A Wave
In the 1980s, a wave of radical dance innovators emerged from the triangular relationship between Brussels, Ghent and Antwerp. Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, Wim Vandekeybus, Marc Vanrunxt, Alain Platel, Jan Fabre and many others gradually made their way into Belgian theatres with their unconventional performances. In no time at all, they also swept across the Netherlands, Europe and the rest of the world. That ‘Flemish Wave’ has profoundly influenced the way we watch and dance, as is now apparent, some forty years later.
In A Wave, choreographer Zoë Demoustier takes stock. With some fifteen dancers – from Opera Ballet Vlaanderen, joined by young people, a dancer from Platform K and iconic dancers who created the pieces of yesteryear – she deconstructs monumental scenes from the 1980s and 1990s with an eye to the future. Together, they explore what should be passed on and what could do with an update. But above all: how references can be a source of joy in dance – rather than a straitjacket – and, who knows, a new wave.
(This text was originally presented at the symposium: Choreographic Legacies on 17 September 2024 and published in Etcetera magazine)
Distribution: Frans Brood Productions
