DEEPDAWN / SOROUR DARABI
A Thousand and One Nights
ARTIST INITIATIVES
2h
Iranian choreographer Sorour Darabi, a resident of France since 2013, is premiering his first opera, a moving spectacle that highlights voices that ancient myths once shoved aside. A piece created by and for socially committed bodies.
A Thousand and One Nights springs from Sorour Darabi’s observation of the conservative nature of opera, where neither bodies of diversity nor the expression of a nonstandard sexuality exist. It was also clear to him that opera, as a Gesamtkunstwerk, would be the ideal way to extend his work, which encompasses dance, theatre, the visual arts, song, and poetry. This realisation gave birth to a project about the aesthetics of transgender voices. For most trans people, hormonal treatments entail a change in their voice, which affects the generation of sound in their vocal cords. This fragility and emotional texture is expressed in A Thousand and One Nights in contrast to a normative technical perfection. An emancipatory opera for the twenty-first century that voices different aesthetics and thoughts to build a different relationship with the world.
Standing room only
With the Festival d’Automne à Paris and the CND
Chorography, Design, Dramaturgy, Texts, and Artistic Direction Sorour Darabi
Performers, Singers, Actors, and Live Musicians Aimilios Arapoglou, Li-Yun Hu, Lara Chanel, Felipe Faria, Sorour Darabi, Pablo Altar, Florian Le Prisé, and Ange Halliwell Musical Composition Pablo Altar and Florian Le Prisé
Vocal Coach Henry Browne Lighting Design Shaly Lopez Technical Manager Jean-Marc Ségalen Scenography Alicia Zaton (based on an original idea by Sorour Darabi) Ice Sculptures Samuel Girault / Ice et Art Costumes Anousha Mohtashami
Editor and Curator of English-Persian Texts (Poetic Societies, Crafted Counsel Remote Residency Program) Ava Ansari
Exclusive Production Manager and Distribution Jenny Suarez
Administration and Production Manager Martin Buisson
Co-direction La Villette – Paris, Festival d’Automne, le CND centre national de la danse as part of Camping, international platform of workshops from 14 to 25 october 2024.
Initiatives d’Artistes / La Villette – Paris
Exclusive production DEEPDAWN / Sorour Darabi
Co-production Festival Montpellier Danse, CCN – Ballet National de Marseille as part of the studio residency program / Ministry of Culture, Arsenic – Centre d’art scénique contemporain, Festival d’Automne, La Villette – Paris, Centre national de la danse, Tanzquartier Wien, Transfabrik – Fonds franco-allemand pour le spectacle vivant,Charleroi Danse, Theaterformen festival
With the suppport of La Manutention Palais de Tokyo, Centre national de la danse, Trauma Bar Und Kino, Goerhe Institute ; Tanzhaus Zürich, PACT Zollverein (Essen); ) ; KWP Kunstenwerkplaats (Bruxelles) & POETIC SOCIETIES (Detroit) ; The Saison Foundation (Japan) with the support of ADAMI and SPEDIDAM
Acknowledgements to Palmina D’Ascoli, David Lopez, Thomas Gachet
Practical information
Freestyle Villette
Metro (subway)
Line 7 - Porte de la Villette
Metro (subway)
Line 7 - Corentin Cariou
Tramway
Line 3b - Porte de la Villette
Bus
Bus 139, 150, 152 - Porte de la Villette
Parking
Q-Park
Philharmonie
Q-Park
Cité de la Musique - La Villette
Q-Park
Cité de la Musique - Conservatoire
Parking
Cité des Sciences
- PRM contact on 01 40 03 75 75
- Standing room only
- The performance includes strobe effects and loud sound levels. Earplugs will be available for the audience.
- The show will be fully recorded on Thursday, October 17, and Friday, October 18.
If you do not wish to appear on camera, please inform the front desk staff. - Several catering offers in the park before or after the show, to discover HERE.
In the press
Partner
