Kettly Noël (Mali/Haiti)
Nelisiwe Xaba (South Africa)
Correspondances
A lively, witty and rather intimate look behind the scenes of women’s friendship reveals two outstanding dancers famed for their wildness, playfulness and virtuosity in motion. The fictitious characters Madam X and Madam Y exchange letters in which they discuss life’s great themes as well as banalities. The content of their intimate correspondence materializes on stage in a temperamental dialogue of bodies, a remarkable number of disguises and pointed punch lines. P.S. Correspondence between X and Y is as entertaining as it is uplifting.
Kettly Noël hails from Port au Prince, Haiti. She only began to take serious interest in dancing at the age of 17. In 1996 she went to live in Benin, where she offered young people contemporary dance lessons. Many of them continued to train and are today members of the Benin National Ballet. In 1999 Noël moved to Mali, where she runs a similar project. Her choreography deals with identity and the struggle for better standing of African women.
Nelisiwe Xaba was born in Swaziland (South Africa). She is studying at the Dance Foundation in Johannesburg. In 1996 she received a Ballet Rambert grant and went to London to study. A year later she joined the Pact Dance Company, turned freelance and worked, inter alia, with Robyn Orlin. She also tried art with Rodney Place and drama with Sophie Loucachevsky. Since 2001 she has been working as a choreographer.
Nelisiwe XABA
Nelisiwe Xaba was born in Soweto (South Africa). She studies at the Johannesburg Dance Foundation. In 1996, she receives a grant for the Ballet Rambert and leaves to study dance in
London. After joining the Pact Dance Company in 97, she freelances and work, among others, with Robyn Orlin (“Daddy, I’ve seen this piece six times before and I still don’t
know why they hurting each other”, “Life after the credits roll…”…etc.) She also meets visual arts with Rodney Place (“Couch Dancing”) and theatre with Sophie Loucachevsky (“The homosexual or the difficulty of expression”). In 1999, she directs “I Diskie”. Since 2001, Nelisiwe Xaba has been choreographing her own pieces: “Dazed And Confused”, “Talent search for new rainbow nation dance company”, “No String Attached 1”, “No String Attached 2” “Be My Wife (BMW)”, and her last creations “Plasticization” and “They look at me and that’s all they think”, which are currently touring.
Kettly NOËL
People pass by and eyes meet. Friendships arise, loves vanish. Genres are mixed and disrupted. Kettly Noël draws a portrait of our society today, of a moment, of yesterday. She crosses territories and bodies. Every show is a part of herself, of her questioning, of her life, of her desires. Work on the field and the embracement of many domains enabled Kettly Noël to focus on a personal trajectory punctuated with critical decisions and calculated risks. To the new encounter another color.
Répertoire :
Nanlakou – 1995
Le corps Terre – 1996
Cousin Cousine – 2001
Tichèlbé – 2002
Errance – 2004
Gaou – 2005
L’Autre – 2005
Correspondances - 2007
“Known for their feisty individuality and edgy creativity….they are amazingly compatible and electrically potent.” Tonight (South Africa)
Duration: 60min
Choreography and interpretation: Kettly Noël et Nelisiwe Xaba. Scénography and costumes: Joël Andrianomearisoa. Lighting design: Gilles Gentner. Video: Frédéric Koening. Photo: Eric Boudet. Music: Jill Scott, Betty Carter, Blossom Dearie, Godspeedyou Black Emperor, Annie Lenox Eurythmics, John Cage, Angedup. Rehearsal: Lydia Carillo. Production: Donko Seko / La Compagnie. Co-produced by: Rencontres Chorégraphiques Internationales de Seine-Saint-Denis, programme Afrique en Création de CULTURES FRANCE, Centre Culturel Français de Bamako, Service de Coopération et d’Action Culturelle de l’Ambassade de France au Mali, Institut Français d’Afrique du Sud (IFAS), Ambassade de France en Afrique du Sud (Johannesburg), Les Francophonies en Limousin, Centre Chorégraphique National de Caen-Basse Normandie. Residencies and support: Schlachthaus Theater (Berne), Centre Culturel Français (Bamako), CCN Ballet Preljocaj le Pavillon Noir (Aix en Provence), CCN de Caen-Basse Normandie, Rencontres Chorégraphiques Internationales de Seine Saint-Denis. Thanks to: Bénédicte Alliot, , Valéry Gaillard
