Amour, acide et noix and Civilization and Its Discontents Take Center Stage
Malaise dans la civilisation (Civilization and Its Discontents) at Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC).
Civilization and Its Discontents marks the first collaboration between playwright Étienne Lepage and director Alix Dufresne. This production seamlessly blends their respective creative worlds, offering stagewriting deeply intertwined with innovative staging.
International Acclaim
Premiering at Théâtre Prospero during the Festival TransAmériques (FTA) in 2022, Malaise dans la civilisation continues its global journey.
Its upcoming performance at New York’s Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC). will mark its eleventh international stop.
“Between gravity and buffoonery, the actors exult, fully engaging their physicality, with their comedic prowess culminating in a finale that leaves the audience stunned and laughing.”
– Sceneweb.fr, Avignon, June 12, 2024
March 13–22, 2025
Amour, acide et noix at NYU Skirball
Four bodies given over to the dance, reveal what has taken refuge behind the strange, translucent skin : muscle, water, breath, energy, an outlook on life, so alive and aware of the other, in spite of, or maybe because of, a need to not be entirely alone. Amour, acide et noix speaks of solitude, but also and most specifically of the infinite tenderness of touch, the harshness of life and the desire for avoidance or escape from these bodies, often so heavy. Amour, acide et noix presents nudity as the only true alternative to the reading of the body, frank and free of false modesty. Isn’t the skin the one true body costume?
A Long-Awaited Return
First created in 2001 by Daniel Léveillé, choreographer and founder of DLD, this iconic work was revisited in March 2024 at L’Agora (Montreal).
Performed by a new generation of Canadian and Italian dancers, it returns to Skirball over 20 years after its initial New York debut.
“[D]isturbing as it is compelling. Léveillé isn’t just showing passive spectators a world of naked people; he forces us into the participatory act of confronting our taboos and desires.”
– The Village Voice, New York, April 2003
