Devised by the Musée de la Danse in Rennes, the Théâtre de la Ville in Paris and the Fondation d’entreprise Hermès, Danse élargie is open to artists from all disciplines and of all nationalities, who are invited to apply through an online call for projects. Twenty or so propositions are selected from the hundreds of submissions, to be performed on stage in front of an international panel of artists and an enthusiastic audience. The rules are simple: productions must be staged in public, involve new fewer than three performers, and last no longer than ten minutes, whatever their mode of expression.
Year in, year out, Danse élargie has proved a springboard for emerging talents from all backgrounds, whose performance languages transcend disciplines. Amongst the talents to have come to the fore thanks to this unique event are Mithkal Alzghair, Mohamed El Khatib, Tatiana Julien, Simon Tanguy, Noé Soulier and (LA)HORDE. As part of its Artists in the Community programme, the Fondation d’entreprise Hermès has accompanied this event since its launch in 2010, and has extended its support with the programming of work by finalists and laureates at the Théâtre de la Ville, at the start of the autumn season every two years.
In 2020, the 6th edition of the Danse élargie contest transforms into “a special edition”. Due to the global context, and unable to hold the competition in Paris, the organisers – Emmanuel Demarcy-Mota, Director of the Théâtre de la Ville, Boris Charmatz, Director of the non-profit association Terrain, and Annick de Chaunac, Director of the Fondation d’entreprise Hermès – were intent on allowing the work of the twenty selected candidates to be still be discovered. These finalists and their distinct journeys are thus exceptionally presented in a video, available online, displaying each of the twenty projects and giving voice to the future hopes of the finalists.
In order to support their “works-in-progress”, each finalist has each been allocated a solidary creativity grant to enable to develop their project in the most favorable conditions. The presentation of their work will later be encouraged so that this new generation of artists can meet the general public.
