“Babel 7.16: an update or a recreation?” Here is a question choreographers Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Damien Jalet like to ask. For the point today is no longer for audiences to see the show the way they did the Babel of 2010, the one that formed a triptych with Foi (Faith) and Myth, but to come to terms with our capability to accept the dichotomy between the immutability of identity and the necessity for evolution. The extension of the title says it all: 7.16 is as much a reference to coding as to the verses of a holy text, to a contemporary date or to the power of archaic numerology. “After what happened in November 2015, we thought it was important to 'say again.'” The play therefore calls on the shock of languages and bodies from different nationalities, on the diversity and the difficulty to coexist, bringing uniqueness and community face to face. It questions our relationship to change, when technology is constantly modifying our empathies and connections. Babel 7.16, like the original show, features two dancers sharing with humour their legacies, at once immutable and constantly changing. To dance that contradiction is akin to exploring words with the body, to dodge the trap of the unspeakable thanks to gestures and actions. In the original myth, God refused to share his domain, while men wanted to get closer to Him. “To share is a decision, an attitude, in particular when faced with traumatic events. Those moments when extreme solidarity faces our fear of sharing.” By inviting all the dancers that have made Babel a reference in the world of choreography to come onstage, the two Belgian artists—one Flemish and one Francophone, from a country at once divided and united—have put the concept of masses, of history, and of territory in the Cour d'honneur of the Palais des papes. In this heart of hearts, where the walls continue telling us stories of prerogatives and of the unchanging nature of power and of religion, yet also exalt and welcome life in all its complexities.
Distribution
Choreography Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Damien Jalet
Music Patrizia Bovi, Mahabub Khan, Sattar Khan, Gabriele Miracle, Shogo Yoshii
Music advisor Fahrettin Yarkin
Stage design Antony Gormley
Choreography assistant Nienke Reehorst
Dramaturgy Lou Cope
Text Lou Cope, Karthika Naïr, Vilayanur Ramachandran
Costumes Alexandra Gilbert
Lights Urs Shoenenbaum, Adam Carrée
Avec Aimilios Arapoglou, Magali Casters, Navala "Niku"Chaudhari, Sandra Delgadillo, Francis Ducharme, Jon Filip Fahlstrom, Leif Federico Firnhaber, Darryl E. Woods, Damien Fournier, Ben Fury, Aliashka Hilsum, Ulrika Kinn Svensson, Kazutomi "Tsuki" Kozuki, Paea Leach, Josepha Madoki, Christine Leboutte, Nemo Oeghoede, James O'Hara, Helder Seabra, Mohamed Toukabri, Majon van der Schot, James Vu Ahn Pham and the musicians Kazunari Abe, Patrizia Bovi, Mahabub Khan, Sattar Khan, Gabriele Miracle, Shogo Yoshii
Production
Production Eastman, La Monnaie/De Munt (Bruxelles)
Co-production Sadler's Wells (Londres), Fondazione Musica per Roma, Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, Company Foundation Hermès, Theaterfestival Boulevard ('s HertogenBosch), Migros Culture Percentage Dance Festival Steps (Zürich), Ludwigsburger Schlossfestspiele, Festspielhaus Sankt-Pölten, La Villette (Paris)
With the support of Dash Arts 2010 program on Arabic Arts, Garrick Charitable Trust, BNP Paribas Foundation, gouvernement of Flanders and Antwerp City