The 77th edition of the Avignon Festival opened on Wednesday under new director Tiago Rodrigues.
The two-tiered event features an 'In' festival, whose 44 shows will be held in Avignon's Papal Palace itself, and an 'Out' festival at 140 venues across the French city, featuring nearly 1,200 companies of performers.
A number of artists from Belgium or resident in Belgium will be presenting their creations at the festival, including Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker, Patrick Corillon, Milo Rau and Mohamed Toukabri.
Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker returns to Avignon this year with two shows: ‘Exit Above’ at FabricA from 6 to 13 July and ‘En Attendant,’ presented in 2010 and revived at its creation venue, the Cloître des Célestins, from 14 to 25 July.
The two works, with different musical sources and references, have in common that they question our relationship to walking.
The Chapelle des Pénitents blancs (Chapel of the White Penitents) will host Belgian visual artist and storyteller Patrick Corillon from 6 to 12 July. With ‘Portrait de l’artiste en ermite ornemental,’ he will be transforming what could be no more than anecdotes from life into fictions on a global scale, drawing spectators into reveries that awaken scenes from childhood.
Milo Rau, Swiss director of NTGent, will present ‘Antigone in the Amazon’ from 16 to 24 July. His adaptation of Sophocles’ tragedy will transpose it to a contemporary context in the Brazilian state of Pará, with Oedipus’ daughter played by Amazonian indigenous activist Kay Sara.
Tunis-born, Brussels-based choreographer and dancer Mohamed Toukabri will take over the Jardin de la Vierge at Lycée Saint-Joseph from 19 to 25 July with ‘For the Good Times,’ a piece celebrating the time we have left together.
The festival ends on 25 July.
