For November, the Labo des désirs is offering an edition on the theme of “Democracy put to the test by art”. On the one hand, we’ll be focusing on powerful artistic gestures that symbolized the struggle against dictatorships, particularly in South America, and on the other, on the very process of shared, horizontal creation in participatory works. How to make art together!
Tuesday, November 7th
10am to 12pm – Members’ breakfast by La Réplique
11 am to 12:30 pm – Training with a mix of body, space and breathing exercises by Maud Madlyn. “Act before you think. Your instincts are more honest than your thoughts.” (Seinford Meisner). An invitation to awaken our instincts and inhabit our bodies through a mix of bodily, spatial and breathing exercises.
2pm to 5pm – Spontaneous Theater Workshop by Maud Madlyn of Madma Prod.
One person in the group tells a real-life story, then distributes the roles of the characters among those present, who in turn reconstruct the story heard through improvisation. Complex and profound in meaning: how an individual story becomes a group story, how the plurality of imaginations shapes the understanding and retranscription of a story, how to bring together individual proposals and collective construction. An afternoon of play open to all, with or without theater experience.
Wednesday, November 8th
10 am to 12 pm – Body and voice training “The effects of the body on the voice” by Samaneh Latifi
2pm to 5pm – Theater workshop around Chien Blessé, a solo about the dictatorship in Brazil by Flavio Franciulli. Chien Blessé evokes an intimate and darker part of Brazil’s history, that of the twenty years of dictatorship from 1964 to 1985, and is constructed from fragments of actual interviews with artists and militant intellectuals. The workshop will use the text of the play Chien blessé as a tool for improvisation and rereading, and will seek a new dramaturgical perspective. Open to adult actors and non-actors.
3pm to 8pm – Cooking workshop at the Cantine du midi En Chantier
Thursday, November 9th
10 am to 12 pm – Body and dance training by Maud Madlyn from Madma Prod. Awaken and activate the tranquility of presence, the movement of stillness and bodily concentration. Approximations around duration and physical and mental resistance through exercises inspired by theater and performance. As always at Labo des Désirs, all bodies are welcome, with or without experience.
12pm – Cantine des Désirs by En Chantier
2pm to 5pm – Body practice workshop on the body, movement and abandoned chairs by Andrés Montes Zuluaga from Lacra (Laboratorio de creación en artes). The artist has been working with wooden chairs found on the street since 2013. These neglected objects, in a more or less decomposed state, become a reflection of society’s treatment of bodies considered “useless”. The proposed workshop addresses notions such as care, commodification, the relationship with the other, the construction of a social body, and the violence suffered in a country like Colombia, the artist’s native land. These reflections nourish the relationship with the chairs and the search for a single, repetitive gesture as a gateway to a state of physical, psychological, poetic and political resistance. This workshop is part of Andrés’ residency at Soma from November 07 to December 07, 2023 (Cours Julien).
Friday, November 10th
10am to 12pm – Café des désirs “Théâtre spontané” by En Chantier and Maud Madlyn
2pm to 5pm – Overlittérature… workshop by XaL and Cie Texte Hors Contexte. Followed by an excerpt from the show Chien Blessé by Flavio Franciulli.
5pm – Cercle du Premier temps des Poètes – Focus on activist poets by XaL, Texte Hors Contexte (bring a poem to read)
6pm to 9pm – Apéro concert La Chaminas de l’air in concert by Laure Chaminas accompanied by Gaby cigale on electric and heroic guitar. Raw, feminist songs spiced up with absurdity
And of course there’s the traditional Chuchotextes every lunchtime and the unmissable Chaises musicales every evening from 6 to 7 pm to set the pace for the week!
To register for a workshop, write to labodesdesirs@gmail.com
If you have any suggestions for Les Chaises musicales, please contact Marine Quiniou at marine@silex.email