DANCER #3
Falling over and picking yourself up again / Trial and error
You see a robot trying to stand upright. It always falls over again, but does not give up. It cheerfully and indefatigably undergoes the process of trial and error, falling over and picking itself up again. The machine gets to know its own capacities, with an infectious energy. Clumsiness and constant failure radiate the same optimism as the clown who is always tripping up.
The theatre-maker and visual artist Kris Verdonck wrestles with man’s confusion in a world that has become alienated from him by technological developments. The tension between man and machine, between living species and dead matter, always yields an uncomfortable atmosphere. The current state of the world, marked by environmental problems, ecological disasters, wars and economic ruin, is a thread that runs through Verdonck’s work.
concept & direction Kris Verdonck | dramaturgy Marianne Van Kerkhoven (Kaaitheater) | performers (on film) Johan Leysen, Jean Paul Van Bendegem | construction Sylvain Spinoit, Atelier 26, Steven Blum | software & Electronics Felix Luque | sound design Thomas Turine | video Vincent Pinckaers | light design Luc Schaltin (Kaaitheater), Kris Verdonck | production manager Hendrik De Smedt | production Margarita Production for stilllab vzw | technical coordination Colin Legras | coproducers Kaaitheater (BE), Kunstencentrum Vooruit (BE), Buda Kunstencentrum (BE), Le manège.mons/CECN (BE), Transdigital/TechnocITé (BE) | project initiated by la chartreuse (FR) in the frame of its research on robots and theatre | scientific research Jean-Jacques Cassiman, Dirk De Ridder, Philippe Fraisse, Jean Paul Van Bendegem, Dirk Van Hulle | with the support of the Flemish Authorities | thanks to Atelier 26, Acapella digital voice, Arne Vanneste, LIRMM (FR), Luc Steels
