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M¡LONGA - THE TANGO EVENTUK

SADLER’S WELLSm¡longaSidi Larbi Cherkaoui

8 PMLENGTH – 1 H 35VENUE – THÉÂTREMAISONNEUVE

February 17, 2015February 18, 2015February 19, 2015February 20, 2015February 21, 2015

TICKETS START AT $40.50

Post-performance talk with the artistsFriday February 20, 2015,

Montreal, January 26, 2015 - Regardless of what he is presenting, a visit by the Belgian-Moroccan choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui isalways an eagerly awaited event. This time round, m¡longa promises to charm not only contemporary dance aficionados but also many ofthe enthusiasts who have made Montreal the second city after Buenos Aires for tango lovers. Featuring 10 international tango stars onstagealong with two contemporary dancers and five live musicians, the choreographer entwines tradition and modernity, sensuality and virtuosity,creating spectacular figures as he takes this dynamic dance form to new heights. With a set that evokes a ballroom dance hall, plusintriguing imagery and slide projections, he recreates the atmosphere of the Argentine capital as he zaps the audience with an electrifyingjolt of tango fever. Spectacular.

BOUNDLESS TANGO"What attracts me most about tango is the eternal embrace of the dancers, says Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui. When a tango couple dances, we sensethe hypnotic dialogue between two bodies connecting intuitively, merging into one. If there is such a thing as my style of dance, it is rooted intouch, in physical contact - and that is inherent in tango."

His love of tango was previously apparent in his first choreographyRien de rien, and also in D’avant and Tempus Fugit. Over a three-yearperiod, he spent six lengthy sojourns in Buenos Aires to pursue hispassion for tango and study its fundamentals, groundwork for thecreation of his flamboyant piece m¡longa. Supported by the icon ofArgentine tango Nélida Rodríguez Aure, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui sings thepraises of this sensual dance and reveals its hidden facets thanks tothe talents of five duos of dancers, leading lights in Buenos Aires. Theyencounter the contemporary dancers Damien Fournier and SilvinaCortés, who venture into this unknown world, are contaminated by itand contaminate it in turn. Here tango is danced back to back – oneman with two women, five couples as one, three men together – in theround and on the ground. Each outdoes the other in dexterity, masteryand sensuality, performing complex figures and spectacular liftsdanced in accordance with the standards of the genre. Originalcompositions are by Fernando Marzan and Cherkaoui’s regularcomposer Szymon Brzóska, their music fluctuating between jazzy riffsand the languid tones of the bandoneon. Among the clichés shatteredby the choreographer, power is not the exclusive reserve of the male,nor is sensuality reserved only for women.

“Mating rituals can never have looked more artfully sexy, nor, in theshow as a whole, can tango ever been given a fonder or more

imaginative makeover. What a treat.” (Daily Telegraph, Londres)

THE ART OF MIXING AND MERGINGBorn in 1976 to a Belgian mother and Moroccan father, Sidi Larbi Cherkoui has make good useof this mixed identity and dual cultural background. Inquisitive and open-minded, thechoreographer melds approaches and traditions, refusing all hierarchies in his modes ofexpression. What interests him above all are “contact points.”

A beloved star of the European stage, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui charms spectators the world overwith mosaic pieces that are a fusion of arts and cultures. A prolific artist who has received manyawards and distinctions, he launched his career in 2000 with the ballets C de la B and went onto create his own company, Eastman, in 2010. Commissioned to choreograph for several danceand theatre companies, for Cirque du Soleil he created Michael Jackson ONE and Kurios. He isrenowned worldwide for his highly acclaimed avant-garde productions, such as those heconcocted with Akram Khan and Maria Pagès. He has enthralled audiences with dynamicpieces such as Sutra (featuring Shaolin monks) and Babel(words), co-created with his long-timeaccomplice Damien Jalet, both of which were presented by Danse Danse. An associate artistwith the prestigious Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London, which is producing this piece, he was inspired by the Argentine milongas, social danceevenings that take place in intimate late night bars in Buenos Aires. This is the first time that an international large-scale production about tangohas been directed by a non-Argentine artist.

“Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui is a greatartist we have been admiring andpresenting since 2003, impressedby his hybrid pieces and hisunique mix of cultures.Passionately interested in humanrelations and true to form, heconfronts in m¡longa tradition andmodernity and presents anentrancing work that takes anaffectionate look at both tango –which he finds fascinating – andthe hustle and bustle of BuenosAires, where the dance firstappeared in the late 19th century.”

Pierre Des Marais, Artistic and Executive Director, Danse Danse

TICKETS START AT $40.50

Place des Arts Box-Office: 514.842.2112 / 1 866.842.2112

m¡longa will be presented in Montreal from February 17 to 21after shows in Quebec City on February 10 and Ottawa onFebruary 13 and 14.

