• 1
• 2

• Dance + talk
• Kathy Acker "Blood and Guts in High School"
• patriarchy

• Fr., 02.11.2018, 19:00

Artist talk following 'La Grande Ours' (The Great Bear)

Mathilde Monfreux takes hold of a tale whose childish imagery hides a criticism of the overruling patriarchy. Here, the narrative provides a framework to a post-gender or rather before-gender dance where the “humanimal” is organic before being social. The artist talk invites to discuss the creative images.

• 1An excessive Love. Photo © Anne-Sophie Popon
• 2 Mathieu Pelletier, Schauspieler

Inspired by Kathy Acker`s novel 'Blood and Guts in High School' (1970) Mathilde Monfreux found the gist for a new choreographic adventure linking politics and literature. The audience is invited to share their impressions, about the created images and to talk with the choreographer and dancers about the subliminal images, about desire and powerlessness.

About the venue

Dock 11

The factory level of Dock 11 in Kastanienallee in Prenzlauer Berg is a rehearsals room, teaching studio and dance stage in one. The stage programme has interdisciplinary supplements such as theatre, performance, literature, music, visual art, film and club art – however the main focal point of every performance is on purely dance elements. Together with its other premises in EDEN***** in Berlin-Pankow, Dock 11 has established itself as an important part of the Berlin dance scene. The unique combination of teaching, rehearsal and stage generates an exciting change of perspectives in both the artists and pupils, as well as among the audience.  (source: visitberlin.de)

About the dance performance

La Grande Ours (The Great Bear)

Blood and Guts in High School by Kathy Acker, a feminist and sex-positive author, fed Mathilde Monfreux’s fascination for the making of the living and the arrival of subliminal images in the shapeless. She found in this novel written in the 1970’s the gist for a new choreographic adventure linking politics and literature. The dancers take hold of a tale whose childish imagery hides a criticism of the overruling patriarchy. The main protagonist has to give up its desire and confess its powerlessness before turning, amongst other things, into a ball of energy. 

About the Artist

Mathilde Monfreux

Mathilde Monfreux had her first full deep immersion in Performance and Contact Improvisation in San Francisco 15 years ago – and has then been influenced by many encounters within workshops in different countries. Her education in dance is influenced by: - Post Modern Dance Performance, Contact-Improvisation, and Composition. She tooked workshop with Lisa Nelson, Mark Tompkins, Keith Hennessy, Rosalind Crisp, Benoît Lachambre and many others. Relation between Butoh and French Literature (Artaud / Genet / Lautréamont). But her approach, is definitely singular, made of her professionnal perfomer experience during many years as a dancer within circus company, as Camille Boitel, and as a performer in relation with several Visual Artist. She picks up from improvisation experience presence, energy and freedom of movement which support her in different pieces and nourishes also her practice with voice.