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Youth must have its fling! Choreographer Blanca Li presents Elektro Kif, a fizzing and liberated spectacle.
Li plunges us into the universe of 'tektonik' (a form of urban dance born in France in the last decade). A classroom, a playground and a gym provide a backdrop for interaction between young people giving free rein to their impulses and moods.
She tells the story of young adolescents searching for identity and recognition in their social environment, which is dominated by school. Clowning is mixed with spinning prowess to create magnificent tektonik body language sequences against a soundtrack of both techno and classical music.
Li uses eight performers selected for their mastery of electro dance as well as their ability to embody characters on stage. The project represents the very latest in French urban dance innovation, a phenomenon that will shake up your view of contemporary dance! An absolute must!
Franco-Spanish influences
Born in Grenada but living in France, Blanca Li's art reflects both her native and adopted countries and a sense of memory is present in all her creations. Using a wide range of physical expression from flamenco to hip hop via classical and baroque forms, Li has forged a singularly personal path, weaving together different disciplines and universes to create a shared artistic adventure.
Blanca Li
Blanca Li is a dancer, choreographer, mixed media artist and director. After practising rhythmic gymnastics in the Spanish national team aged 12, she moved to New York and studied in Martha Graham's academy for five years while also visiting the schools of Alvin Ailey and Paul Sanasardo as well as the Clark Center. In Madrid she formed her first company, which was selected for the Seville Expo in 1992.
Li established herself in France in 1992 and presented 'Nana and Lila' a year later at the Avignon Festival followed by 'Salome' with music by Charles Koechlin in 1995 at the Quartz Center in Brest, 'Stress–don't blow your top' in January 1997 at the Jean-Vilar Theater in Suresnes and 'Dream of the minotaur' in 1998, a ballet inspired by ancient Greece and produced by the Lyon Biennale and Creteil Maison d'Arts.
In 1999 and 2000 she created the one woman show 'Zap! Zap! Zap!' at the Moulin du Roc cultural centre in Niort and presented it at the Chaillot National Theater and at New York's The Kitchen as part of the France Moves festival. She opened the 1999 Suresnes Cites Danse festival (a festival designed to give an opportunity to dancers from disadvantaged Paris suburbs) with 'Macadam Macadam', a hip hop creation that became a reference for the genre thanks to performances from Avignon to the USA via the Paris Opera-Comique. At the turn of the millennium and at the opening of the Lieu Unique in Nantes, Li responded to an invitation from the Regional Modern Dance Centre with 'Unique universe', a musical score for trapeze artists, accordion and dancers. The Nancy Opera commissioned her in 1997 and 1999 to direct two Manuel de Falla operas, 'Life is short' and 'Love, the magician' followed by directing and choreography for the world premiere of the opera 'A tango for Monsieur Lautrec' by Jorge Zulueta and Jacobo Romano.
In September 1999, the Paris Opera commissioned her to choreograph Rameau's 'Indes galantes' directed by William Christie. In July 2000, star dancer Monique Loudieres commissioned her for the silhouette solo in 'Le Vif du sujet' at the Avignon Festival. At the end of 2001, she created 'Scheherazade' for the Paris Opera Ballet, which used costumes by Christian Lacroix.
Li was named director and choreographer for the Berlin Ballet at the 'Komische Oper' and stayed there for a season, redoing 'Dream of the minotaur' for 24 dancers. She also collaborated with the mixed media artists Jorge and Lucy Orta on 'Borderline'. Upon her return to France, she presented 'Borderline' in France and other parts of Europe. The Blanca Li company was in residence at the Massy Opera in 2002, where she created 'Al Andalus'. This piece was staged in June 2004 at the Alhambra in Grenada during the international festival and featured a symphony orchestra and the great singer Marina Heredia. In March 2003, Li choreographed 'William Tell' for the Bastille Opera, directed by Francesca Zambello. 'Alarm', created by Li, was performed at the Lyon Biennale in September 2004 and toured in rotation with a new version of 'Al Andalus' accompanied on certain occasions by the flamenco singer Carmen Linares (Madrid Dance Festival and Seville Italica Dance Festival).
In February 2004, Li did the choreography for Don Giovanni at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, directed by Marthe Keller. The same year, she was named a Knight in France's National Order of Merit and received the Manuel de Falla prize in Spain in recognition for her contribution to contemporary choreography and her professional career.
In 2005, Li collaborated on the musical comedy 'Baghdad Cafe'. In 2006, she again staged her hip hop opera 'Macadam Macadam' at the Massy Opera and then at the Mogador Theater in Paris, for which she received a Crystal Globe, an award from the French press, for the best show (dance and opera category) in 2007.
She was named director of the Andalucia Dance Center in Seville (CAD) in September 2006. 'Crazy Heart', a creation by the company with the Sequenza 9.3 vocal ensemble, directed by Catherine Simonpietri and with a score by Edith Canat de Chizy, was produced in January 2007 at the Odyssud Theater in Blagnac and at the Chaillot National Theater.
Li was promoted to Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Minister of Culture in March 2007. In July 2007, she created 'Poet in New York', a show inspired by Federico Garcia Lorca's journey to that city and his poetry, at the Teatro del Generalife in Grenada. Accompanied on stage by flamenco singer Carmen Linares and flamenco dancer Andres Marin along with about 30 dancers and musicians, she composed a work close to musical comedy with an original jazz and flamenco score by Tao Gutierrez. This show won Spain's Premios Max prize for best choreography.
Li held her first mixed media exhibition, entitled 'Te voy ensenar a bailar' ('I will teach you to dance'), in January 2008 at MUSAC, the Leon modern art museum in Spain.
On June 23 2009, the Ministry of Culture commissioned her to be an artist at the National Choreography Centre in Creteil, directed by Mourad Merzouki. With her company, she created 'Garden of delights', inspired by the Hieronymous Bosch tableau and presented at the Montpellier Dance Festival and at the Champs Elysees Theater in Paris. On 19 September 2009, she participated in the Madrid Noche en Blanco (White Night) with a multimedia installation called 'Ven a bailar conmigo' ('Dance with me'). In Autumn 2009 she was awarded the Gold Medal of Merit for the Arts by the King of Spain after being nominated for her work in 2008 by the Spanish Ministry of Culture.
In January 2010, Li created 'What circus' with the Jeu de Jambes collective for the Suresnes Cites Danse festival. In March 2010, she directed and choreographed a production of the 'Treemonisha' opera at the Chatelet Theater. In June 2010 she directed the modern opera 'Very Gentle' and 'A Park' by Luis de Pablo for his 80th birthday at the Teatro del Canal in Madrid. In December 2010 she created for her company the 'Elektro Kif' show in Colombes, a suburb of Paris. In June 2011 she staged a third version of 'Macadam Macadam' with a Spanish company in Barcelona for the GREC festival.
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Organisers:
Meet in Beijing, CPAA, PLA Theater, Shanghai Centre Theatre, Shanghai Smart culture co., ltd, Hangzhou Redstar Theater.
With support from:
French Embassy in China, Institut francais–French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and the Cervantes Institute
And the support from:
Longchamp sole sponsor of Blanca LI’s first China Tour