BLESSED

Struggle for life

American-Belgian choreographer Meg Stuart met Portuguese dancer and choreographer Francisco Camacho for the first time in New York at the end of the 1980's. He followed her to Belgium to dance in her debut Disfigure Study. In 2007, they together created the widely acclaimed BLESSED, which is now being presented again in the large auditorium of the Kaaitheater.

On stage are a hut, a palm tree and a swan in cardboard. Slowly, mechanically and single-mindedly, a man strolls through his silent paradise. Until it starts to rain and his seemingly imperturbable world slowly collapses. With BLESSED, Meg Stuart has poetically and compellingly grasped the essence of the human condition. Simple elements like rain, cardboard and the human body are an ultimate defence against any downfall. An unrelenting struggle for life, which  due to the sensitive power of its aesthetics  is also capable of providing comfort despite all the gloom.

BLESSED was awarded the prestigious Critics' Prize for the 'best foreign production' in Paris in 2008.

In Are we here yet? Meg Stuart reflects on her own practice in dialogue with Jeroen Peeters and several past and present members of Damaged Goods.

Are we here yet? links together significant moments from Stuart’s artistic career by means of reflections on creation, performing, improvisation and dramaturgy. In addition, the book includes illustrations, documents and performance scripts, as well as an actual guide with exercises.  

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