OUT OF BARK AND BONE

Contemporary dance meets didgeridoo and percussion in this hybrid multicultural show

2020 / 55 minutes

[…] crossing the stage like a guide, accompanying the sounds of his instrument with shouts and incantations, his hands and all his unfolding physicality. Out of Bark and Bone, we could look at it for hours.

Nayla Naoufal, Le Devoir, 2020

A thrilling group piece, Out of Bark and Bone is an invitation to an enticing journey, an encounter with a myriad of sounds and influences.

Six dancers and two musicians present a flamboyant piece rooted in breathing, voice and rhythm in a very physical performance. Incorporating certain gestures of classical Indian dance, this contemporary dance, in its intensity and energy, goes beyond divisions, affiliations or cultural identities. The enveloping and hypnotic tones of the didgeridoo and live percussion, augmented by the original compositions by Katia Makdissi-Warren, make bodies vibrate on stage. By the means of exploring different origins and inheritances, Roger Sinha proves once again, that the sum of our differences is of unequaled richness.

At the crossroad of plural aesthetics with a minimalist set design that places the focus on the dancers, Out of Bark and Bone is a mature work that sheds light on the tensions and contradictions of the group influenced by the individual. Ironically, Roger Sinha greatly improved lung problems after discovering by chance the didgeridoo’s circular breathing technique. The instrument amplifies the voice and also contributes in extending the effect of the movements, placing the instrumentalist and choreographer in the center of the piece.

PRESSKIT | REVIEWS

Calendar

March 18 2023, 7h30pm, ANVIL THEATRE, BC.

july 20 2022, 9pm, Théâtre de verdure, montreal

JANUARY 22 TO 24 2020, 7 PM – AGORA DE LA DANSE, MONTREAL
JANUARY 25 2020, 11 AM – FAMILY EXPERIENCE (SHOW EXCERPT + WORKSHOP) AGORA DE LA DANSE, MONTREAL
JANUARY 25 2020, 4 PM – AGORA DE LA DANSE, MONTREAL
FEBRUARY 4 2020, 8 PM – THÉÂTRE HECTOR-CHARLAND, L’ASSOMPTION

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About the creators

Roger Sinha

Roger Sinha

Choreographer

Roger Sinha was born in England to an Armenian mother and an Indian father. Roger grew up in Canada where he graduated from the Toronto Dance Theatre, drawing inspiration from his cultural background to develop his unique language of movement and personal choreography. He draws his vocabulary from contemporary dance, martial arts, ballet with subtle hints of Barata-Natyam, Indian dance.  “Sinha is a creative powerhouse whose onstage presence is as generous as it is captivating”- Voir, 1995. See full biography

Katia Makdissi-Warren

Composer

Katia specialized in composition at conservatories in Quebec City and Hamburg, before travelling to Beirut to study Arabic and Syrian music. She has also attended courses given by Franco Donatoni, Ennio Morricone, Manfred Stahnke and Father Louis Hage.

Her compositions have been performed by leading instrumentalists such as Sergio Puccini and Marcel Khalife in countries across the world, including France, Germany, Argentina and Spain.

Katia is the founder and artistic director of OktoEcho, a musical ensemble that specializes in fusing Middle Eastern and Western styles. She also works as a composer for a number of music companies, theater and dance troupes, and documentary filmmakers. Read the full bio

Credits

 

Choreography Roger Sinha, in collaboration with the dancers
Performers David Campbell, Sébastien Cossette-Masse, Marie-Ève Lafontaine, Benoît Leduc, Erin O’Loughlin, François Richard (CAST 2020)
PERFORMERS david campbell, Emmanuelle Martin, Nils Levazeux, Marie-Michelle Darveau, Marie-Ève Lafontaine, Erin O’Loughlin (CAST 2022)                          Musicians Roger Sinha, didgeridoo, Bertil Schulrabe, percussions
Musical conception and editing Katia Makdissi-Warren et Roger Sinha
Voices on soundtrack Lydia Etok et Nina Segalowitz, Inuit throat singing
Lighting designer Stéphane Ménigot
Rehearsal Director, artistic consultant Annik Hamel
Technical director Jacques Pilon
Costume designer Lyne Beaulieu
Voice coach Hélène Martel
Photographer Vitor Munhoz
Description text Agora de la danse and Sinha Danse
Creative residencies Centre de création O’ Vertigo, Maison de la culture Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Agora de la danse

Special thanks to Inuit throat singers Nina Segalowitz and Lydia Etok who have agreed to lend their voice to Out of Bark and Bone’s soundtrack. The strength of their vocal presence brings us back to the sacred ancestral heritage of their people, who have been erased and excluded, but whose culture and traditions endured through time despite everything.

Our thanks go out to Véronique Giasson, Mark Medrano and the dancers for their artistic contribution, Tony Chong for the dance research and Charles Koroneho for his artistic advice.

OUT OF BARK AND BONE WAS PART OF THE IN-RESIDENCY PROGRAM AT CENTRE DE CRÉATION O VERTIGO IN MARCH 2018, AND AT THE MAISON DE LA CULTURE NOTRE-DAME-DE-GRÂCE, SALLE IRO, IN SEPTEMBER 2019.

Videos

Interviews during the creation (playlist), English and French subtitles available.

Soutenez notre travail artistique