News

Sideways Rain at the Festival Paris l’été

From July 19th to 22nd, Alias will start its relentless run with “Sideways Rain” on the outdoor stage of the Lycée Jacques-Decour during the Festival Paris l’été in Paris, France.

The trilogy “Distância” goes South America

From May 15th to 19th, in preparation of the upcoming South American tour, Guilherme Botelho will teach a workshop to the UNSAM contemporary dance company (Universidad National de San Martin), directed by Oscar Araiz. Starting with “Antes”, the “Distância” tour will continue with presentations of “Jetuilnousvousils” and “Sideways Rain”, two shows performed by both the Alias dansers and the UNSAM company.

Alias at the Kroki Contemporary Danse Festival

May 12th and 13th, Alias will be staging “Antes” during the Kroki Contemporary Danse Festival in Krakow, Poland.

Outreach and residence at the de Saussure secondary school

Alias Contemporary Company will spend the current academic year, 2016 – 2017, in residence at the de Saussure secondary school. The residence will comprise eleven projects of varying nature, structure and scale.

Le Poids des Éponges (The Weight of a Sponge) in Beirut

April 13th to 15th 2017, Alias will perform « Le Poids des Éponges » at the Maqamat Dance Theatre in Beirut for this year’s edition of the Beirut International Platform of Dance (BIPOD).

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« We are almost entirely made of darkness. »

Presentation

«A choreographer of humane psychology and sentiment»*, Guilherme Botelho seems to portray on stage the very life of the spectator, mirroring his or her aspirations, inner demons and secret desires.  Enacting the unuttered and expressing the inner contradictions which influence our relation to the world, the stage becomes a medium between us and it. Therein, perhaps, lies the secret of a career that seems not only not to wane but to constantly reinvent itself.

Alias’ creations cast a shrewd, uncompromising look at our daily lives.  The company has made of mission of seeing through appearances and unravelling habits, calling our convictions into question, and searching for hidden, unexplored or unusual points of view. From that commitment emerges a reality that is notably different from the mechanical, reassuring one that our usual perception reveals, calling the latter into question and challenging our perceptive habits to explore the field of our sensations in greater depth. Meaning is conveyed by the use of movement as a language capable of expressing raw, unconscious emotions through individual energy.

Alias is an independent contemporary dance company created in Geneva in 1994 by the dancer and choreographer Guilherme Botelho. Since its inception, the company has produced more than twenty five shows crowned by international success, as reflected by the nearly five hundred performances given in twenty countries of Europe, Africa, Asia, and North and South America.

Alias was the first Swiss choreographic company to be granted a joint subsidy by a city (Geneva), a canton (Geneva) and Pro Helvetia – Swiss Foundation for the Promotion of Culture.

