Le jeune homme et la mort

2013
Dance solo – Korzo Producties, Studio CCN Biaritz, Studio Tanzhaus Zürich
Meyer Chaffaud dance

The stage consists of a triangular construction of black gauze and the backside of a dance floor, which is used as a white canvas. These open wide towards the audience and make various in-between spaces visible. I mostly worked on the dripping machine that drips black thick liquid very slowly. It runs from six meters high on the middle white stroke during the whole piece. In this way I made the passing of time that plays within the imagination of the young man visible.

The construction is made of a bucket with black liquid that hangs above middle stroke. It is emptied by a thin rope that is attached to a rotating motor on the floor.

‘Le jeune homme et la mort’ is inspired by the original piece of  Roland Petit from 1946. Meyer-Chaffaud deconstructed the narrative of the story and focused on the main themes of the piece: desire, death, longing, and the impermanence of life. We meet the main character at a crossroads in his life where he looks back at his past and muses on what is to come. Black comedy and dance are combined in a danced monologue in which boundaries fade and death is present as an embracing shadow.

Choreography & concept : Jérôme Meyer, Isabelle Chaffaud – Dancer: Rémi Benard – Music: Marcus Graf – Set design: Gabey Tjon a Tham – Technical support: Marcus Graf, Marco van der Velde – Costume design: Bregje van Balen – Light design: Bernie van Velzen – Foto: Jérôme Meyer