Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
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Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui (born 1976) is a Belgian dancer and choreographer and director. He has made over 50 choreographic pieces and received two
Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production The Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production is an annual award presented by the Society of London Theatre in recognition of achievements in commercial London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Aw ...
, three Ballet Tanz awards for best choreographer (2008, 2011, 2017), the
KAIROS Prize The KAIROS Prize has been awarded to European artists and scholars from the fields of visual and performing arts, music, architecture, design, film, photography, literature and journalism since 2007 by the Alfred Toepfer Foundation in Hamburg. It i ...
(2009) and the Europe Prize Theatrical Realities (2018).


Early life

He was born on 10 March 1976 in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, Belgium, of a Flemish mother and a Moroccan father. After being talent-spotted, he participated as a dancer in variety of shows and television programs. At the age of 19 he won his first prize for his solo performance that included a mixture of vogueing, African dance and hip-hop motifs, at the national dance competition initiated by
Alain Platel Alain Platel (born 9 April 1956) is a Belgian choreographer and director. In 1984, he founded les ballets C de la B, which has been called 'one of the world's most influential dance theatre companies'. Platel came to prominence alongside choreogr ...
. Later on he started studies at P.A.R.T.S., the dance school run by
Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker Anne Teresa, Baroness De Keersmaeker (, born 1960 in Mechelen, Belgium, grew up in Wemmel) is a contemporary dance choreographer. The dance company constructed around her, , was in residence at La Monnaie in Brussels from 1992 to 2007. Biography ...
. Here he got to know techniques of such choreographers as William Forsythe,
Pina Bausch Philippine "Pina" Bausch (27 July 1940 – 30 June 2009) was a German dancer and choreographer who was a significant contributor to a neo-expressionist dance tradition now known as . Bausch's approach was noted for a stylized blend of dance m ...
and
Trisha Brown Trisha Brown (November 25, 1936 – March 18, 2017) was an American choreographer and dancer, and one of the founders of the Judson Dance Theater and the postmodern dance movement. Brown’s dance/movement method, with which she and her dancer ...
. During these studies, Cherkaoui also worked together with hip-hop and modern jazz dance companies.


Career

Cherkaoui debuted as a choreographer in 1999 with Andrew Wale in the contemporary musical ''Anonymous Society''. But he gained a broader acknowledgment with his work at
les ballets C de la B Alain Platel (born 9 April 1956) is a Belgian choreographer and director. In 1984, he founded les ballets C de la B, which has been called 'one of the world's most influential dance theatre companies'. Platel came to prominence alongside choreogr ...
with such pieces as ''Rien de Rien'' (2000), ''Foi'' (2003) and ''Tempus Fugit'' (2004). Whilst working there he undertook several other projects, including ''D’avant'' (2002) with artistic partner Damien Jalet and ''zero degrees'' (2005) with Akram Khan. He has also collaborated with abundance of theatres, opera houses and ballet companies, like Geneva Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet in New York. From 2004 to 2009 Cherkaoui was the associate artist at the Toneelhuis theater in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
. There he produced such works as ''Myth'' (2007) and ''Origine'' (2008). In 2009, he won the
KAIROS Prize The KAIROS Prize has been awarded to European artists and scholars from the fields of visual and performing arts, music, architecture, design, film, photography, literature and journalism since 2007 by the Alfred Toepfer Foundation in Hamburg. It i ...
. After premiering ''Sutra'' in 2008, working around the world and collaborating with various artists (''Dunas'' with
María Pagés María Jesús Pagés Madrigal (born 28 July 1963 in Seville, Spain), better known as María Pagés, is a modern Spanish dancer and choreographer and one of the most internationally renowned Flamenco artists in the world. She is considered the par ...
, ''Faun'' (both 2009)), he founded his own in own company in January 2010 called ''Eastman'' in
Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,
, resident at deSingel International Arts Campus. He went on continuing his work and in the spring of 2010 Cherkaoui won his first
Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production The Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production is an annual award presented by the Society of London Theatre in recognition of achievements in commercial London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Aw ...
for ''Babel(words)'' together with choreographer Damien Jalet and Antony Gormley. In 2012 he gained his second
Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production The Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production is an annual award presented by the Society of London Theatre in recognition of achievements in commercial London theatre. The awards were established as the Society of West End Theatre Aw ...
for ''Puz/zle''. In 2015, he directed his first full-length theatre production ''Pluto'' in Tokyo and was movement director for ''Hamlet'' (Lyndsey Turner) at the Barbican Centre in London. In 2015 he also launched a new production called ''Fractus V'' for his company ''Eastman''. Since 2015, Cherkaoui is the artistic director at the
Royal Ballet of Flanders The Royal Ballet of Flanders is a dance company based in Antwerp, Belgium, specializing in classical, neoclassical and contemporary ballet. In its current incarnation, the company was established in 1969. It tours internationally. History The ...
, where they have seen such works of his as ''Fall'' (2015), ''Exhibition'' (2016) and ''Requiem'' (2017). Cherkaoui is an associate artist at Sadler's Wells, London. He will leave the Royal Ballet of Flanders and become the artistic director of Le Grand Théâtre de Genève in Switzerland in 2022. In February 2017, he appeared in a dancing presentation in
Woodkid Yoann Lemoine (; born 16 March 1983), known professionally as Woodkid, is a French music video director, graphic designer and singer-songwriter. His most notable works include his music video direction for Katy Perry's " Teenage Dream", Taylo ...
's release "I Will Fall for You".


