+1 514 982 4580 • Fax : +1 514 982 0613 www.lbdans

Louise Bédard artistic director
directeur général George Krump general manager
administration Lise Tremblay administration
directrice artistique
tournées
Denis Bergeron / Art Circulation touring
Louise Bédard Danse
2022, rue Sherbrooke Est, Montreal, (Quebec) H2K 1B9, CANADA
Tél/Phone : +1 514 982 4580 • Fax : +1 514 982 0613
www.lbdanse.org • [email protected]
Denis Bergeron / Art Circulation
372, rue Sainte-Catherine Ouest, Montréal (Québec), H3B 1A2, CANADA
Tél/Phone : +1 514 871 3873 • Fax : +1 514 313 5667
www. artcirculation.org • [email protected]
LOUISE BÉDARD
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
& CHOREOGRAPHER
Before
establishing her reputation as an independent
choreographer, Louise Bédard was already renowned as
a remarkable dance performer. While working with such
choreographers as Jeanne Renaud, Jean-Pierre Perreault,
Paul-André Fortier, Ginette Laurin, Sylvain Émard, and many
others, she became more and more aware of the richness of
dance and began her own creations. An artistic director and
choreographer, Louise Bédard has created over thirty works
to date. Her repertory is highly varied and includes memorable
intimate pieces such as the solos Braise Blanche (1990),
Cartes postales de Chimère (1996) and the more recent La
femme ovale (2003).
Among her work for two dancers, key moments in her career
include the acclaimed Te souvient-il? (2000), created and
performed by Louise Bédard with partner choreographer and
performer Sylvain Émard and Elles (2002). Her group pieces
are no less imposing in her repertory. Dans les fougères
foulées du regard (1995) and URBANIA BOX, je n’imagine
rien (1999) established her singular style and playful vision.
Whether via her skill as a performer or as a choreographer,
Bédard unrelentingly probes the very essence of movement
in order to create a choreographic language that portrays
human complexity and fragility with poetry, humor, and
irony. The results are vibrant dances tinted by a personal
perspective and lucidity. Louise Bédard collaborates regularly
on multidisciplinary projects and often derives the colors and
tones of her choreographic language from other art forms.
The Itinéraire multiple cycle is a striking example. Spread over
several years, the project allowed Louise to be inspired by the
life and work of female artists from other cultures as the basis
for her own work. The first segment Elles (2002) took us deep
into the work of Tina Modotti, an Italian photographer from
the twenties who immigrated to Mexico. In 2005, the second
portion of the project was created, inspired by the German
artist Hannah Höch. Premiering at Usine C in 2005, Ce qu’il
en reste — which won the dance nomination as a finalist for
the 21e Grand Prix du Conseil des arts de Montréal —, was
a sextet whose cast included Canadian and German dancers
and collaborators. Finally, in 2008, she completed the creation
cycle with Enfin vous zestes, a work for six dancers that took
the work of Canadian artist Marianna Gartner as its departure
point. The work premiered at Usine C in September of 2008.
Over the last twenty years, Louise Bédard’s company has
been a dynamic tool for deepening the choreographic work she
began in the early 1980’s. Her singular artistic vision has been
recognized by various prizes including the prestigious Jean A.
Chalmers national dance award in 1997 for her exceptional
contribution to performance and creativity in Canadian dance.
Louise Bédard is also a co-founder and member of Circuit-
Est, a choreographic center that supports research and
creation by offering master classes, workshops, and rehearsal
space. She was also a guest teacher of the dance department
of the Université du Québec à Montréal from 2006 to 2010.
Founded in 1990, Louise Bédard Danse (LBD) has been directed since that time by choreographer
and dancer Louise Bédard. The company’s offices and studios are located within the Circuit-Est centre
chorégraphique complex at 2022 Sherbrooke Street East in Montreal. The company is both a non-profit
and registered charitable organization.
LBD’s primary mandate is the creation and production of original works of contemporary dance. As
an extension of this mandate, the company also contributes to the visibility of dance and the arts in
general by organizing educational activities that stimulate exchanges within the local community. It is
actively involved in developing dance through artistic research, professional training,
and creation workshops while simultaneously cultivating interactions
between different generations. The company encourages all the
members of its staff to become involved in the dance milieu
as mentors for emerging artists and professionals,
and by participating in Regroupement québécois
de la danse activities and committees.
