Contemporary Technique

The class builds progressivly from deep and static stretching to very physical
and dynamic phrases. Some of the main focusses of the class are the
explorations or natural connections in the body and how to use gravity (
centrifugal force, potential and cinetic energy...) and floor as dance
partners. We ll look frowards to ways of develloping a strong sense of
organicity , finding a balance between what you control and what you let
happen, how to recycle the energy of a movment into another, how to increase
the speed of your dancing in a relativly effortless way.
The class challenges also the participants to take the risk of exploring their
physicality as far as they can, as much in their flexibility than in the
intensity of their dancing.


Damien Jalet
Damien Jalet is french and belgian. He did first studies in theatre at the I.N.S.A.S. (National Institute of the Performing Arts, Brussels), but directed himself soon after his studies exclusively towards contemporary dance which he studies in Belgium and in New York. He started his choreographic career with Wim Vandekeybus on the show "the day of heaven and hell" (1998) and danced with choreographers like Ted Stoffer and Christine De Smedt. In 2000 he began an intense collaboration with Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui as his artistic partner within the company "Les ballets C de la B". They created "rien de rien" (2000), "Foi"(2003)," Tempus Fugit "(2004). In 2002 he created the piece "d'avant" together with Cherkaoui, Luc Dunberry and Juan Kruz Diaz de Garaio Esnaola. In 2005 he did a short movie ,"the unclear age", co-directed with Erna Omarsdottir and movie makers Dumspiro. Together with Omarsdottir, Gabriela Fridriksdottir and Raven he created the piece "Ofaett" ('Unborn') for the Theatre National de Bretagne.
In 2006 he is about to create the short duet "Aleko" for the Museum of Contemporary  Art of Aomori, Japan in collaboration with Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Alexandra Gilbert, and collaborates with french director Arthur Nauzyciel and actress Anne Brochet on the creation of "l'image" of Samuel Beckett for the celebration of his centenary in Dublin.
He also assisted Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui for the creation of the piece "in memoriam" for Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo and "Loin" for the Ballet of the "Grand Theatre de Geneve". Damien Jalet studied also Ethnomusicology and polyphonic singing with a.o. Giovanna Marini, Christine Leboutte, Nando Acquaviva and Nicole Casalongua.
SIDI LARBI CHERKAOUI & DAMIEN JALET & LUC DUNBERRY & JUAN KRUZ DIAZ DE GARAIO ESNOAOLA will perform at ImPulsTanz 2006 with “D'avant” on August 5 and 6 at the Volkstheater.