*Valais-mag.ch

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Tour

2017

13.04.2017 THE WEIGHT OF A SPONGE Beirut, Lebanon Beirut International Platform of Dance (BIPOD)
14.04.2017 THE WEIGHT OF A SPONGE Beirut, Lebanon Beirut International Platform of Dance (BIPOD)
15.04.2017 THE WEIGHT OF A SPONGE Afternoon show, Beyrouth, Liban Beirut International Platform of Dance (BIPOD)
15.04.2017 THE WEIGHT OF A SPONGE BEvening show, Beirut, Lebanoneiru, Lebanon Beirut International Platform of Dance (BIPOD)
06.05.2017 FRONT SIDE BACK Meyrin, Switzerland Fête de la Danse
07.05.2017 FRONT SIDE BACK Meyrin, Switzerland Fête de la Danse
12.05.2017 ANTES Krakow, Poland Kroki Contemporary Dance Festival
13.05.2017 ANTES Krakow, Poland Kroki Contemporary Dance Festival
07.06.2017 ANTES Buenos Aires, Argentina 25 de Mayo Cultural Center
09.06.2017 ANTES Mar de Plata, Argentina Centro de las Artes Provinciales Auditorium
10.06.2017 ANTES Buenos Aires, Argentina Galpon de Guevara
14.06.2017 IYOUHESHEITWEYOUTHEY Buenos Aires, Argentina 25 de Mayo Cultural Center
16.06.2017 0.5‰ Buenos Aires UNSAM Universidad Nacional de San Martín
21.06.2017 SIDEWAYS RAIN Buenos Aires, Argentina 25 de Mayo Cultural Center
23.06.2017 SIDEWAYS RAIN Santa Fe, Argentina Teatro Municipal 1° de Mayo
25.06.2017 SIDEWAYS RAIN Mar del Plata, Argentina Centro de las Artes Provinciales Auditorium
19.07.2017 SIDEWAYS RAIN Paris, France Festival Quartier d'été
20.07.2017 SIDEWAYS RAIN Paris, France Festival Quartier d'été
21.07.2017 SIDEWAYS RAIN Paris, France Festival Quartier d'été
22.07.2017 SIDEWAYS RAIN Paris, France Festival Quartier d'été
12.10.2017 CONTRE-MONDES Meyrin, Switzerland Théâtre Forum Meyrin
07.10.2017 ANTES Kaunas, Lithuania Festival Aura 27
12.10.2017 CONTRE-MONDES Meyrin, Switzerland Théâtre Forum Meyrin
13.10.2017 CONTRE-MONDES Meyrin, Switzerland Théâtre Forum Meyrin
14.10.2017 CONTRE-MONDES Afternoon show Meyrin, Switzerland Théâtre Forum Meyrin
14.10.2017 CONTRE-MONDES Evening show, Meyrin, Switzerland Théâtre Forum Meyrin
15.10.2017 CONTRE-MONDES Afternoon show, Meyrin, Switzerland Théâtre Forum Meyrin
15.10.2017 CONTRE-MONDES Evening show, Meyrin, Switzerland Théâtre Forum Meyrin
02.12.2017 ISLANDS Divonne-les-Bains, France Esplanade du Lac

Tournée 2016

Islands

Karlsruhe (D) 20 Jahre Tanzfestival, Tanz Karlsruhe
Genève (CH) Festival de La Bâtie
Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan

Sideways Rain

Paris (FR) Théâtre du Monfort
Kielce (PL) Kielecki Teatr Tanca
Warsaw (PL) Body Mind Festival C/U
Jerusalem (IL) Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival (RCDF)
Ramallah (PS) Ramallah Contemporary Dance Festival (RCDF)
Amman (JD) Amman Contemporary Dance Festival
Beyrouth (LE) Platform of Dance (BIPOD)
Beyrouth (LE) Beirut International Platform of Dance (BIPOD)

Antes

Düsseldorf (DE) ASPHALT Festival
Hannover (DE) Tanz Kongress
Hannover (DE) Tanz Kongress
Heidelberg (DE) Tanzbiennale

Tournée 2015

Antes

Zürich (CH) Swiss Dance Days
Utrecht (NL) Spring Festival
Skopje (MK) MOT Festival

Tournée 2014

Le Poids des Eponges

Bayonne (FR) Théâtre de Bayonne, Scène Nationale Bayonne - Sud Aquitain
Arcachon (FR) Théâtre Olympia
Vevey (CH) Théâtre de Vevey
Mézières (CH) Théâtre du Jorat
Morges (CH) Théâtre de Beausobre
Bienne (CH) Théâtre Palace

Sideways Rain

Birmingham (UK) Hippodrome
Meyrin (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin
Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan
Neuchâtel (CH) Théâtre du Passage
Fribourg (CH) Théâtre Equilibre

Antes

Meyrin (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin
Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan
Neuchâtel (CH) Théâtre du Passage

Jetuilnousvousils

Meyrin (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin
Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan

Tournée 2013

Jetuilnousvousils

Paris (FR) Centre National de la Danse
Bienne (CH) Théâtre Palace
Bâle (CH) Kaserne, Journées de Danse Contemporaine Suisse

Sideways Rain

Turnhout (BE) De Warande
Brugge (BE) Stadsschouwburg
Den Haag (NL) Lucent Danstheater
Arnhem (NL) Schouwburg
Groningen (NL) Stadsschouwburg
Den Bosch (NL) Theater aan de Parade
Hasselt (BE) Cultuurcentrum
Zwolle (NL) Odeon
Tilburg (NL) Theaters
Thonon les Bains (FR) Maison des Arts de Thonon-Evian
Nottingham (GB) Festival Nottdance
Bologna (IT) Teatri di Vita
Clermont Ferrand (FR) La Comédie