Over the years, the company has
established its reputation by the quality
and professionalism of its productions.
Led by a choreographer who
constantly questions and renews her
art and backed by an audacious and
committed staff, LBD is constantly in
search of new ways to present dance
and to communicate and remain in
constant dialogue with the public. The
company is a pioneer in using social
networks and is currently expanding its
exploration of the various possibilities that
the Internet provides for live streaming of
rehearsals, interviews, and other artistic activities.
From its beginning the company has toured throughout
Québec and Canada, France, Bulgaria, the United States, and in
Mexico while also performing in various festivals throughout the world. LBD
has also been a partner in a number of co-productions, notably with the National Arts Centre of Canada,
the Sliven Drama Theatre, the Agora de la Danse, La Femme 100 Têtes, and the Théâtre La Chapelle.
The choreographer and her company have taken part in a number of artistic residency programs in
Canada and abroad.
In parallel to the dance productions, the company often proposes exhibitions of artists’ work that have
inspired the choreography. The company promoted exhibitions of Tina Modotti’s photographs (19241929) and Collages by Hannah Höch (1889-1978), two artists whose works bear a direct relation to the
choreographer’s creative process. LBD also collaborated on the organization of photographs by Angelo
Barsetti, a long-time collaborator with the company. These efforts are all demonstrations of a desire to
provide the general public with keys to understand and appreciate contemporary dance while using
original and accessible methods.
Louise Bédard Danse is supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Conseil des arts et des
lettres du Québec and the Conseil des arts de Montréal. The company is a member of Circuit-Est centre
chorégraphique and a partner of the consortium Art Circulation.
REPERTOIRE 1990-2010
2010 Curieux les uns des autres - motifs enchevêtrés - commissionned by the UQAM Dance Department.
2008 Enfin vous zestes - produced by Louise Bédard Danse
2007 Ces silences parmi les autres - commissionned by the UQAM Dance Department.
2005 Ce qu’il en reste – produced by Louise Bédard Danse
Ex-Libris – produced by Louise Bédard Danse - co-presented by La Chapelle
Seven ways to tell time - commissioned by Platform 33, produced by Danceworks
2004 Vivement Dimanche - commissioned by Michael Trent, produced by Danceworks
2003 La femme ovale – produced by Louise Bédard Danse
2002 Elles - coproduced by Louise Bédard Danse/Théâtre La Chapelle
2000 Tanka - commissioned by CJ8
Te souvient-il? - coproduced by Louise Bédard Danse/Sylvain Émard Danse
1999 URBANIA BOX, je n’imagine rien - produced by Louise Bédard Danse
1998 Créature - commissioned by Kate Alton, produced by Danceworks
Cascando - commissioned by Ken Roy, produced by Danse-Cité
1996 Cartes postales de Chimère - produced by Louise Bédard Danse
1995 Elle ne se montre qu’aux siens - coproduced by Louise Bédard Danse/La Femme 100 têtes
Dans les fougères foulées du regard – coproduced by Louise Bédard Danse/Agora de la danse
1994 Promenade avec Walser – coproduced by Théâtre La Chapelle/Théâtre dramatique Stefan Kirov
Sliven, Bulgarie
1993 Männgard – commissioned by Marc Boivin, produced by Danse-Cité
Vierge Noire – produced by Louise Bédard Danse
1992 Le salon des regards perdus – coproduced by Louise Bédard Danse/Centre National, Bretagne
Dix stations – commissioned by Manon Levac, produced by Danse-Cité
1991 À l’Ombre - produced by Louise Bédard Danse
Les Métamorphoses clandestines – produced by Louise Bédard Danse
1990 Perspectives possibles – produced by Louise Bédard Danse
M’A, Lapse et F…électricitte
Braise Blanche – coproduced by Louise Bédard Danse /National Arts Centre, Ottawa
Série solos (work in progress)
The project roots
The steps
The Itinéraire multiple cycle, which resulted in
three productions, Elles (2002), Ce qu’il en reste
(2005) and Enfin vous zestes (2008) is now part
of our history. Having explored the intersecting
points between dance and visual arts by plunging
intimately into the œuvres of several female
creators, for her next work, Louise Bédard will turn
to the notion of intimacy and that intangible link
that connects people, as a starting point.
