Songs of love, yes, of collapse, certainly, but of life as well, for redemption and light are never far away.
A troubled atmosphere where time stretches, slow and throbbing. Four musicians, including Frédérick Gravel himself, saturate the space with hypnotic, melancholic music and song, a powerful blend of past and present influences that casts its spell. Six performers, at times in pairs, at times alone, dressed in garments both opulent and makeshift, move, dance, draw close to one another, cling, attempt seduction. They tirelessly roam this suspended living room and draw us into a long journey toward the night, where there are no more hours and no morning rising on the horizon. An inexpressible sadness of being in the world hovers, while a vital effort seeps through, the will to continue even after the shipwreck of feeling.
Artistic Statement
“I have often said that I am interested in revealing the symptoms of social and political situations rather than commenting on them. I am particularly interested in current events, geopolitics, and social movements. I notice a disconnect between lived and perceived realities, a disconnect among my contemporaries. Or perhaps this is the end of the illusion of connection? It seems to me that the society around me is progressing, but these advances are isolated, not shared, and it seems to me that this creates an ever-greater difficulty in finding common ground, in finding dialogue. Despite the impossibility of agreeing on certain definitions or a shared vocabulary, the outcries are incessant, uninhibited, and deafening. Sometimes it seems to me that everything becomes a battle, when in fact everything is fragile. Often I feel nothing but confusion. I see parallels between this global, social situation and intimate, personal situations. […] This work explores the consequences of this confusion, of these closures, and the sensations associated with them. Time stretches or contracts; the movement flirts with extreme rhythms—slowness or speed—extremes that sometimes traverse the bodies simultaneously. This creates great physical complexity, a palpable tension […] offering the audience the chance to connect with the vulnerability of bodies under the illusion of control.”
©Vladim Vilain, avec Frédérick Gravel et Alexia Martel
Creation year: 2026
CREDITS
Artistic Direction Frédérick Gravel
Creation and Performance Kimberley de Jong + Alexia Martel + Jean-Benoît Labrecque + Nindy Banks + Marco Curci + Jean Bùi
Understudy Myriam Arseneault Campbell
Musical Direction Philippe Brault
Musicians on Stage José Major + Philippe Brault + Frédérick Gravel + Laurie Torres
Original Songs Frédérick Gravel
Set Design Geneviève Lizotte
Artistic Assistants Jamie Wright + Lucie Vigneault
Costumes STUDIO ZX
Production Director Mégane Trudeau
Technical Direction and Lighting Claire Seyller
Production DLD
Co-production Charleroi danse, Centre chorégraphique de Wallonie-Bruxelles (Belgium) + Theater im Pumpenhaus (Münster) + Muffatwerk (Munich) + National Arts Centre (Ottawa)
This work was made possible thanks to the support of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, the Canada Council for the Arts, and the Conseil des arts de Montréal.