Le Poids des Eponges

Fribourg (CH) Equilibre
Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan
Belgrade (RS) Belgrade Dance Festival

Tournée 2012

Sideways Rain

Ferrara (IT) Teatro Comunale
Leverkusen (DE) Bayer Kulturhaus
Bezon (FR) Théâtre Paul Eluard
Mulhouse (FR) La Filature
Hall in Tirol (AT) Osterfestival
Heilbronn (DE) Tanz! Heilbronn
Montreal (CA) Festival TransAmériques
Francfort (DE) Mousonturm
Prague (CZ) Tanec Praha
Genève (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin
Londres (GB) Sadler's Wells

Les Cabots (création)

Genève (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin
Paris (FR) Centre Culturel Suisse
Lausanne (CH) Théâtre Sévelin

Jetuilnousvousils

Le Locle (CH) La Grange-Le Casino

Le Poids des Eponges (Re-création)

Genève (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin

Tournée 2011

Sideways Rain

Bâle (CH) Tanztage, Kaserne
Berne (CH) Journées de danse contemporaine suisse
Utrecht (NL) Springdance Festival
Vienne (AT) Tanzquartier
Noisy-le-Grand (FR) Rencontres chorégraphiques internationales de Seine Saint-Denis
Lucerne (CH) Südpol
Falaise (FR) Festival La Danse de tous les sens
Séoul (KR) Modafe Festival
Porto (PT) Fundaçao de Serralves, Serralves em Festa
Zagreb (HR) Dance Week Festival
Berlin (DE) Tanz im August
Zürich (CH) Zürcher Theater Spektakel
Hanovre (DE) TANZtheater International
Sofia (BG) Sofia Dance Week
Amsterdam (NL) Stadsschouwburg
Tel Aviv (IL) Suzanne Dellal Center
Leipzig (DE) Euro-Scene
Sao Paulo (BR) Panorama Sesi de dança

0,5‰

Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan

Jetuilnousvousils (création)

Genève (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin
Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan

Le Poids des Eponges

Sao Paulo (BR) Panorama Sesi de dança

Tournée 2010

I want to go home

Saint-Etienne (FR) Festival Semaine de danse, Théâtre Copeau

Don't stay in the middle of the road

Genève (CH) Fête de la musique, Cours des Casemates

Sideways Rain (création)

Meyrin (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin
Kaunas (LT) International Modern Dance festival
Monthey (CH) Théâtre du Crochetan

Roméo et Juliette

Meyrin (CH) Théâtre Forum Meyrin

Vaguement Derrière

Bielefeld (DE) Stadttheater

Community Outreach

Starting in 1999, with the support of the Department of Education of Geneva (DIP), Alias Company has been doing community outreach work on behalf of contemporary dance in schools to offer students of different grades a space to develop bodily awareness, creativity and familiarization with contemporary dance, as well as with the company’s work.

At the same time, several outreach activities in direct contact with the community are being carried out in partnership with the commune of Meyrin, the Meyrin Forum Theatre and various cultural and social associations. Beyond an exploration of movement, these partnerships allow different audiences to socialize around a shared artistic experience.

The activities are designed and facilitated by a person responsible for pedagogic and outreach projects, working in collaboration with the artistic and technical team of Alias.

De Saussure Secondary School

For the past three years, Alias has been carrying out a series of residencies and outreach activities, first at the Cayla middle school, from 2014 to 2015, then at Gradelle, from 2015 to 2016. This unique experience is now being carried further with an important project in 2016-2017 at the de Saussure Secondary School.

Description & objectives
The prime objective of this residency is to arouse the curiosity of pupils and teachers about the(ir) body.  Dance and the body in motion are two main axes of this residence. The question « what role does my body play in my life? » will be the guiding thread throughout the year.

The residency will comprise twelve projects of different nature, structure and scale: workshops in movement and various dance techniques, conferences, rehearsals, films, improvisation, drawing and photography workshops, etc. The projects will be elaborated in coordination with the teachers concerned.

