Graduation Performance 2026

From the celebratory and liberating rituals devised by Jolie Ngemi to the exploration of repetitive movement initiated by Jeremy Nedd, the eleven performers - all bachelor's students in contemporary dance at La Manufacture - deliver a dance full of spirit, rooted in the heritage of social dances.

By setting alight the thick veils of preconceptions, the Congolese choreographer and musician infuses the piece with a fiery energy, rekindling an intense dialogue between contemporary forms and the traditions of her country of origin. In Make The Curtain Burn, the new generation creates, with determination and boundless joy, its own way of life, its own way of evolving and moving forward. "We will continue to burn this curtain that is all these judgements, these calamities and these boundless prohibitions. A celebration of our passions, one final dance, to raise the torch of our fervour one last time. Do not fall asleep; keep one eye open, or you will be devoured."

For his part, Jeremy Nedd explores the notion of repetition through the prism of hip hop. By viewing the collective as a living entity — both a mechanical structure and a mutating organism — he invites students to explore the fissures, points of friction and discrepancies, in order to reveal, at the very heart of repetition, the emergence of new possibilities. The choreography of Faded future / future faded: A loop of social folk dance rituals functions, as its title suggests, as a loop of continuous social and folk dances, both pre-existing and newly invented.

Renowned for its promising young talent, La Manufacture promises a bold and engaging evening, as well as a wonderful opportunity to discover the artists who will shape the choreographic scene of tomorrow.