Umwelt
A raging storm
Nine performers appear and disappear through openings in a wall of mirrors. Each appearance is a small scene based on situations from everyday life. A strong wind blows across the stage and makes the mirrors shake to the resonant sound of electric guitars. The fanciful reflections of the dancers in the vibrating mirrors depict and transform the human life that passes by like a raging storm.
In a hypnotic succession of scenes, the choreographer Maguy Marin portrays human existence as perpetual motion, the most striking element being the turbulent relationship between man and his environment. The title Umwelt (surroundings, environment) gives an indication of the underlying intention of the piece. The carelessness with which man leads his life creates a growing mountain of waste at the front of the stage. Human traces that suggest an imminent disaster. Life, which in Marin’s work continues to be played out in the background, may well be seriously upset in the near future.
• The French choreographer Maguy Marin (1951) is one of the pivotal figures of contemporary dance. Umwelt, a 2004 production, was awarded the Prix special du jury du Syndicat de la critique in 2006 and a Bessie Award in 2008.
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conception Maguy Marin | cast Ulises Alvarez, Charly Aubry, Kaïs Chouibi, Estelle Clément Bealem, Laura Frigato, Cathy Polo, Agnès Potié, Ennio Sammarco, Marcelo Sepulveda | music Denis Mariotte | light Alexandre Béneteaud | costumes Cathy Ray assisted by Chantal Cloupet and Aurora Van Dorsselaer | sound Loïc Goubet | stage management Michel Rousseau | new production in 2013 Assistant Cathy Polo, Stage management Albin Chavignon, Sound Antoine Garry, Costumes Nelly Geyres | coproduction Théâtre de la ville (Paris), Maison de la danse (Lyon), Le Toboggan (Décines), Centre Chorégraphique National de Rillieux-la-Pape /cie Maguy Marin | new production in 2013 Théâtre Garonne (Toulouse), BIT-Teatergarasjen (Bergen-Norvège), Compagnie Maguy Marin | support Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication, la Ville de Toulouse, la Région Midi-Pyrénées, l’Institut français
A House on Fire co-production; Co-funded by the Creative Europe programme of the European Union