Beneficiaries
The company will carry out rehearsals and run-throughs for its various tours in the school’s auditorium.  Rehearsals will be open to students and educators alike, making the profession and world of contemporary dance visible and accessible to all one thousand pupils, one hundred and twenty five teachers and thirty administrative employees.


School angel

This project lasted until 2011-2012

Description & objectives
Contemporary dance project in schools related to L’Ange du foyer (Home angel), choreography for young and old created in 2008 by Alias.

The objective was to conduct children through the choreographic universe of
Home angel, a family choreography created in 2008 at the Meyrin Forum Theatre. The children were encouraged to create their own « school angel » by reacting to the fantasy of Guilherme Botelho, the company’s choreographer, whilst utilizing their own universe and body language developed in the course of workshops.  During the fifth and last week of workshops, the four groups and the company got together in the company’s studio to share their work and debate about the piece with the choreographer and the dancers present in Geneva.

Partners
Department of Education (DIP) « Les arts et l’enfant » (Children and the Arts), Meyrin Forum Theatre


Dance at school

Description & objectives
In these workshops, Fabio Bergamaschi guides the children through creative and playful experiences where imagination and feeling are the pillars of movement.  Technique and esthetics are not part of this work. By means of a precise and constructive improvisation procedure, children are put at the center of the creative process.

Keynotes
• Availability and responsiveness of the body: the body in a state of absorption: listening, being present, concentration…
• Body awareness: weight, letting go, momentum, contraction/relaxation, muscle tone, relation to the ground, imprints…
• Actions and feeling, different states of the body: slicing, cutting, rolling petting, drawing, enveloping, lying down, floating…
• Space and occupation of space: crossing the stage, directions, orientations, creating spaces, space as malleable material and/or sound, vision…
• Musicality of the body: different dynamics and qualities of movement, different tempi,  initiation and conclusion of movement, syntax of a gesture, pre-movement, resonance
• Writing a movement: creation of movements by children, composition and memorization of a choreographic phrase based on those movements, appropriation of a choreographic phrase and improvisation with the newly acquired language…
• Reading the body

Stage performance at end of school year
The aim of a public performance is not to point out, demonstrate or prove anything but to share with the people close to us the adventure that we lived through by immersing them in it, and to witness the fantasies that were prompted… to share an experience in order to engender meaning, to live the artistic process fully and become aware of all the trades involved in the production of a show. A stage performance is an experience of respect, individual and collective responsibility, multiple emotions, sensorial perception and trust in oneself and others.


A body to last a lifetime

Project carried out from 2008 to 2009, and from 2009 to 2010. During the second season, it comprised four parts:

Part 1   –   Dance at school
C.f. detailed description.

Part 2   –   Workshops for seniors Description & objectives
Weekly creativity and movement workshops for people over sixty five. Using improvisation games, facilitator Caroline de Cornière proposes an exploration of movement (movement of joints, quality of movement, listening, space…). Individual and collective work around dance to develop our understanding of it as a language of the body and to enrich our musicality and movement. To enhance responsibility and initiative for one’s own health, self esteem and respect for others through the pleasure of dancing and creating.

Beneficiaries
Circa fifteen retirees living in the commune of Meyrin

Dates & schedules
October to June, weekly ninety minute workshops

Partners
Department of Culture and Assistance to Seniors of the commune of Meyrin, Meyrin Forum Theatre

Part 3   –   Exhibit: « La force du grand âge » (The strength of old age)
Description & objectives
Exhibit & Work in progress in relation to the Meyrin Forum Theatre theme “Avec le temps” (« With time »).  The objective was to highlight the expression of an aging body through the medium of contemporary dance, short films and photography.

Beneficiaries
General public

Partners
Department of Culture and Assistance to Seniors of the commune of Meyrin, Meyrin Forum Theatre

Part 4   –   Show Description &
Objectives
Two part project around the theme of the body at every age, putting children face to face with seniors.  Intergenerational work mixing abstract scenes with narrative ones to the music of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

The objective was to give participants a chance to present their work on stage, to become familiarized with the different trades of stage production, and to discover the stakes of a performance, as well as to give two generations the opportunity to get to know each other around a shared artistic experience.

