Archée
Archaea are one of the three earliest forms of life on Earth.
In Greek philosophy, ἀρχή means the origin, the foundation, the beginning. Referring to the oldest meaning of ἀρχή, “matriarchy” would therefore mean “mothers since the beginning.”
It refers both to the biological fact that, as those who give birth, mothers are the origin of life, and to the idea that mothers are also those who create the beginnings of culture.
In French, “archée” is also the principle of life in alchemy, as well as the range of a bow.
Kyoto, Japan. A starry night.
Leaving a concert, Mylène Benoit comes across a group of women practicing an ancient martial art: Kyudo, or traditional archery. She is struck by the strength of their movements, both on a spiritual level and as a fighting style.
The ancestral power of their taut bodies aiming at the target reminds the choreographer that those feminine movements—and through them, an idea of their place in the construction of history—have disappeared from the official memory of humanity with the advent of patriarchy.
With Archée, Mylène Benoit creates a show in which women’s bodies are “a weapon of knowledge, a tool of perpetual relation to the world.” Built in a constant dialogue with nine women, performers and musicians from vastly different horizons (Israel, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, France…), Archée formulates new “hypotheses of historical reality” to create a fairer memory to allow us to heal and to rearm together the future of both men and women.
ARCHÉE
Creation 2021
With Jia-Yu Corti, Célia Gondol, Hanna Hedman, Sophie Lebre, Clara Lloret Parra, Agnès Potié, Tamar Shelef, Yi-Wei Tien, Bi-Jia Yang, Wan-Lun Yu (7 women on set alternately)
And the musician Pénélope Michel
Conception, choreography Mylène Benoit
Choreography Mylène Benoit with Célia Gondol, Hanna Hedman, Sophie Lebre, Agnès Potié, Marcela Santander Corvalán, Tamar Shelef, Bi-Jia Yang, Wan-Lun Yu
Music and voice creation Pénélope Michel, Anne-Laure Poulain, Frederic Marchand
Dramaturgy Céline Cartillier
Artistic assistant Lilou Robert
Artistic collaboration Magda Kachouche, Delphine Lermite, Bérengère Vallet
Sound dramaturgy Manuel Coursin, Emmanuel Gautiez (alternately)
Light creation and light objects Rima Ben Brahim
Light technique Rima Ben Brahim, Charles Buisine (alternately)
Sound technique Frederic Marchant, Manu Gautiez (alternately)
Costume design Frederick Denis, assisted by Louise Dael
Scenography Mylène Benoit, Juliette Dupuy / Studio Formule
Scenography construction Antoine Miserey / Artcomposit
Accessories Maeva Cunci
Sharing of voice and body practice Emilie Domergue (Cri et voix saturée), Marie-Pascale Dubé (Chant de gorge), Laurence Oriou (Kyudo), Nina Santes (voice and body practice), Corine Sombrun / TranceScience Research Institute (Transe)
Technical direction Caroline Carliez, Greg Leteneur, Franck Titecat, Joris Valet
Production manager Fanny Virelizier
Administration avec Sarah Calvez
Production, diffusion, communication Camille Martin-Sermolini
Internship production, diffusion Julie Holin
With the voices of Anna Agafonova, Vibanghi Ameta, Rima Ben Brahim, Elena Berezovskaya, Claire Bisman, Céline Cartillier, Eva Deligiannidis, Marie-Pascale Dubé, Florence Gravas, Yuika Hokama, Magda Kachouche, Michèle Kachouche, Pierrette Le Berre, Delphine Lermite, Elaine Liu, Camille Martin-Sermolini, Marianne Pichonnat, Marie Pons, Justine Pluvinage, Anne-Laure Poulain, Tamar Shelef, Pin-Wen Su, Fanny Virelizier
Production Contour Progressif
Coproduction
Festival d'Avignon
Le phénix scène nationale Pôle européen de création à Valenciennes
National Theater Concert Hall (NTCH) (TAIPEI, Taiwan)
Théâtre du Beauvaisis, Scène nationale de Beauvais
Les Quinconces et L'Espal, Scène nationale du Mans
VIADANSE- Direction Fattoumi/Lamoureux - CCN de Bourgogne France-Comté à Belfort
L’échangeur-CDCN Hauts-de-France
La Manufacture CDCN Nouvelle-Aquitaine Bordeaux · La Rochelle
Maison de la Culture d’Amiens Pôle européen de création et de production
L’empreinte, Scène nationale Brive-Tulle
Chaillot – Théâtre national de la Danse
Centre Chorégraphique National Roubaix Hauts-de-France – Sylvain Groud
Théâtre des 13 Vents CDN de Montpellier
Abbaye de Maubuisson avec la Villa Kujoyama
Festival NEXT
Le Gymnase CDCN Roubaix – Hauts-de-France
Lux, scène nationale de Valence
With the support of : Région Hauts-de-France, Drac Hauts-de-France, Institut Français, Métropole Européenne de Lille, Ville de Lille, Art Zoyd et pour la 75e édition du Festival d'Avignon : Spedidam
Acknowledgments
Claire Bisman - Sage-femme, Catherine Boucher et les pratiquants du club de Kyudo du Mans, le Comité National de Kyudo, Charlotte Fouchet-Ishii - directrice de la Villa Kujoyama, Carole Fritz - directrice scientifique de la grotte Chauvet, Florence Gravas - philosophe, Claire Harsany – conseillère, Ministère de la Culture de Taïwan, Tokiko Ihara - musicienne de Sho, Gaëtane Jonnequin - sage-femme, Cho-Pei Kao - National Theater & Concert Hall Taiwan, Masako Kotera - chargée de mission culturelle, Villa Kujoyama, Anne Leroy - sage-femme, Pierrette Le Berre - enseignante d’histoire-géographie, retraitée, Meryem Le Saget, Elaine Liu – National Theater & Concert Hall Taiwan, Pi-Chen Liu - ethnologue, spécialiste des sociétés matrilinéaires aborigènes de Taïwan, Ana Mendieta - painter, Sumiko Oe-Gottini - conseillère artistique pour la Villa Kujoyama, Laurent Pirard - chargé de communication CNKyudo, Cyril Seassau