NEXT PERFORMANCEICKAMSTERDAMROCCOEmio Greco, Pieter C. Scholten

FROM MARCH 3 to 14, 2015, 8 P.M.

Cinquième Salle, Place des Arts

In a ring surrounded by spectators, dancers as supple, committedand vigorous as boxers engage in close quarter combat in achoreography that is both visceral and elegant. A captivatingportrayal of the spectrum of viable relations between men.

Visit the Danse Danse website for additional information on dance pieces and the dance companies being featured: video excerpts, interviews,photos, full credits and various related hyperlinks.

DANSEDANSE.CA

SOURCE - 30 -

Bérubé & Geoffroy CommunicationsBenoit Geoffroy » 514.722.9888 » bgeoffroy@videotron.ca / Monique Bérubé » 514.723.4943 » monique.berube44@sympatico.ca

CREDITS

Directed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui. Choreographed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui in collaboration with the dancers. Tango Dancers Germán Cornejo "Nikito", MartinEpherra, Gisela Galeassi, Esther Garabali, Maricel Giacomini, Bruno Gibertoni, Claudio Gonzalez, Roberto Leiva, Julia Urruty, Valentina Villarroel.Contemporary Dancers Silvina Cortés (17-19 February), Damien Fournier (17-19 February), Jason Kittelberger (20-21 February), Jennifer White (20-21February). Musicians Fulvio Giraudo (piano), Guillermo Rubino (violin), Alejandro Sancho (guitar), Federico Santisteban (bandoneon), Roberto Santocono(bass). Tango Consultant and Rehearsal Director Nelida Rodriguez de Aure. Set and Video Designer Eugenio Szwarcer. Composers Fernando Marzan,Szymon Brzóska. Additional composer Olga Wojciechowska. Costume Designer Tim Van Steenbergen. Lighting Designer Adam Carrée. Sound DesignerGaston Briski. Assistant to the Choreographer Satoshi Kudo. Additional assistants Damien Fournier, Silvina Cortés, Johnny Lloyd. Production Manager AdamCarrée. Production Manager (Argentina) Jose Luis Fioruccio. Assistant to the Costume Designer Greet Prové. Costume Supervisor and WardrobeManager Lydia Hardiman . Fileteado Artist (applied to costumes) Alfredo Genovese. Set and video design assistant Paula Bosch. Touring Production /Stage Manager Zeynep Kepekli. Tour Manager Carol Murcia. Re-lighter Will Frost. Technical Stage Manager Sam Thornber. Video Operator OscarLisshagen. Sound Operator Alejandro Zambrano. Wardrobe Manager Leila Ransley . Set construction Théâtre de Vidy, Steel the Scene. Video supplier XLVideo. Executive Producer Suzanne Walker. Executive Producer (Argentina) Ricardo Szwarcer. Producer Ghislaine Granger. Assistant Producer SandraCastell-Garcia. Producing & Touring Co-ordinator Isabelle Drummond. Head of Touring Dawn Prentice. Marketing Manager Lucy White. Press ManagerCaroline Ansdell. Consultant Hisashi Itoh. Original production idea Ricardo Szwarcer.

A Sadler’s Wells London Production. Co-produced with Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne; Migros Culture Percentage Dance Festival Steps; Théâtre du Jorat, Mėzières;deSingel international arts campus, Antwerp; Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg; Les Nuits de Fourvière/Département du Rhône; MovimentosFestwochen der Autostadt in Wolfsburg; Festspielhaus St Pölten; Fondazione Musica per Roma; Eastman. Thanks to Michel Beuchat, Lars Boot, ChristopherBugot, Michel Caspary, Myriam de Clopper, Diego Franssens, René Gonzales, Nick Holdridge, Isabelle Imsand, Jérôme Ingravallo, Lies Martens, KarthikaNair, Fernando di Nasso, Stéphane Sagon, Dieuwertje Spek, Isabella Spirig, Barbara Suthoff, Thierry Tjordman, Sarah Turin, René Zahnd, AlejandroZambrano, Teatro de la Ribera - Buenos Aires, all the staff at Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne, Théâtre du Jorat, Mėzières and deSingel international arts campus,Antwerp.

Photo 1 © Tristram Kenton. Dancers Maricel Giacomini, Damien Fournier, Germán Cornejo "Nikito", Gisela Galeassi, Martin Epherra, Esther Garabali, ClaudioGonzalez, Cristian Cisneros, Valentina Villarroel, Melina Brufman, Bruno Gibertoni. Photo 2 © Tristram Kenton. Dancers Germán Cornejo "Nikito", GiselaGaleassi. Photo 3 (Pierre Des Marais) © monic richard. Photo 4 (Sidi Larbi Cherkoui) © Tristram Kenton.

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