François Chaignaud, Geoffroy Jourdain
In absentia
septembersept 8
Christophe Raynaud de Lage ©
Christophe Raynaud de Lage ©
Christophe Raynaud de Lage ©
Sunday september 8
14h00
Sunday september 8
16h30
In absentia is a play imagined from t u m u l u s, premiered on 2 May 2022 at Bonlieu Scène nationale Annecy.
Conception François Chaignaud, Geoffroy Jourdain. Choreography François Chaignaud. Musical direction Geoffroy Jourdain. With Simon Bailly, Mario Barrantes-Espinoza, Florence Gengoul, Myriam Jarmache, Evann Loget-Raymond, Marie Picaut, Alan Picol, Antoine Roux-Briffaud, Vivien Simon, Maryfé Singy, Ryan Veillet, Aure Wachter, Daniel Wendler. Costumes Romain Brau. Lighting design Anthony Merlaud. Stage and light management Anthony Merlaud ou Marinette Buchy. Sound management Aude Besnard, Camille Frachet, Alban Moraud, Jean-Louis Waflart. Costume management Alejandra Garcia or Cara Ben Assayag. Administration and production mandorle productions (Garance Roggero, Jeanne Lefèvre, Emma Forster) and Les Cris de Paris (Antoine Boucon, Diane Geoffroy, Estelle Corre). International distribution agency A propic (Line Rousseau, Marion Gauvent).
Production and coproduction of t u m u l u s
Delegated production Mandorle productions in association with Les Cris de Paris
Coproduction and support Bonlieu Scène nationale Annecy ; La Villette « Initiatives d’artistes » ; Wiener Festwochen – Freie Republik Wien ; Kunstenfestivaldesarts (Brussels) ; Théâtre Vidy-Lausanne ; Chaillot – Théâtre national de la Danse ; Points communs, Nouvelle scène nationale de Cergy-Pontoise et du Val d’Oise ; Théâtre de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Scène nationale ; Tandem Scène nationale ; Berliner Festspiele ; Théâtre Auditorium de Poitiers, Scène nationale ; Malraux scène nationale Chambéry Savoie ; Opéra de Dijon ; Maison de la danse de Lyon – Pôle Européen de Création ; Théâtre d’Orléans / Scène nationale ; Maison de la Culture de Bourges ; Le Manège, scène nationale-Reims ; Cité musicale – Metz ; Ménagerie de verre ; Théâtre Molière Sète, Scène nationale archipel de Thau ; Théâtre de Cornouaille ; CCN Ballet national de Marseille ; Scène nationale du Sud-Aquitain ; Festival d’Avignon ; Festival d’Automne à Paris
t u m u l u s received exceptional production support from the DGCA
This show is supported by PEPS Plateforme Européenne de production scénique Annecy-Chambéry-Genève-Lausanne as part of the European cross-border cooperation programme Interreg France-Suisse 2014-2020
Support Jeune Théâtre National ; MC93 – Maison de la culture de Seine-Saint-Denis ; L’échangeur – CDCN Hauts-de-France ; Royaumont, abbaye et fondation, Asnières-sur-Oise ; CND Centre national de la danse – residency ; Le Regard du Cygne ; Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris ; support in creative residence of La vie brève – Théâtre de l’Aquarium
Set construction ateliers de la Maison de la Culture de Bourges
Fusalp accompanies the creation of the costumes
Mandorle productions is subsidised by the Drac Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes - Ministère de la Culture and the Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
François Chaignaud is an associate artist of Chaillot - Théâtre national de la Danse as well as the Maison de la danse de Lyon - Pôle Européen de Création and the Biennale de la danse de Lyon.
Les Cris de Paris are subsidised by the Drac Île-de-France - Ministry of Culture, the Île-de-France region and the city of Paris
They are associate artists at the Théâtre de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, and in residence at at Points communs, Nouvelle scène nationale de Cergy-Pontoise et du Val d'Oise
Royaumont, abbey and foundation and the Festival d'Automne in Paris present this show in co-realisation.
Following on from t u m u l u s, François Chaignaud and Geoffroy Jourdain continue their exploration of Renaissance funeral chants, putting the audience at the very heart of the experience. This proximity means that the slightest breath, drop of sweat, or movement become sensory matter in which the celestial and the earthly intertwine.
With In absentia, the dancer and choreographer, François Chaignaud and musician Geoffroy Jourdain immerse themselves in the heart of the Renaissance vocal repertoire accompanied by thirteen performers from the fields of song and dance. Over the course of common practice workshops, this community of singers and dancers immersed itself in sacred scores which together celebrate absence, the afterlife, and presences which have long-since vanished. In continuation of the work that began with t u m u l u s, here they place the emphasis on the intertwining of the performers' bodies with the audience, giving rise to an experience which brings us to within breathing distance: a dizzying blend of voices, murmurs and rhythms that transports the audience into the very heart of sound, the place where polyphonic resonance comes into being – or the construction of harmony from the singular to the plural. The uninterrupted movement of the bodies joins in with the vibration of the vocal cords, creating a sensory-based form – a funeral procession or mortuary ritual that is as much spiritual concert as it is minimalist performance. The distinction between the practice of choreography and music practice gives way to a ceremony which weaves gesture, breath and sound – from its imperceptible emergence to its polyphonic unfolding.