Gala

On the desire and pleasure of standing on a stage

(Re)discover Jérôme Bel’s declaration of love to the performing arts! Gala continues the series in which Bel opened the stage to people who do not usually have the opportunity to perform. In Disabled Theater, for example, he cast actors with mental disabilities, while in Cour d’honneur members of the audience were themselves invited onstage. He is now casting a spotlight on amateurs and their love of art. A colourful mix of dance lovers and professional dancers from diverse genres and cultures perform a veritable New Year’s gala. But this gala radically questions the codes of the performing arts. Gala undermines the authority of ‘good dancing’ and celebrates the desire and pleasure of standing on a stage and sharing something with the audience. The goal is not to achieve excellence or virtuosity, but to do the best you can with the means at your disposal. Or to express it in Samuel Beckett’s words: ‘Try again, fail again, fail better.’

• French choreographer Jérôme Bel has been performing on the Kaaitheater stage for more than twenty years. We have previously presented, a.o., The show must go on, Pichet Klunchun and myself, and Jérôme Bel.

‘Gala forces audience expectations to the fore, and blurs the lines between failure and success in performance as it suggests that theater is community, both onstage and off. It’s a tour de force, wildly entertaining and truly radical.’ – The New York Times

'C’est quoi la perfection ? Qui décide ?'  - un entretien avec Jérôme Bel dans Le Vif