IMPORT EXPORT

Les Ballets C. de la B. / Koen Augustijnen (Belgien)

The dancers toss each other around like balls, are dragged over the floor and folded into the most impossible positions. Here, humor and cruelty go hand in hand. At times, the acrobatic skirmishes gain a quality of ease that is almost unbearable. The impression, however, that this is only a light version of the world’s problems is wiped away…
De Standaard

Powerlessness. The new piece by Belgian choreographer Koen Augustijnen deals with all the shades of this phenomenon. IMPORT EXPORT is bold, enthusiastic, full of energy and thus fully committed to the Flemish tradition. For Augustijnen dance always includes acrobatics, theater and, most of all, music: the Kirke String Quartet interprets baroque music by Charpentier, Lambert, Hahn and Clérambault, in a highly emotional arrangement by Bart Vandewege. Countertenor Steve Dugardin immerses the performance in an unreal and sublime atmosphere. The audience experiences a company, who, in their exploration of the theme ‘powerlessness’, has in the process discovered irrepressible power. Dance at the pinnacle of the contemporary: uncompromising and aggressive, deeply human and sometimes simply funny. A not-too-miss European dance event!

A Les Ballets C. de la B. production.

Co-produced by: Théâtre de la Ville (Paris), Hebbel am Ufer (Berlin), Brighton Festival, Tramway (Glasgow), Place des Arts (Montréal), Théâtre Les Tanneurs (Bruxelles), Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, TorinoDanza

Thanks to: Kunstencentrum Vooruit (Gent), Michel Gagnon and staff, Place des Arts (Montréal); Les Ballets C. de la B. is cultural ambassador of the Unesco-IHE, Institute for Water Education.