L'œil nu

They say a star starts dying when, with its hydrogen reserves depleted, it can no longer exist in a state of equilibrium. Thus begins a long phase of degeneration which will lead, based on the size of the star, to the collapse of its heart, or even to a violent explosion. For this creation, French-Swiss choreographer Maud Blandel associates the astrophysical phenomenon of pulsars* to the tragic memory of the sound of her father’s heart exploding. Adapting the principles of rotation, gravity, and periodicity, L’œil nu, with its six dancers, turns the cloister of the cemetery of the Chartreuse de Villeneuve lez Avignon into the perfect observation field. When faced with a body (be it astral, physical, or collective) in a state of degeneration, what do we truly perceive? More than the mere reconstitution of an autobiographical event, Maud Blandel plays here with changes of scale, keeps the tragic at bay, and translates into images the workings of memory: its persistence, its loops as much as its holes, its grey areas and other inventions. 

*Formed after the explosion of the heart of a massive star, a pulsar is a celestial body spinning at very high speed.

Interview with Maud Blandel

With Karine Dahouindji, Maya Masse, Tilouna Morel, Ana Teresa Pereira, Romane Peytavin, Simon Ramseier
Direction and choreography Maud Blandel
Sound Maud Blandel, Denis Rollet, Flavio Virzì
Lighting Florian Bach, Daniel Demont
Costumes Marie Bajenova 
Outside view Anna-Marija Adomaityte
Lighting design assistant Edouard Hügli
Sound Manager Denis Rollet
Mixing and sound diffusion Denis Rollet
Production, distribution Parallèle Pratiques artistiques émergentes internationales
Administration Alexandra Nivon (I L K A)
Texts Maud Blandel, T.S Eliot, The Hollow men, 1925, traduit de l’anglais par Pierre Leyris : Les Hommes creux, La Terre Vaine et Autres Poèmes, Points Poésie, 2006.

Production I L K A, Parallèle Pratiques artistiques émergentes internationales (Marseille)
Coproduction Arsenic Centre d'art scénique contemporain (Lausanne), Pavillon ADC Association pour la danse contemporaine (Geneva), La Bâtie Festival de Genève, Centre chorégraphique national de Caen en Normandie, Centre national de danse contemporaine d'Angers
With the support of Canton de Vaud, City of Lausanne, Loterie Romande, Pro Helvetia Swiss Arts Council, Ernst Göhner Foundation, Migros Culture Percentage
Co-production Festival d'Avignon, La Chartreuse-CNES of Villeneuve lez Avignon
As part of SCH - Swiss selection in Avignon
The company I L K A benefits from a contract of trust with the City of Lausanne (2021-2024).