© Lore Stessel
Bodies at Work. Open Studio Zoë Demoustier - A Wave
Witness this vulnerable yet truly beautiful moment at the beginning of the creative process of A Wave.
In her new performance A Wave, choreographer Zoë Demoustier revisits iconic scenes from the 1980s and 1990s. She and her intergenerational cast (re)appropriate the dance heritage of the “Flemish Wave” and take it in their own direction. Together, they explore what needs to be passed on and what could use an update. But above all: how reference points can be not a straitjacket but a source of joy in dance and – who knows – a new wave.
During the very first rehearsal days of A Wave, we open the doors of the dance studio. Some of the cast members are meeting each other for the first time. They invite each other into their personal movement archives, stored in the bodies of the children and young people, the dancers with less experience but with their own movement language, and that of Fumiyo Ikeda and Annamirl Van der Pluijm. Fumiyo and Annamirl carry a rich repertoire from the Flemish Wave, accumulated at Rosas, Troubleyn and Kunst/Werk, among others. What dance history do the dancers carry with them, and how can it be passed on from body to body?
The rehearsal space is usually a closed place. For A Wave, we open it up and invite the audience to witness this vulnerable, but also particularly beautiful, beginning of the creative process. These encounters are documented live by illustrators led by Silke Grofey. In this way, the traces of the movements are captured.
Practical
➤ During this open class, you observe as a spectator. You will not be asked to participate or move yourself.
➤ No language required
➤ Open Doors. You can freely walk in and out between 11:00 - 17:00.
Meer lezen?
Zoë Demoustier wrote A game of whispers about her practice as a form of physical archiving. She originally presented the text as a lecture at the symposium Choreographic Legacies of STUK, OBV and the University of Antwerp (17.09.2024). It was subsequently published in Etcetera Belichaamd Erfgoed (‘Embodied Heritage’), which we launched during the previous Body of Work festival.
A Wave will premiere in March 2027.
CREDITS
choreography Zoë Demoustier dancers during the Open Studio Fumiyo Ikeda, Annamirl van der Pluijm, Hannah Bekemans (Platform-K), Luwe Van Gucht, Lahja Demoustier, Hana De Pauw and 3 children (tbc) live illustration led by Silke Groffy made possible with the support of 30CC and OBV A Wave is a production of OBV in collaboration with the dancers of OBV co-production laGeste, STUK Kunstencentrum with the support of Ultima Vez, CORPoREAL/Conservatorium Antwerpen, LAB Hasselt
Zoë Demoustier is a Brussels-based choreographer and performer with a background in contemporary dance, Dutch mime and cultural research. The body serves as her starting point for visual performances, linking movement to current and socially engaged topics to create choreographic work with diverse bodies. Since graduating from the Academy of Theatre and Dance in Amsterdam (Mime) and the Royal Institute for Theatre, Film and Sound in Brussels (Directing) in 2018, she has built up a broad network in Flanders, Brussels and the Netherlands, and has worked internationally in cities such as Vienna, Montreal and Milan.
Zoë has collaborated with various companies, including Kabinet K, Alma Söderberg/Manyone, Michiel Vandevelde, David Weber-Krebs and Marcelo Evelin. Her most important performances are Unfolding an Archive (Ultima Vez/STUK), Beating Choir/Choeur Battant (BRONKS BE & Le Carrousel CA), Nesten and Wat Was & Wat Nu (fABULEUS), and the highly acclaimed What Remains (Ultima Vez), which was selected for the 2023 Theatre Festival and received international recognition.
Together with Oihana Azpillaga and Barbara T'Jonck, she founded the artists' organisation Platform In De Maak, which facilitates alternative spaces for emerging performing artists. In 2021, Zoë was ambassador for Dance Day, which resulted in the online documentary Dansmakers van Morgen, aimed at increasing the visibility of new dance artists.
In 2022, she began a new collaboration as a choreographer with Ultima Vez and a structural residency collaboration with Ultima Vez, LAB Hasselt and 30CC Leuven to develop her work.
Zoë is affiliated with the Royal Conservatoire of Antwerp as a researcher and teaches at the Academy of Theatre and Dance in Amsterdam and De Kunsthumaniora in Brussels.
She is currently conducting a two-year research project entitled The Flemish Wave Revisited: Towards an Intergenerational Dialogue with Dance Heritage and is working on the performances Hear the Silence (laGeste, Ultima Vez, KVS) and A Wave, that will premiere in 2026 and 2027.
Location
Price
FREE without registration
