Carolyn Carlson
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Seeds (back to the land) Creation 2016 Carolyn Carlson Piece for 3 dancers For young and all audiences Seeds (back to the land) Creation 2016 Choreography | Carolyn Carlson Choreographic Assistant | Sara Orselli Dance | Chinatsu Kosakatani, Ismaera Takeo Ishii, Alexis Ochin Elyx (animated by YAK) Video creation, animation | Yacine Aït Kaci (YAK) Original music | Aleksi Aubry-Carlson Lights | Guillaume Bonneau Costumes | Olivier Mulin Costumes fabrication | Fatima Azakkour Ismaera’s outfit by Arnaud Lazérat Props and scenery | Gilles Nicolas Production | Carolyn Carlson Company Coproduction | Théâtre National de Chaillot ; CCN de Rillieux-la-Pape In collaboration with Briqueterie / CDC Val de Marne ; CDC Atelier de Paris-Carolyn Carlson and Studio 28 with the support of Crédit du Nord Length | 50 min Piece for all audiences from age 7 On tour - 4 & 5 May 2017: Théâtre des Bergeries, Noisy-le-Sec - 27 to 30 May 2017: Shenzhen & Beijing (China) - 12 & 13 Octobre 2017: Valence - 23 & 24 Septembre 2017: Moscow (RU) - 28 Octobre 2017: Cannes - Mars 2018: Saint-Etienne, Lyon, Montceau, Dinan, Aubervilliers… (booking in progress) TV News (french national TV TF1 – 01/16/16) about Seeds: http://lci.tf1.fr/jt-we/videos/2016/seeds- l-ode-a-la-nature-signee-carolyn-carlson-8707064.html?xtmc=carolyn%20carlson&xtcr=1 TV cultural show « Entrée Libre » France 5 – 02/11/16 about Seeds and others creations by Carolyn Carlson: http://dai.ly/x3rpirt Seeds (back to the land) Creation 2016 In 2006, Carolyn Carlson created her solo Double Vision in close partnership with the artist ---- Yacine Aït Kaci. In this solo, the space was One seed planted echoing the body, the stage was an immense ten-thousand trees projection screen, the gigantic costumes were dust, wind, and copper wings the skin of an image in perpetual movement. scattering of the seeds --- Today, Carolyn and Yacine (YAK) initiate a new creation, this time aimed at young audiences. Carolyn choreographs; Yacine animates ELYX, a small drawned figure placed in a real world in order to open our eyes on what is surrounding us, and transform reality with the only power of our imagination. Seeds is a joyful ode to Mother Earth, as much as a call to the future generations for a greater awareness of environmental urgency and the danger of daily extinctions of many living species. ---- The performers imagine the world of tomorrow: I pluck a petal from a flower a couple of Japanese dancers who are pin it to the wall becoming aware of the danger; a third dancer, to remember how vast the mirror image of Elyx on stage, questioning the Universe sings audience both young and old alike, all coming born to seed and mystery from a seed; and Elyx, who in a way is the --- fourth dancer, as a whistleblower angel. Carolyn Carlson The title, Seeds, deals with themes such as birth, or rebirth, an ode to hope: seeds will be spread, virtually or physically, for the blooming of new ideas and desires, to celebrate life. Questions to Carolyn Carlson and Yacine Aït Kaci The title of the piece, Seeds, refers to birth, rebirth, hope. What is your source of inspiration? CC – It’s a call to awareness: the Earth is in danger, I’m talking about an environmental urgency, numerous species of plants, animals and insects are under threat of extinction. We have to be aware that what enables us to live on this planet, our food, the air we breathe, our humanity; they all come from seeds, seeds that give birth. This piece is an ode to the seed, sacred source. Let’s cherish what has been given to us, let’s think of the future generations who will have to preserve the Earth. In Norway there is a world stock of seeds, a place where are stored all seeds from all subsistence crops of the Planet in order to preserve genetic diversity. I think it’s brilliant and promising! You collaborate again with the visual artist Yacine Aït Kaci, with whom you created your solo Double Vision in 2006. Why did you choose him again? CC - Yacine is a visual artist, who can express with video concepts what we can barely express with words. It was the case for Double Vision already, we literally drew the piece, it served as a basis to create my movement, my poetry. Video magnified my choreographic language. We will use the same method for Seeds, Yacine’s visual creations will tell the story of the piece: with the video, we will go from a seed falling to the ground to a tree growing. It’s fantastic. YAK – 10 years after our first and successful collaboration, Double Vision, with Electronic Shadow, it is a pleasure to work with Carolyn again and at the same time it is a big step for me. I don’t neglect technology with Elyx, on the contrary I devote myself to the next stage, its fusion with humanity. Humanity that becomes a sort of