Original works

Cherkaoui's work can be divided chronologically in five periods: Debut (1), Les Ballets C. de la B. (2), Toneelhuis (3), Eastman (4) and Royal Ballet Flanders/Eastman (5).


Debut

* ''Iets op Bach'' (1995) * ''Anonymous Society'' (1999)


Les ballets C. de la B.

* ''Rien de Rien'' (2000) * ''OOK'' (2000) * ''It'' (2002) * ''d’avant'' (2002) * ''Foi'' (2003) * ''Tempus Fugit'' (2004) * ''In Memoriam'' (2004) * ''Loin'' (2005) * ''zero degrees'' (2005) * ''Corpus Bach'' (2006) * ''Mea Culpa'' (2006) * ''End'' (2006)


Toneelhuis

* ''Myth'' (2007) * ''L'Homme de Bois'' (2007) * ''La Zon-Mai'' (2007) * ''Origine'' (2008) * ''Sutra'' (2008) * ''Orbo Novo'' (2009) * ''Faun'' (2009) for Sadler's Wells Theatre * ''Dunas'' (2009)


Eastman

* ''Babel(words)'' (2010) * ''Rein'' (2010) * ''Play'' (2010) * ''Shoes'' (2010) * ''Bound'' (2010) * ''Das Rheingold'' (2010) * ''Labyrinth'' (2011) * ''TeZukA'' (2011) * ''Pure'' (2011) * ''Constellation'' (2011) * ''Puz/zle'' (2012) * ''Automaton'' (2012) * ''Anna Karenina'' (2012) * ''Siegfried'' (2012) * ''生长genesis'' (2013) * ''4D'' (2013) * ''Boléro'' (2013) for
Paris Opera Ballet The Paris Opera Ballet () is a French ballet company that is an integral part of the Paris Opera. It is the oldest national ballet company, and many European and international ballet companies can trace their origins to it. It is still regarded ...
* ''m¡longa'' (2013) for Sadler's Wells Theatre * ''Noetic'' (2014) for the Göteborg Opera Dance company * ''Mercy'' (2014) * ''Shell Shock'' (2014) for
La Monnaie The Royal Theatre of La Monnaie (french: Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, italic=no, ; nl, Koninklijke Muntschouwburg, italic=no; both translating as the "Royal Theatre of the Mint") is an opera house in central Brussels, Belgium. The National O ...
* ''Pluto'' (2015) for
Bunkamura The is a concert hall, theater and museum located in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan, operated by Tokyu Group. Venues The four main venues are: * Orchard Hall: 2,150 seats * Theatre Cocoon: 747 seats *The Museum - Changing art exhibits *Le Cinèma: mov ...
* ''L'Oiseau de Feu'' (2015) for Stuttgart Ballet * ''Harbor Me'' (2015) for L.A. Dance Project * ''Fractus V'' (2015) * ''Qutb'' (2016)


