Since he created Zahrbat, his first solo, Brahim Bouchelaghem has gone on to develop work as a choreographer and author that is highly-particular and sensitive. His dance, open to the world, nourishes itself with reflection, memories and exchanges. Each creation is a new adventure towards discovering the other. As such, for this new creation, he decided to take a group of eight Russian dancers with him into his poetic world. Together, they went on a quest to find sensitive expression, emotion. This creation focuses on real human exchange where paths of lives and poetic aspirations blend together. The strength of character and will power of these dancers propelled their troupe, the TOP 9, unto the international stage, where they took part in hip-hop contests and won the supreme honour, for a crew of breakdancers, Battle of the Year 2008.

Today, they have decided to write a new chapter in their history by discovering hip-hop d'auteur with Brahim Bouchelaghem. Drawing from human experiences, Brahim Bouchelaghem wished to confront paths of life that he would go on to illustrate through three themes: free will, the relationship between the individual and the group and the construction of the individual. These are the individual paths, the personal memories of each of the TOP 9 that would create the substance, the clay that Brahim Bouchelaghem set about modelling. Hand-in-hand with them, he questioned the crucial moments of past choices, choices that were insignificant or decisive. Together, they travelled again along the paths that branch off, transposing human experiences through danced movements and techniques that are specific to hip-hop. They occupy the spaces that divide horizontality and verticality, seeking their own arc between two deaths.

Source : Maison de la Danse programme

Born in Roubaix in 1972, Brahim Bouchelaghem discovered hip-hop in 1984. He trained and perfected his skills, then went on to acquire his first professional experiences and take part in the Battle of the Year 96. Spotted by Farid Berki, he joined the compagnie Melting Spot the same year. 

 In 1998, he joined the compagnie Käfig. The five years he spent with Mourad Merzouki offered him the opportunity to further his work as a performer and to acquire an intense initial experience as a trainer and assistant choreographer on the  project, organized as part of the Algeria Year.
 In 2004, Kader Attou invited him to recreate a role in Pourquoi pas.... This work was the starting point of a partnership and complicity, which led the compagnie Accrorap to produce Brahim Bouchelaghem's first creation, the solo “Zahrbat”. 

 In 2006, the compagnie Frank ll Louise invited him to recreate the roles for Drop it.
 In 2007, he met Carolyn Carlson, who decided to back his choreographic work and qualified him as a poet.
The same year, he founded the compagnie Zahrbat which benefited from the companionship of the Roubaix Nord-Pas de Calais National Choreographic Centre. He pursued his collaboration with Accrorap, through Kader Attou's creation Petites Histoires.com.

In 2008, he created El Firak and in January 2009, a new solo “What Did You Say? in partnership with Carolyn Carlson. In 2009, whilst on tour with Zahrbat in Saint Petersburg, he met a crew of hip-hop dancers, TOP 9, with whom he initiated a creative project “Davaï Davaï...”, performed for the first time on 11 July 2010.

In 2011, he became an associated artist at the CCN Roubaix as part of the Red Brick project. He joined the creative team for we were horses by Carolyn Carlson and Bartabas. In January 2012, he created a short piece for the Dancewindows programme, Tracks, using jazz music.
In 2012, he created Hiya (her), a piece about women, and more particularly in homage to his mother, in June 2012, for the Montpellier Dance Festival, for 3 dancers and some participation from him.
In 2013, he set up his company at Studio 28, 28 rue des Champs in Roubaix, in partnership with the Town of Roubaix ; workshops and regular classes will soon be organised there.
He also participated in Melissa Ellberger's creation in The Hague in February 2013.

Sources : Maison de la Danse show program ; Zahrbat Cie 's website

More information : zahrbat.com

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