Baptiste Sabiani a great deal of creative freedom to interpret the theme of the piece. The music is played on stage by three cellists and a singer-percussionist.