In Tabac Rouge, James the acrobat, the mime and the actor proposes us a « choreodrama » textless, wordless and maybe even plotless, with a toxic and fantastical vision. Costumes by Victoria Chaplin. All the rest by James Thierrée. At the heart of this world, a haunted, pipe-smoking tyrant, a defeated old man sunken in his decrepit armchair. And at his feet: the people, like woodlice or ants, scuttling around, perched on rollers or climbing in the air. To make the drama rumble, the choreographer has concocted a world steeped in Dantean darkness: a stage that is an extension of the world, full of people and a hodgepodge of objects, mirrored walls, lunatic piping, scaffolding, cables, perches, a catapult, lamp-bodies with lampshade heads, noise, patched-up circuits and well-balanced contortions. It’s a dance that doesn’t forget its origins. From the imagination of a magician who made his name in 1998 with a turbulent and circus-like Symphonie du Hanneton (Symphony for a Beetle). That little beetle, as his family called him, became the name of his performing company. Fifteen years later, the beetle begins to consider his possible retreat from the stage. As if to better face it, no longer blinded by the lights.

James Thierrée was born in 1974 in Lausanne. From 1978 to 1994, through world tours with the Cirque Imaginaire then the Cirque Invisible, he learned acrobatics, dance, the trapeze and the violin. To these fertile premises were added acting training at the Piccolo Teatro school in Milan then at the Harvard Theatre School, which would lead him to work alongside the great directors, such as Peter Greenaway and Beno Besson. James Thierrée has been creating and directing his own shows since the end of the 90s. He produced “La Symphonie du Hanneton" in 1998, a piece that toured the world and for which he was awarded the Adami prize in 2005 and four Molières in 2006, including for Best Show and Best Director. Perpetually seeking a “visual magic", he astutely blends theatre, dance, circus and mime, in shows tinged with dreams. His second show, “La Veillée des Abysses" in 2003, enchanted the public. In cinema, he has in particular acted under the direction of Coline Serreau, Agniezka Holland, Philippe de Broca, Roland Joffe, Jacques Baratier, Claude Miller, Laurent de Bartillat, Tony Gatlif, etc. In 2007, he created a third show, "Au Revoir Parapluie", for which he was awarded the Molière for Regional Theatre. In April 2009, he created, in Namur, Belgium, his fourth show, the solo “Raoul”. More recently, he played one of the main roles in the film "Mes Séances de Lutte" by Jacques Doillon with Sara Forestier, released in 2013. That same year he created the show Tabac Rouge, of which he is the main character. "Tabac Rouge" was awarded the Molière for Best Visual Creation in 2014.

Source : Biennale de la danse 2014

More information

compagnieduhanneton.com

Born in 1977, Fabien Plasson is a video director specialized in the field of performing arts (dance , music, etc).

During his studies at the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts de Lyon (joined in 1995) Fabien discovered video art. He was trained by various video artists (Joel Bartoloméo Pascal Nottoli , Eric Duyckaerts , etc) .
He first experimented with the creation of installations and cinematic objects.

From 2001 to 2011, he was in charge of Ginger & Fred video Bar’s programming at La Maison de la Danse in Lyon. He discovered the choreographic field and the importance of this medium in the dissemination, mediation and pedagogical approach to dance alongside Charles Picq, who was a brilliant video director and the director of the video department at that time.

Today, Fabien Plasson is the video director at La Maison de la Danse and in charge of the video section of Numeridanse.tv, an online international  video library, and continues his creative activities, making videos of concerts, performances and also creating video sets for live performances.

Sources: Maison de la Danse ; Fabien Plasson website

More information: fabione.fr

Artistic direction : James Thiérrée

Creation: 1999