A night of dazzling dance moves and electrifying music

 

From its origins in the Bronx in the late 1960s, hip-hop has transformed from a youth subculture into an art form that embraces endless possibilities. Encompassing music, dance, graffiti and other street arts, it was part of the culture of the disenfranchised black communities but its influence has spread and deepened across territories. In contorting their bodies in ways never seen before in hip hop dance, artists find new forms of uninhibited self expression distinct from other established dance genres.

 

It is a pure joy of dance and movements that Anthony Egéa explores in Bliss, bringing together hip hop, the clubbing scene and electronic music in a feverish, hypnotising world. Set in the clubbing universe, Bliss is an exploration of a wide range of styles and forms, which Egéa breaks, distorts and then abandon. It is a dive into the fantasies, eccentricities and extravagance of nightclubs, where the audience is invited to revel, get lost in a contagious ecstasy and connect in the universality of dance.

An alchemy of styles and movement

 

This new work emerges from Egéa's desire to return to the origin and spirit of hip hop. By developing a choreography fraught with different styles, he aims to unite all generations around the shared pleasure of dance.Bliss is a dance alchemy brewed by his years of research and experience. As he travels through the wide range of dance styles and forms, he also breaks them down and distorts them to the point where they are forgotten. It is when his alchemy takes place.

 

To return to the essence of the movements, Egéa calls upon collective memory while relying on an eclectic music score in the hopes of reaching out to most generations. He turns to electronic music, which, like a chameleon, has the ability to adapt itself to musical styles, and impose its own realm upon them, cutting across time and genres. Yvan Talbot, an acclaimed percussionist who is close to contemporary dance and the hip hop movement, created the music for Bliss.

 

Beyond the exploration of movements, Bliss is set in a club, where music is played to raise heart rates and pump up adrenaline to the level of ecstasy and fulfilment, which can be at times excessive. It is into this constant intensity and explosive crescendos that Egéa ventures and invites his dancers to join in.

By following the overnight journeys of individuals, one-night performers and talented virtuosos whose stories are revealed and intersected, the mood swings between lightness and intensity until everyone enters a state of delirium and comes close to a trance-like state. It is a percussive, massive dance that is counterbalanced by solos where the virtuoso caresses insanity to win over the audience.

 

 

Artistic direction / Director of Choreography : Anthony Egéa  
Musical composition : Yvan Talbot, Philippe Pham Van Tham 
Musical director : Yvan Talbot
Light : Florent Blanchon 
Costumes : Hervé Poeydomenge 

Dancers : Lydie Alberto, William Domiquin ( Talents Adami ), Jérôme Fidelin ( Talents Adami ), Romain Guillermic ( Talents Adami ), François Lamargot, Jérôme Luca, Laura Luca, Marie Marcon ( Talents Adami ), Vanessa Petit, Raymond Siopathis 

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Show in Hong Kong 2016 (French May):
13 - 14 May 2016, 8PM
Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts  

Ticket fee: $380/ $280/ $180  

To know more: http://2016.frenchmay.com/programmes/event.aspx?name=BLISS

 

 

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Some comments of the show by the members of Youth Assistant Choreographers:

 

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“The show was inspiring. Dancers were so great and energetic and the music

just makes everybody want to stand up and dance. Enjoyed it a lot and thank you for the night.”

 

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“What I thought about the show: I really enjoyed the performance! It was very different,

and I loved how it started with the 'silent disco' theme. Hope to see more shows by this company in the future!”

 

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“The performance was absolutely brilliant! There was so much energy throughout the whole piece,

I could even feel it. I love the styles and themes that were used and it has really inspired and

given me a lot to think about it terms of dance around the world. All in all, an AMAZING show!”

 

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“Oh my goodness how awesome was that !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you Le French May and

YAF for this amazing and inspiring opportunity!"

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ANTHONY ÉGÉA, the creator of hybrid forms

In 1984, Anthony Égéa discovered hip hop and began a long process of learning and creative exploration. Already possessing a wide range of dancing techniques from the classical to contemporary, he went on to attend, on a French Ministry of Culture scholarship, the Rosella Hightower School in Cannes where he perfected his training. He was then awarded a Lavoisier scholarship from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to attend the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater in New York. In 1991, he set up Compagnie Rêvolution with which he has since created a diverse body of works.

 

Egéa has the desire to “show the dance from the inside, more deeply, from the skin to the feelings.” He questions movements by developing hybrid forms, straying from convention and expectations. From solos to group pieces, his work is modified by the whim of encounters.

 

Egéa places the body at the centre of his focus, working the energy and the expressivity of gestures with creations like Tryptik (2000), Amazones (2003), and Soli (2005), where hip-hop is revisited from a feminine perspective. InUrban Ballet (2008), the relationship between music and dance opens him up to another objective: to mix urban dance with classical sheet music. With Clash (2009), two dancers engage in a bodily exchange that asks the question of power, of territory, and of the frontier.

 

In 2010, he wrote Tetris for the Ballet of the National Opera of Bordeaux and, in 2011, Middle, for the Beijing Dance Theater. In 2012, he created Rage, a piece for six African dancers, offering a view of contemporary Africa, which it calls out to. It shows there all the importance of revolt, the ardor and the artistic thirst of dancers who offer, thanks to their gripping presence, a view of the continent.

 

In 2013, he began a new adventure inspired by the world of the Magician of Oz to develop a piece for the attention of a youthful audience, Dorothy. This reinterpretation of Oz is one where storytelling, hip hop, virtuosity, style and video all meet. Wishing to pursue his collaborations with dancers from other horizons, he associated himself with the project Käfig Brasil, a creation for eleven Brazilian dancers, by Mourad Merzouki, to write one of its parts.