Beneficiaries
Participants in « Dance at school » and « Dance for Seniors » workshops as well as the general public

Partners
Department of Culture and Assistance to Seniors of the commune of Meyrin, Meyrin Forum Theatre


Partners

Alias is granted a joint subsidy by the City of Meyrin, the City of Geneva, the Canton of Geneva and Pro Helvetia – Swiss Foundation for the Promotion of Culture.

Alias is a dance company associated to the Theater Forum Meyrin (Geneva)  and the Theater Crochetan (Valais).

Team

    Director & choreographer

  • Guilherme Botelho

    Brazilian born Swiss choreographer Guilherme Botelho started his dance career in Sao Paulo. He was later hired by the ballet of the Grand Théâtre in Geneva. He created Alias in 1994.
    A keen observer of the paradoxes in our daily lives, the tensions that dwell in social relations and the questions that currently face the world, Botelho queries reality through his creations in an often highly provocative way.

    There is a strong desire in him to question the meaning of things through his choreographies, dominated by movement and unbalance and demanding a complete commitment from the dancers.

  • Administration

    Christophe Drag

    +41 (0)22 731 23 61

    christophe.drag(at)alias-cie.com

  • Communications & Press Relations

    Sara Dominguez

    +41 (0)22 731 23 61

    +41 (0)78 601 08 96

    sara(at)alias-cie.com

  • Technician

    Alex Kurtz

    +41 (0)22 731 23 61

    alex@alias-cie.com

  • Photography

    All pictures included in this site are by Grégory Batardon or Jean-Yves Genoud.

    Performers

  • ISLANDS

    (choreography for 5 performers)

    Fabio Bergamaschi, Victoria Hoyland, Erik Lobelius, Angela Rabaglio, Amaury Réot, Luisa Schöfer

  • ANTES

    (choreography for 12 performers)

    Fabio Bergamaschi, Alexandre Bibia, Adriano Coletta, Giulia Franceschini, Victoria Hoyland, Erik Lobelius, Raquel Miro, Anaïs Pensé, Anne-Lise Pizot, Angela Rabaglio, Linn Ragnarsson, Amaury Réot, Claire-Marie Ricarte, Adrian Rusmali, Luisa Schöfer, Carl Staaf, Christos Strinopoulos, Emilie Szikora, Sarah Waelchli

  • LE POIDS DES EPONGES (The Weight of a Sponge)

    (choreography for 11 performers)

    Fabio Bergamaschi, Elsa Couvreur, Johannes Lind, Erik Lobelius, Marie-Louise Nespolo, Madeleine Piguet Raykov, Luisa Schofer, Ambre Pini, Amaury Réot, Claire-Marie Ricarte, Candide Sauvaux, Christos Strinopoulos

  • IYOUHEWEYOUTHEY

    (choreography for 10 performers)

    Fabio Bergamaschi, Erik Lobelius, Linn Ragnarsson, Amaury Réot, Claire-Marie Ricarte, Marion Rochefeuille, Adrian Rusmali, Luisa Schöfer, Nefeli Skarmea, Christos Strinopoulos

  • SIDEWAYS RAIN

    (choreography for 14 performers)

    Stéphanie Bayle, Rémi Benard, Fabio Bergamaschi, Stanislav Genadiev, Alexandre Bibia, Adriano Coletta, Victoria Hoyland, Johannes Lind, Erik Lobelius, Philia Maillardet, Alessandra Mattana, Ambre Pini, Anne-Lise Pizot, Ismaël Oiartzabal, Angela Rabaglio, Linn Ragnarsson, Julien Ramade, Amaury Réot, Claire-Marie Ricarte, Adrian Rusmali, Candide Sauvaux, Luisa Schöfer, Nefeli Skarmea, Christos Strinopoulos

Contact

ADDRESS
Alias / Guilherme Botelho
22, Rue Cardinal-Journet
1217 Meyrin
Switzerland

 

T : +41 (0)22 731 23 61
M : +41 (0)78 781 14 47

 

Administration
info (at) alias-cie.com

© Alias 2016 – Design by AThomas & Aurélien Barrelet, development by Pierre Schilling