Anne Nguyen presents the eight breakdancers in Kata as the last remaining representatives of a warrior ideal, a code of honour that appears absurd in the present-day world. Bodies, engaged in martial arts type sequences, reach out towards fictitious opponents, who materialise only to give rise to fights played out in dance steps. Each breakdance movement takes on a new meaning, transforming the dancers into modern-day samurai warriors. As seen in the kata of martial arts, the shapes they create and repeat appear to conceal hidden concepts. Gestures metamorphose into genuine battle reflexes adaptable to many situations. Beyond the search for martial efficiency, the sheer determination firing the dancer's steps embody a kind of spirituality and moral attitude. By practicing their art, they hope to improve the self, develop their vital energy and reach a harmony with their environment. However, the world in which they move is suffused with a latent, mundane violence, building many barriers in the way of physical interaction between individuals and encouraging passivity. Although they step back from the paradox of their situation, the last remaining representatives of a bygone way disengage themselves from battles that are perceived as increasingly illusory.

Source : Compagnie par Terre

More information : www.compagnieparterre.com

Dancer and choreographer of the par Terre Dance Company, Anne Nguyen is first and foremost a b-girl, specialising in hip-hop floorworks. She has performed with many hip-hop and contemporary dance companies such as Black Blanc Beur, Faustin Linyekula and Salia Nï Seydou… She formed part of the breakdance crews RedMask in Montreal, as well as Phase T, Def Dogz and Créteil Style in Paris, and has taken part in hundreds of battles, , either solo or in groups, winning several high-profile competitions, such as IBE 2004 or BOTY 2005. She has served as judge on many others, including BOTY 2006 and Redbull BC One 2007. She makes an appearance in the documentary film « Planet B-Boy » (2007).

Anne Nguyen also writes poetry, short prose items and articles on dance (« Danser magazine », « Repères, cahier de danse »). Excerpts from her collection of poems, the Manual of the City Warrior have been published in "Graff It ! magazine", on which she was chief editor of the dance section. Several pieces performed by the Company incorporate Anne Nguyen’s texts, recorded or spoken (« Square Root », « Spirit of the Underground »). Anne teaches hip-hop dance using a method based on postures, on the deconstruction of dance moves and on their subsequent deployment within the performance space. Since 2012, she has taught a technical and theoretical workshop on hip-hop dance at the University of Sciences Po Paris, called Hip-hop, a contemporary culture. 

Source: Par Terre Dance Company 's website

More information : compagnieparterre.fr

Anne Nguyen, associated artist to Chaillot - Théâtre national de la Danse from 2015 to 2018, was awarded the 2013 SACD Nouveau Talent Choréographie prize and appointed Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2015.

The par Terre Dance Company is funded by l’aide pluriannuelle du Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication / DRAC Ile-de-France, la Région Ile-de-France, l'aide au fonctionnement du Département du Val-de-Marne and le soutien du Département de Seine-Saint-Denis.

The par Terre Dance Company’s international tours have been supported several times by l'Institut Français, and occasionally by la Ville de Paris. The Dance Company has been supported several times by l’ADAMI for its productions. It has also previously been supported by ARCADI Ile-de-France. Autarcie (….) has been funded by Aide à l’écriture granted by the Beaumarchais-SACD association.

Since its creation in 2005, the par Terre Dance Company has been invited to take part in artist-in-residence programmes at Théâtre Louis Aragon, Scène conventionnée de Tremblay-en-France, at Théâtre 71, Scène nationale de Malakoff, at Le Rive Gauche, Scène conventionnée de Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray, at Théâtre Paul Eluard de Choisy-le-Roi and at Le Prisme, Centre de Développement Artistique de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines and at l'Espace 1789, Scène conventionnée de Saint-Ouen.

Source : Compagnie par Terre

More information : www.compagnieparterre.fr