BREL

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, Solal Mariotte / Rosas

BREL is a collaboration between Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker and dancer and upcoming choreographer Solal Mariotte.

Even before their collaboration on Exit Above – which was presented at the Avignon Festival in 2023 – Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker and Solal Mariotte discovered their shared fascination for the Belgian chansonnier Jacques Brel. She chose to dissect the lyrics of Le Plat Pays in French class at school, and he danced solo for the first time to La Valse à Mille Temps. The idea of creating a performance around Brel began to take shape. But would the poetic, passionate universe of his music lend itself to such a format? Can you even dance to Brel? If so, which Brel? The one from the cabaret, or the one of Les Marquises? Which of the 150 songs, of which many are considered world heritage, would they choose?

They took up the gauntlet. She, the classically educated Flemish dancer and choreographer. He, the French breakdancer, two generations younger. They found common ground in the passion and energy Brel radiated on stage and created a dance performance with duos and solos. They used their differences as counterpoints, to create tension. Anne Teresa’s verticality and Solal’s horizontality. The former’s meticulous choreography, the latter’s improvisation. The black box where she feels at home and the restricted space in which breakdancers create their art – though Solal sees himself more as a mediator between contemporary dance and breaking. The geometry and energy are just right.

The third character in the performance is, naturally, Brel himself, through his music and lyrics. His frenetic stage presence and somewhat burlesque gestures teeter on the brink of ‘trop’, but it’s okay – that’s Brel for you. Also present are his razor-sharp social observations on loneliness and friendship, love and war, childhood and coming of age. Anne Teresa and Solal avoided the pitfall of imitating the iconic singer, which would have left them trapped in the spotlight of the Olympia in Paris, like a breakdancer in his cypher. The aim is not to hijack Brel, but to embody him. His music serves as inspiration through which to question the modern world.

Ces gens-là, monsieur, ça danse !