YOHANN HEBI DAHER HEADS UP THE CACTUS14 DANCE COMPANY AS CHOREOGRAPHER AND ARTISTIC DIRECTOR. TRYING TO EMBODY HIS OBSERVATIONS OF THE EXTERNAL WORLD, HIS CHOREOGRAPHY DELVES INTO THE SUBTLE, OFTEN UNSEEN VIOLENCES OF SOCIETAL SYSTEMS. PICTURING THE LIMITS OF CUSTOMS HE SEEKS TO OBSERVE THE UNSUSPECTED BUT NO LESS GREAT RESPONSIBILITY THAT WE BEAR IN OUR INTERACTIONS. THE IMPACT, INFLUENCE, AND REACH OF GESTURES AND WORDS ON OUR TRAJECTORIES. TO ACHIEVE THIS, HE ENJOYS EXPERIMENTING WITH TWISTING BODIES, USING THEIR FLEXIBILITY AND EXPLOSIVENESS, AND SYNCING WITH AN INNER MUSICALITY. BEYOND THE MOVEMENT ITSELF, YOHANN HEBI DAHER AIMS TO CREATE A SCENE THAT TRANSCENDS THE FRAME. DRAWING ON HIS EXPERIENCE WITH PUBLIC SPACE PERFORMANCES, HE AIMS FOR TOTAL IMMERSION. BY OCCUPYING UNCONVENTIONAL SPACES AND REDESIGNING TRADITIONAL PERFORMANCE FORMATS, HE INVITES AUDIENCES TO WANDER AND SHIFT THEIR PERSPECTIVES. IF THE STAGE REPRODUCES LIFE, IT MUST BRING US CLOSER TO OUR HUMANITY. ENVISIONED AS A BATH OF EMOTIONS, IT ALLOWS FOR THE PROXIMITY AND CONFUSION OF THE SENSES, SO THAT EACH BODY DANCES AND SPEAKS WITH RAW AUTHENTICITY. FROM THIS SINCERITY, A PROFOUND CONNECTION BETWEEN PERFORMER AND SPECTATOR EMERGES.

 

HIS LATEST WORK LES ESSORÉS, IS AN IN-SITU CHOREOGRAPHIC PIECE FOR FIVE DANCERS. QUESTIONING THE UNSEEN VIOLENCE OF SOCIETAL NORMS, IT DELVES INTO THE SYMBOLISM OF CLOTHING: WHAT WE WEAR OF IT, WHAT IT WEARS OF US. THE LABELS AND COSTUMES WE PUT ON TO PLAY OUR PSYCHOLOGICAL ROLES. HOW FAR DOES THE GAME GO? THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE CHILD AND THE INFANTILE. CLOTHING IS ALSO A SCENOGRAPHIC TOOL. THANKS TO A COLLABORATION WITH VISUAL ARTIST ALEXANDRE BAVARD (MOSA87), IT BECOMES A SCULPTURAL ELEMENT, TRANSFORMED INTO NEW BODIES OR AVATARS THROUGH A MIX OF RESIN AND TEXTILES. THESE SCULPTURES TELL STORIES, EACH ONE EMBODYING A DIFFERENT ASPECT OF OUR HUMAN EXPERIENCE. THE SHOW IS AN ALL-TERRAIN PERFORMANCE. PERFORMED IN VARIOUS LOCATIONS, « LES ESSORÉS » TRANSFORMS EACH SPACE INTO A UNIQUE STAGE, INVITING THE AUDIENCE TO EMBARK ON A SENSORY JOURNEY.

THE MUSIC IS COMPOSED BY PATRICK DE OLIVEIRA. AS A SERIES OF WASHING CYCLES, THE PROGRAMS ACCELERATE UNTIL THE CLIMAX. INSIDE THE DRUM, HEAR SONGS WITH TRADITIONAL AND UNIFYING PERFUMES, AND SOME PIANO NOTES LIKE FABRIC SOFTENER.