Do the Dance

Presentation

Lasting from 20 to 30 minutes, participants are immersed in a contemporary aesthetic world within the confines of the Palais Garnier. Equipped with a virtual reality headset and within a delimited space, participants will be led to wander backstage and onto the stage of the Palais Garnier to immerse themselves in the daily life of a dancer or choreographer.

The experience begins on the stage of the Palais Garnier. In the dim light punctuated by murmurs of impatient spectators, a stage model of the Opera House lights up, drawing attention. Traces on the floor guide us towards it. Petrified dancers surround us, coming to life when looked at, then disappearing with a slight diffraction. Guided by curiosity, we cautiously approach the stage model. In front of the stage model, ribbons suggest its opening with a hand gesture.

After the stage model is opened, miniature dancers escape, then the same dancers, at full scale, take over the stage, surprising us. The model appears in full size, composed of fragments like a scenography. A choreography unfolds around us with videos projected on giant tulles, illustrating iconic moments of the Palais Garnier. The dancers, animated avatars, brush past us, captivating us. A dancer reaches out a hand to invite us to join them. Upon touching them, they disappear in diffraction, creating a transition to the next interactive phase.

Two intimate moments with two choreographers in two different locations. Each choreographer shares their vision of the danced gesture and/or an epiphany about the knowledge of dancing. Demonstrative movements in chronophotography encourage participants to do the same. The final scene takes place on the rooftops of the Opera House, where participants freely enjoy themselves. The movements of the participants, sparingly modeled, create an exquisite corpse of dancing forms, visually graphic and mesmerizing.

Artistic Team

Since the success of Bal de Paris, Blanca Li has decided to develop her own studio dedicated to the creation of live performances and new technologies. The aim of this studio is to explore new modes of creation, both physical and virtual, to provoke encounters with artists, and to encourage diversity and collaboration, with a particular focus on the world of dance. Besides, the studio's aim is also to create quality works for a wide audience, and Philippe Monerris' (Studio Popincourt) work on "Do the dance" fits in perfectly with the studio's editorial line. On the other hand, Studio Blanca Li is distinguished by its members. With XR technologists, experienced producers, a renowned choreographer, in-house dancers and an international distribution network, we are able to work simultaneously on artistic development and technical teams. On this project, Blanca's collaboration will be invaluable, as we will be accompanied on a daily basis by a dance professional. An artist who has already created a dance festival in the past, where people could try out almost any dance: from hip-hop to classical to Bollywood. From the outset, Philippe Monerris (Studio Popincourt) had imagined the project with the Paris Opera as a backdrop. His interest centered on learning to dance, the dream of having access backstage, rubbing shoulders with dancers and choreographers from the Paris Opera Ballet, but also understanding the ability to surpass oneself. On top of that, for the Opéra, the momentum is perfect. The illustrious institution will be celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2025, and the team was looking for innovative projects to present to mark the occasion. We will therefore have the privilege of working with the Paris Opéra's in-house artistic teams: choreographers, dancers and artistic direction. The aim is to make this project a true collaboration between the various creative and technological partners.

Partners