Hello Steemians ! This is a translation of my article in French about my week in Preljocaj Ballet. I posted last Tuesday, but until now I didn't have enough time to translate. So please kindly consider it is Tuesday even if it is Sunday and I am about to take off to Paris, even if it's already done :-) Thank you :-) ! Here is the translation.
Time flies so fast ! It's been already two weeks I posted my intro post. I thank everyone who wrote a nice comment or helped me with upvotes, resteems. Thank you Steemians ! Since I took the time to read a lot of articles and educate myself more in-depth about Steemit.
I hardly had the time to blink and here I am, packing my suitcase, before I take off to Paris again. That been said, I can't go back to the Eiffel Tour without telling you about the woderful week I spent between Avignon and Aix en Provence, Southern France. I used everyday a very well known caprool service in France (Blabla car) and I was pleased to meet a lot of very nice people, enjoyng also a super nice, sunny wether on the road !
So the past week I was invited to be a guest pianist for Preljocaj Ballet, a Company based in Aix en Provence. Today I feel physically exhausted but very happy, as always when I have the chance to work there.
I wanted to share with you about this Company with its particular way to exist, the exceptional building housing it, and its Director, the choreographer Angelin Preljocaj.
Born in France, Angelin Preljocaj grew up in a family originally from Albania. As a dancer, he has a rich professional history, having worked with the great names of Contemporary dance world in France and United States.
What I like a lot about this artist is his progression as a "free electron". He doesn't belong to any particular school or artistic movement. Open and inspired by everything, he created his own style over the years.
His creations are also very eclectic, like his progression as a dancer. We are not talking here about some abstract or "intellectual" contemporary dance, which I personally don't like. In the Preljocaj ballets there is a story telling, a narrative thread guiding us through the maze of undulating and pulsing movements.
Preljocaj takes his roots in the classical dance technique, but his choreographies are definitely contemporary.
When it comes to the music, he also can be inspired by very various styles. In "Le Parc", he's moved by the Mozart's music. In "La fresque", one of his last ballets, he uses the electro-pop style of Nicolas Godin.
But no matter the musical genre chosen by Preljocaj, his relationship with music is extremely visceral and in total surrender of the body to the rhythm and the musical energy.
Backstage - creation of "La Fresque", music Nicolas Godin
The Preljocaj Ballet has been created in 1984. At this time Angelin Preljocaj was still a dancer himself in the Dominique Bagouet Company.
The quality of his creations and the success of his Company provided him an international recognition. His work and typical style were quicly noticed in France and abroad, he won prestigious prizes.
Theatres as the Opera de Paris, New York city ballet, Berlin Opera, Scala di Milano have included some of the Preljocaj creations in their program. Since he was also commissionned to create ballets especially for those Companies, along his work as a director of Preljocaj Ballet. Not bad for a free electron, huh ? :-)
"Abandon" (Surrender) from Ballet "Le Parc" with Isabelle Guérin and Laurent Hilaire, Paris Opera Ballet étoiles, music W.A.Mozart
The Pavillon Noir (the Black Cube) was specifically build to house the Preljocaj Ballet. Architect Rudy Ricciotti was commissioned to design the project.
If you go to Aix en Provence, you can visit this building looking as a futuristic cube near the Central Bus Station. The structure is made of black reinforced concrete and the façade is all of black glass.
When the mistral wind blows you can hear the Pavillon creaking from inside and it can be very impressive.
The building has many dance studios and a performance hall for the Company, on top of that a marvelous vue of the city from the highest floor.
The ground floor is an open space for the office staff of the Company. The first floor includes some dance studios but also a nice kitchen and a relaxing corner for tired and hungry dancers (and pianists ! :-)) who need some brake.
I really love the walls of glass of the building, I have the feeling to be in a infinite space and to float in the air when I am inside of the Pavillon Noir.
The big dance studio at the third floor, offering vue of the South of Aix en Provence and the historical center of the city .
Photos by me with Samsung Ace 2
Juste a little funny anecdote : a few months ago while working in the studio at the top floor we saw a ladder going up to the roof.
Some cat got lost on the top of the building and was sitting up there, in complete panic. We never new how the cat found his way to the roof, because the walls of the building are only made of glass. So during the rescue operation the firefighters enjoyed a private show from the dancers who were jumping in front of the window, and saying "hi". Everything went well and the cat was rescued. :-)
If you want to know more about the Pavillon Noir and visit the inside with video presentation, click HERE
We can observe immediately that the dancers in this Company are coming from different countries and bakcgrounds. The Preljocaj Ballet has French dancers of course, but also Spanish, Italian, Canadian, Australian, Chinese, Russian, Albanian.. They all have various professional histories and are coming from very different dance schools. We can see that in their way to move and work in class.
But the thing I like the most as a pianist, is that the Preljocaj dancers have a very strong connection with the music, just like their Director. This is not about mechanical movements here, just to make some exercice. Every movement is related to the music. The dancers are often tired, with muscles in pain. But when the music starts to flow, they are always present, no matter what.
I was able to better understand the research of the "musical dancer" while being present at the selection auditions in last November. During one week I was able to feel "physically" how Angelin Preljocaj was listening to the music. He was very demanding about the musical quality and the dancers had to face a real challenge with complexe musical phrases. I was able to understand in that moment why the dancers of the Company have so amazing musical quality.
No teacher or pianist is working here permanently, contrary to the usual practice in dance companies. By imposing a continual change of the technical work with various teachers and music with various pianists, Angelin Preljocaj is maintaining the constant quality and attention of his dancers during the entire season of work.
I love a lot to work with a different teachers each time I go back to the Preljocaj Ballet. It's a new start from zero and it's very motivating and challenging for me. However the permanent thing here is the great musicality of the dancers and a very warm wellcome attitude every time I go back to the Company.
This last time was for me a real, real blast ! Believe me, it's not an easy-peasy thing at all. I had the great chance to meet Libby Farr, american dancer who followed her carrier as a dancer at Berlin Opera. She was invited for a short period of time to work with the Company, as I was too.
Libby has offered to us a great work with complexe rhythmical phrases, not always easy to understand for me. She helped me by being very clear about music and communicating simply and friendly with me, and I thank her a lot.
This week of work gave me a lot of musical richness, as Libby pushed me at my limits. I learned a lot, I made big progress in my work.
Libby has a very sensual and fluid style, on the border between classical and contemporary dance. Her technical work is totally respecting the dancer's body. On top of all that, Libby has a great sens of humour and we spent a great week working hard together but also having a lot of fun !
Could you believe Libby is already a grand-mother ? I can't but it's true !
Photos by me and Léa de Natale with Ipad 2
We filmed an entire working day but unfortunately I am not allowed to post any video here. I share with you two pictures where you can see Libby "waking up" the dancers and also with me at the end of the week.
I must leave you here... my suitcase is waiting to be prepared ! :-) But before I say good bye I would like to share a little picture I made in Aix last week - a magnificent tree starting to blossom. I dedicate this photo to 
Photo by me with Ipad 2
Good bye South of France and Bonjour Pariiiiiis !