The projects’ first steps began in August of 2010
during a 2-week creative research residency in
Rimouski. Creation research will continue this
autumn and the first public viewings of the work will
occur in Montreal in April and May of 2011 at the
end of a six week artistic residency at Circuit-Est
centre chorégraphique. During selected moments
of the process, dance presenters and the public will
be invited to comment on the different formats that
will be experimented. These exchanges will occur
in the studio as well as on a live net broadcast
using technology that is available to everyone.
The performing hall and stage where a show takes
place has an important influence on how a work is
received. Louise Bédard is aware of this element
and wishes to use spaces that induce the spectator
to view the work differently; in other words, to seek
ways to create a sense of proximity and establish
an increasingly dynamic connection.
A dynamic puzzle
Solo Series explores the solo as a base material
that allows the choreographer to gather a diversified
ensemble of movement sequences. She will then
have the freedom to assemble the sequences in
variable configurations according to the dancers’
availabilities, the performing space, and the
targeted public. In order to maintain this flexibility,
the set’s design will certainly be very simple and
the choreography will remain at the forefront of the
work in order to create a privileged relationship
with the audience.
A
The production
As a production format, we currently favor a series
of three presentations that could possibly occur in
three different settings of a specific venue (lawn,
hall, stage) or within a city (school, market place,
park). The presentations can be of different
lengths depending on the context. An ideal format
would allow at least a portion of the public to attend
more than one presentation in order to experience
the differences. We will be open to discussing
any other initiative that a dance presenter might
propose. The performing cast will be limited to
three or four dancers joined occasionally by Louise
Bédard. Premier date: autumn 2011.
Louise Bédard Danse Production
Contact Denis Bergeron ~ Art Circulation +1 514 871 3873 ~ [email protected]
In this world of superimposed layers, inspired
by painting, nothing is really exactly as it appears. The movement of bodies hides as much
as it reveals and the dancing figures are in constant interplay with their portions of shadow
and light. A veteran choreographer with an
unbridled imagination, Louise Bédard creates
worlds where the tragic exists alongside comic
and hilarious undertones. All with freshness
and surprise.
For her most recent creation, Louise Bédard
has taken the work of
the Canadian painter
of Hungarian origins,
Marianna Gartner, as
her launching point.
Bédard first discovered her tableaux in
“The Book of Images”
by Alberto Manguel
and was taken by the
hyper-realistic
portraits Gartner created
from archival photos.
At first, her characters
appear normal, even
conventional, but the viewer notices details that
reveal another world and more complex layering. Progressively the characters show their
singular presence in the midst of a network of
their own contradictions.
Artistic Direction and Choreography Louise Bédard
Artistic Advisor and Rehearsal Mistress Christine Charles
Set Design Geneviève Lizotte Music Diane Labrosse
Lights Bruno Rafie Video David Fafard
Costumes and Makeup Angelo Barsetti
Original Dancers Tom Casey, Jean-François Déziel, MarieClaire Forté, Victoria May, Ken Roy and Sarah Williams
enfinvouszestes.com
Contact Denis Bergeron / Art Circulation • +1 514 871 3873 • [email protected]
C e qu'il en reste is an imposing yet highly entertaining new work for six dancers, which marked a return for
Louise Bédard to choreographing group pieces. This dance opus forms the second part of the creative cycle
entitled Itinéraire multiple in which the choreographer explores the worlds of women artists from other
cultures. Ce qu'il en reste is based on the work of the amazing Hannah Höch, an artist renowned for her
photomontage and one of the first German Dadaists.
S pread over a period of two years, the creation of
Ce qu'il en r e s t e was a result of Louise's
encounter with the many dancers she invited to
perform research work. The journey was also
coloured by residences at Fondation Jean-Pierre
Perreault, Pact Zollverein Choreographic Centre in
Essen and at Usine C. Throughout the process, in
the sidelines of her dance, Louise collected
images, cut them to pieces and pasted them
together. In Höch's footsteps, she created with her
own paper collages, an imagery that served as
guideline, as choreographic canvas and as a
creative tool to be used with her dancers.
