BENGALURU: What is dance if not a celebration of movement and the life that pulsates within us all? Honouring this celebration of life, renowned French-Algerian choreographer Mourad Merzouki is bringing an original choreography titled Cartes Blanches.
A joint venture between Merzouki’s Compagnie Käfig, Prakriti Foundation, and the French Institute in India, the production will feature six
dancers from Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Delhi, selected after auditions last year.
“This project is an opportunity for me to open up my work internationally as I want to continue collaborating with local artists,” he shares. The show, which retraces 20 years of Compagnie Käfig’s history, was first conceptualised in 2016 to celebrate the company’s 20th anniversary and will be premiering in the city this month.
One of the selected dancers, Deep Das from Mumbai, reflects, “As a movement artist and choreographer, it’s an honour to be part of this French production.” For Snigdha Prabhakar, one of the dancers from Bengaluru, the experience has been equally intense and rewarding. “It’s an intense process with a lot of work in a short amount of time,” she shares.
While the production is heavily inspired by hip-hop elements like breaking, locking, popping, and floor work, Prabhakar notes that it also allows the dancers to express their individuality and bring their own styles into the performance. “It’s more about presenting yourself as you are. There’s definitely camaraderie – you’re working with your tribe, but you also get moments to express yourself,” she adds.
Merzouki’s vision for Cartes Blanches was to create a ‘friendly reunion’, where dancers from various backgrounds share ‘moments of life and the memory of bodies, in all its simplicity.’ “The challenge with every creation is to harmonize distant worlds. The idea is not to place diverse styles end to end, but to work on a form of alchemy so that the spectator sees something both singular and new,” Merzouki explains. “Technically, Indian dancers have different gestures and bodies from those we are used to in France. The challenge is to work with their energy and integrate it into my creative work.”
Merzouki’s innovative blend of hip-hop, martial arts, and other dance forms has earned him global recognition, having recently devised the official choreography of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. “The future of hip-hop will depend on the people behind it and their desire to continue taking risks, innovating... which is what we’ve been doing for the last 30 years! As long as we take this approach, we’ll continue to exist.”
For Merzouki, this collaboration with Indian dancers is more than just a fusion of dance styles. “I try to invent dialogues between different disciplines. My work is driven by the idea of bringing together people, genres, energies, and styles,” he explains. “Today, hip-hop has the capacity and maturity to open up to other techniques, to shake up the arts, while offering a generous dance for everyone. Art and dance demonstrate that despite differences, dialogue is always possible!” he shares.
(Cartes Blanches will be showcased on September 7, 8pm at Prestige Srihari Khoday Center For Performing Arts. Tickets priced at Rs 299 are available at bookmyshow.com)