I Want (no) Reality

The second day of our adventure in Avignon, France began with a showing of Jan Lauwers new documentary I Want (no) Reality.  Over a period of four years Ana Brzezińska collected the stories, thoughts, and anecdotes of company members and Jan Lauwers. The film discusses their backgrounds and their thoughts on the necessity of art. After the film concluded Jan and some of his company members, Julien Faure, Benoît Gob, Maarten Seghers, opened up the floor to any questions. It was a great way to get a glimpse of where NeedCompany comes from.
The day continued with a show from Alain Platel titled Out of Context. For Pina. The performance took place in the Avignon Opera Theatre, a magnificently beautiful space.

 

The show began with ten dancers dressed in street clothes entering slowly, one-by-one from seats in the audience. The dancers then stripped their "costumes" and took position on stage in nothing but their underwear and distinct red blankets that would become a striking image throughout the piece. The dancers went through many sections of intricate and vastly different movement in the one hour and twenty-five minutes that we had the pleasure of watching them. It was an emotional journey as the piece concluded with "regular people" (audience members) joining a specific dancer on stage for a long and heart felt hug. The piece left us with a lot of thoughts, most memorably, a deep respect and appreciation for what we saw. Here is a link for more information about the show Alain Platel

The last performance we saw was Drums and Digging by Faustin Linyekula. The show took place in yet another amazing space, The Cloître des Célestins

This performance came from a very personal space as choreographer and performer, Faustin, reflects on  10 years in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. As he tries to stray from the conventional path of  discussing, yet again, the same revolutions and oppression Faustin creates a passionate narrative. Here is a link to more information about this work Drums and Digging

And here are a few more photos of the students having some fun in the awe inspiring city that is Avignon.