C e qu’il en reste presents a somewhat surrealistic, very audacious theatrical world in which dream and
common day alternately run parallel or overlap. Purity of movement and unrestrained gesture change with the
galleries of characters to offer a three-dimensional moving collage that oscillates between solitude and
synthesis, love and levity, and the relationship with the other and the self.
W ith the collaboration of multidisciplinary artist Jonathan Inksetter, videographer David Fafard and lighting
designer Bruno Rafie, Louise Bédard has created a set formed by immense paper-screen displays that literally
split up the space and capture light; on these, the moving figures are projected by video.
M usic by Michel F. Côté and Diane Labrosse, which they perform on stage, accompany the dancers. Denis
Lavoie’s costumes and Angelo Barsetti’s make-up and photography are also central to the work.
C e qu'il en reste, a production by Louise Bédard Danse, was created in residence at Usine C (Montréal),
the Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault (Montréal) and the PACT Zollverein Choreographic Centre (Essen,
Germany). Le Groupe Dance Lab (Ottawa) and the Goethe Institute in Montréal also contributed to the work.
Choreography ~ LOUISE BÉDARD
Stage Design ~ JONATHAN INKSETTER
Lighting ~ BRUNO RAFIE
Video ~ DAVID FAFARD
Music ~ MICHEL F. CÔTÉ, DIANE LABROSSE
Costumes ~ DENIS LAVOIE
Make-up ~ ANGELO BARSETTI
Dancers ~ KATE ALTON or ANNEBRUCE FALCONER,
JEAN-FRANÇOIS DÉZIEL, LEA HELMSTÄDTER, ANNE LE
BEAU, MICHAEL TRENT or KEN ROY, DANIEL
VILLENEUVE
Time : 75 min ~ Target audience : General
Contact Denis Bergeron ~ Art Circulation +1 514 871 3873 ~ [email protected]
EX-LIBRIS
CHOREOGRAPHY INTERPRETATION
LOUISE BÉDARD
- ANNEBRUCE FALCONER
– MARC BOIVIN, KEN ROY
- ANGELO BARSETTI
LIGHTING – JEAN GERVAIS
MUSIC – ROBERT MARCEL LEPAGE, FRÉDÉRIC CHOPIN
REMIXING AND SOUNDSCAPE – MICHEL F. CÔTÉ
TIME – 50 MINUTES (no intermission)
CHOREOGRAPHIC REMONTAGE
COSTUME, MAKEUP AND PHOTOGRAPHY
A LOUISE BÉDARD DANSE PRODUCTION
The inspiring AnneBruce Falconer, one of the most renowned
virtuoso dancers on the contemporary Canadian scene, was
at the birth of the Ex-libris project. When she expressed to
Louise Bédard her desire to experience the perils of the
soloist for a first time, the choreographer gave her carte
blanche to the collection. From the heart of this repertoire,
AnneBruce Falconer chose two magnificent solo works:
M ä n n g a r d
C a s c a n d o
Commissioned by dancer Marc Boivin and
inspired by his own text, Männgard premiered
in 1993 as part of a program produced by
Danse-Cité. The critically acclaimed work was
toured extensively during the years that
followed and helped to forge Marc Boivin’s
reputation as an exceptional interpreter.
Commissioned by Ken Roy in 1999, Cascando was
presented as one of the works in a Danse-Cité
program devoted entirely to Chopin. The work won its
dancer, Ken Roy, an award for artistic interpretation.
Cascando has been performed many times since,
notably in Lebanon during a festival held in Beirut in
May 2004.
Imagined for the bodies of male dancers, Männgard and Cascando are revisited in Ex-libris from a
new perspective — reinvented — because these two choreographies now meet a new body, that of
a woman. Ex-Libris was recreated with the collaboration of Marc Boivin and Ken Roy, the two
original dancers. Louise Bédard also gathered around her some of the most solid artistic
collaborators in Montreal — Jean Gervais, Angelo Barsetti and Michel F. Côté.
Contact Denis Bergeron ~ Art Circulation +1 514 871 3873 ~ [email protected]