The Municipality of Nafplio, in co-organization with the Kalamata International Dance Festival, welcomes at Syntagma Square, on Monday July 15th 2024, a visual poem called "Approach 17. Opening: the unreachable suspension point" by Yoann Bourgeois Art Company.
Relying on the "Opening" movement of Philip Glass’ Glassworks, Approach 17. Opening proposes a simplified take on existential trajectories, alternating between elevations and descents, with a staircase leading nowhere. Temporal chronology is thwarted with plays on the theme of reversibility.
Atop an invisible partition, one character manages to elude the void, playing with the laws of gravity and weightlessness in order to reach a state of freedom, situated between balance and imbalance.
This visual poem centers on a moving, vertiginous procession towards the point of suspension - that precise, short-lived moment, when a body has progressed to its highest possible point and the inevitable fall has yet to commence.
The performance is presented on July 15th at Syntagma Square of Nafplio, with free admission, within the framework of the Festival’s outreach programme in the Peloponnese, which is implemented in collaboration with the Peloponnese Region.
Contributors
Conception, direction, set design: Yoann Bourgeois
Performance: Lucas Struna
Technical manager: Eric Prin
Music: “Opening” by Philip Glass
Production: Yoann Bourgeois Art Company
Venue
Syntagma Square of Nafplio
Date
Monday, July 15th 2024
Performances
Three performances, at 19:30, 20:30 and 21:30
Admission
Free
About the artist
The artist Yoann Bourgeois constantly strives to break down the boundaries between distinct artistic approaches. His singular method is embodied in physical passageways that highlight one-of-a-kind phenomena, pushing him to conceive of an extraordinary variety of spaces and infinite variations of movement. His universe of work is the product of a lifelong, permanent creative process that he sums up as "The unreachable suspension point".
After having performed with a host of renowned choreographers, Bourgeois created his own company in 2010. From 2016 to 2022, he served as Director of CCN (Centre Chorégraphique National de Grenoble), becoming the first circus artist named to lead one of France’s 19 CNNs (Centres chorégraphiques nationaux).
Dedicated to art that is radically multidisciplinary, physical and innovative, Bourgeois oversees performances, collaborations and workshops in all parts of the world. His works rely on site-specific creations that build upon the energy and specific particularities of the surrounding environment.
Did you know that?
The performance takes place in Kalamata, with the support of the French Institute of Greece - Service of cooperation and cultural action of the French Embassy in Greece.
The Yoann Bourgeois Art Company is financed by the Drac Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes / Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication de l’Isère, Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, andsupported by the Institut Français for international tours.