Royal Ballet Flanders / Eastman

* ''Fall'' (2015) * ''Exhibition'' (2016) * ''Requiem'' (2017) * ''Qutb'' (2016) * ''Les Indes Galantes'' (2016) for the
Bavarian State Opera The Bayerische Staatsoper is a German opera company based in Munich. Its main venue is the Nationaltheater München, and its orchestra the Bayerische Staatsorchester. History The parent ensemble of the company was founded in 1653, under Ele ...
* ''Icon'' (2016) for
The Göteborg Opera Dance company ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
* ''Mosaic'' (2017) for
Martha Graham Dance Company The Martha Graham Dance Company, founded in 1926, is known for being the oldest American dance company. Founded by Martha Graham as a contemporary dance company, it continued to perform pieces, revive classics, and train dancers even after Graham's ...
* ''Requiem'' (2017) for
Royal Ballet of Flanders The Royal Ballet of Flanders is a dance company based in Antwerp, Belgium, specializing in classical, neoclassical and contemporary ballet. In its current incarnation, the company was established in 1969. It tours internationally. History The ...
* ''Satyagraha'' (2017) for
Theater Basel Theater Basel is the municipal theatre of the city of Basel, Switzerland, which is home to the city's opera and ballet companies. The theatre also presents plays and musicals in addition to operas and operettas. Because the theatre does not ha ...
* ''Memento Mori'' (2017) for
Les Ballets de Monte Carlo Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo (The Monte Carlo Ballet) is a classical ballet company established in 1985 by Caroline, Princess of Hanover, the Princess of Hanover in accordance with the wishes of her mother, Grace Kelly, Princess Grace of Monaco. I ...
* ''Mermaid'' (2017) * ''Pelléas et Mélisande'' (2018) for Opera Vlaanderen


UnitedHumans Award

In 2014 Cherkaoui and Damien Jalet were the first to win the UnitedHumans Award for Mutual Respect. This award is granted to individuals, associations or organizations that applies mutual respect, sincere friendship and equality in dignity to life in a sustainable or a leading and remarkable way or having en effective impact on society.


Europe Theatre Prize

In 2018, Cherkaoui was awarded the XV Europe Prize Theatrical Realities, in
Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...
, with the following motivation:
Creator of a dance theatre with no artistic, geographical or style boundaries, finding in it all kinds of connections, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui knows how to build performances of ‘soul’, of great formal beauty and a strong emotional impact. His works put into dance terms West and East, the worlds of dance and contemporary art, Chinese martial arts or Japanese manga, strangely incandescent worlds from beyond the grave where one can seek harmony through song, or beautifully disturbing visions of a future genesis, to call up but a few of them. The use of the body, movement, space and objects, his conceptual approach to dance, make every production by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui a scenic event whose language achieves a particular stylistic form, perfect and truly captivating.


References


Sources


Kunstenpunt – Persons – Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
according to the Flemish Arts Institute


Further reading

* Wouter Hillaert, ''Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui – Seeing connections'', in: Theo Van Rompay (ed.), ''P.A.R.T.S. 20 years – 50 portraits'', P.A.R.T.S., 2016, p. 89 – 93, * Katie Verstockt
''Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui / Eastman''
in: Contemporary Dance from Flanders – An Online Special by Flanders Arts Institute


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cherkaoui, Sidi Larbi 1976 births Living people Belgian people of Moroccan descent Belgian choreographers Belgian dancers Entertainers from Antwerp Laurence Olivier Award winners Prix Benois de la Danse winners Helpmann Award winners