lifeblood, an invisible link that gradually defines it like an entity in itself. Those seeds of culture, imagination and knowledge, those seeds that are transmitted and passed out, are those of this living system we belong to, with joy and full awareness. What inspires you in Elyx, the little guy drawn by Yacine? CC – When I contacted Yacine for this new collaboration, I didn’t knew that he had created Elyx, a « paper figure » like he calls it. Elyx is a virtual charming character, who tells a story. He represents our first conscience and responds to Humanity’s need to gather and plant seeds. On stage there are 3 dancers and Elyx: a couple of Japanese dancers, Chinatsu Kosakatani; who knows perfectly my work as she was 10 years with me in Roubaix’s CCN; and Ismaera Takeo Ishii, portraying Humanity about to realize. They are observed by a third figure: Alexis Ochin, who questions, he is the intermediary between virtual and real worlds. I’d like to quote Carl Jung who talks of « Shadow », our individual part that doesn’t know itself. Elyx will come and go, he will question our subconscious with the necessary dose of fantasy. Between reality and fiction, Elyx will personify the 4th dancer of the piece, Alexis Ochin’s alter ego. YAK – Before words, drawing is one of the most basic expressions in our life learning process. All at once language and creation object, drawing is universal, nobody can say he has never drawn. When a child draws a human being, it’s often reduced to the essential, a head, a body and limbs. Elyx is that drawing grown up, a graphical language reduced to the essential to maximize its expression, with that same child’s view on the world, in which everything is possible, imagination and reality exist side by side in a continuous dance. Elyx has this innocent view, without naivety on what we forget to watch, the daily poetry, with empathy and humor most of the time. Elyx enjoys the fruits of chances that grow in day-to-day life, the city, the people, the situations. This harvest lies on an abundant value, imagination, poetry and joy. Carolyn Carlson References California-born Carolyn Carlson defines herself first and foremost as a nomad. From San Francisco Bay to the University of Utah, from the Alwin Nikolaïs company in New York to Anne Béranger’s in France, from Paris Opera Ballet to Teatrodanza La Fenice in Venice, from the Théâtre de la Ville de Paris to Helsinki, from Ballet Cullberg to La Cartoucherie in Paris, from the Venice Biennale to Roubaix, Carlson is a tireless traveller, always seeking to develop and share her poetic universe. She arrived in France in 1971 the beneficiary of Alwin Nikolaïs’ ideas about movement, composition and teaching. The following year, with Rituel pour un rêve mort, she wrote a poetic manifesto that defined an approach to her work that she has adhered to ever since: dance that is strongly oriented towards philosophy and spirituality. Carlson prefers the term ‘visual poetry’ to ‘choreography’ to describe her work. For four decades, Carlson has had significant influence and success in many European countries. She played a key role in the birth of French and Italian contemporary dance through the GRTOP (theatre research group) at Paris Opera Ballet and Teatrodanza at La Fenice. She has created over 100 pieces, a large number of which are landmarks in the history of dance, including Density 21.5, The Year of the Horse, Blue Lady, Steppe, Maa, Signes, Writings on Water and Inanna. In 2006, her work was rewarded with the first ever Golden Lion given to a choreographer by the Venice Biennale. Founder of the Atelier de Paris-Carolyn Carlson at the Cartoucherie in 1999, she was associated artist to Théâtre National de Chaillot from 2014 to 2016 with the Carolyn Carlson Company, and now continues her projects around the world. Career highlights 1965 -1971 Soloist in the Alwin Nikolaïs Company 1974-1980 Etoile-Chorégraphe (‘Star Choreographer’) at Paris Opera Ballet (GRTOP) 1980-1984 Artistic director of Teatrodanza La Fenice, Venice 1985-1991 Residence at the Théâtre de la Ville, Paris 1991-1992 Residence at the Finnish National Ballet and Helsinki City Theatre 1994 -1995 Artistic director of Ballet Cullberg, Stockholm 1999 -2002 Artistic director of the dance section at the Venice Biennale Since 1999 Artistic director of the Atelier de Paris-Carolyn Carlson 2004 -2013 Director of the National Choreographic Centre Roubaix Nord-Pas de Calais Since 2014 Director of the Carolyn Carlson Company 2014-2016: residency in Théâtre National de Chaillot, Paris Artistic collaborators Sara Orselli – choreographic assistant Sara Orselli starts her dance studies at Dance Gallery under the direction of Valentina Romito and Rita Petrone, then from 1999 to 2002 she studies at Isola Danza, the academy of Biennale de Venise then directed by Carolyn Carlson.