TE SOUVIENT-IL?
This project emerged from the desire of two choreographers, Louise Bédard et Sylvain Émard, to create a piece in which they would choreograph and dance together rather than one for another, as they had done in the past on various occasions. Prompted by the memory of these enriching experiences, as well as their mutual admiration and respect for one another’s work, both choreographers were convinced that this project would enable them to explore the medium of dance in greater depth, urging them to encounter their passion differently and to question their respective creative approaches.
Poster of the show from a picture by Tshi - Graphic design Folio et Garetti
An encounter at the heart of dance. More than just a goal in itself, dance opened the path to us, speaking to us as we danced. Familiar strangers, as two travelers whose routes collide, we share the memory of a world both infinite and minute.
Sylvain Émard
Time has its expectations. It leaves its traces and imprints on our lives unbeknownst. The body remembers, as well…Two bodies, two pasts, two identities, two breaths that furtively attune. Our interlacing voices speak silently, in a language that remains quiet to be better seen and heard. An encounter where distance disappears and solitude finds refuge. Double landscape and exchange of fugitive images, where the light and shadow intertwine to reflect our inner dances.
Louise Bédard
At first, Louise Bédard and Sylvain Émard had set out to create a solo for each other. But as they worked together, the piece evolved into a duo interspersed with solo moments. The creative process was spread out over a period of ten months. The studio work started in March 1999 and was followed by a residency at the Centennial Theatre of Bishop’s University in August 1999. This residency enabled these two creators and the collaborators to work in optimal conditions in relation to the specific requirements of the piece.
CALENDAR
From 2000 to 2002, the piece was on tour in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, France and Mexico for over fifty performances.
ARTISTIC CREDITS
Year fo creation : 2000
Running time : 55 minutes
Production : Louise Bédard Danse & Sylvain Émard Danse
Choreography and performance : Louise Bédard & Sylvain Émard
Rehearsal and artistic advice : Ginelle Chagnon
Music : Michel F. Côté
Set design : Pierre Bruneau
Lighting : Marc Parent
Costumes and make up : Angelo Barsetti
Graphic design : Folio et Garetti
Photography : Tshi and Luc Sénécal
REVIEWS
Te souvient-il? (Do you remember?), a collaboration between seasoned dancer-choreographers Louise Bédard and Sylvain Émard, was unforgettable. […] I’ll be blessed if I see a piece as profoundly good in 2001.
Donald Hutera, Dance Europe, Londres, Angleterre - February 2001
She is playful, mischievous and delicate. He is clumsily tender and disconcertingly natural. Both form a couple defying all clichés, presenting a less languorous and more down-to-earth depiction of human relationships…They reveal a stunning ability to create an immediate understanding of their work-the meaning comes through.
N. Yokel, Danser, Paris, France - July / August 2001
[…] Beautiful image speak volumes…Through conflict, resolution, longing and experimentation, there are moments of relaxation and intensity that speak to the deep tenderness that exists between their characters, who with the simplest of gestures, sometimes appear to merge into one organism.
Linda Howe-Beck, The Gazette, Montréal - March 2000
[…] never before, have things been said so eloquently without words.
Julie Bouchard, Le Devoir, Montréal - March 2000
In Louise Bédard and Sylvain Émard’s enjoyable co-creation, Te souvient-il?, the veteran dancer-choreographers have a pleasing kinetic energy that looks effortless […] Together, these dancers share mutual need; whether lying on the ground or falling into one another, they breath life into each other.
Philip Szporer, Hour, Montréal - mars 2000