Who is the Production Team?
We are a company based in Tarbes that has been around for almost 40 years. We were initially very focused on technical aspects, lighting, set design, and sound. Hence the name of the company. Our mastery of these technical skills allowed us to create and stage performances. Then, the creation of the performances themselves became our main focus. From theater initially, we moved towards productions that increasingly combined different art forms: theater, dance, painting, video, and music. This is the hallmark of what we do.
What are some of the highlights of these 40 years?
The "Opéra de Maldoror" was a major event for us, with live music on stage and the incredibly powerful text by Lautréamont. "Le Cri" in 2004, on the theme of Republican refugees, was also very impactful. Not to mention "Une saison avant la tragédie de Macbeth" by Gloria Carreño, "Mademoiselle Julie" at the company's inception in 1988, and many others.
What is the theme of "404 Inside," your project during your residency at Le Pari?
404 is an error code in computer science. It addresses mental health, the turmoil in our minds caught in the daily grind of life when we are subjected to the crossfire of social pressures. When fashion, education, and social media function like a washing machine on spin cycle. Some manage to cope, others don't. On stage, there are texts by Lydie Salvayre, who was a psychiatrist before becoming a writer, and by Francis Ferrié, music by Pascal Esclarmonde, and choreography by Manon Hallay and Ashley McQueen, two young dancers from New York with whom we have only communicated via video until now. We are meeting in person for the first time to finalize the show, and there is a lot of work to do!
How did you come up with the idea for a transatlantic show?
Manon is the daughter of Jérôme Hallay, who is the head of the Production Team. I've known her for a long time, since she was studying at the conservatory in Tarbes. She quickly went on to study dance in Bordeaux and Antwerp, before being spotted by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York about ten years ago. We wanted to do something together. When she came back to France two years ago, we spent a day brainstorming ideas and that's how 404 Inside was born, with Ashley McQueen, the choreographer from her company, Smashworks Dance.
Does that mean that 404 Inside could take you to New York?
That's the plan for next year. We're looking for funding to transport the sets and everyone to New York, with enough time to rehearse and perform the show, incorporating other dancers from Smashworks.
Where can people see 404 Inside before then?
We have eight performances starting at the end of next week. At Le Pari Tarbes from October 3 to 5. With the Agglomeration's Cultural Outreach program, in Angos, Lourdes, Lanne, and Gayan from October 7 to 10. And as part of the Department's Autumn Festival at the Escaladieu Abbey on Saturday, October 11.
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