Tragedy and comedy, tenderness and cruelty, the graceful and the strange. This appealing retrospective approach bears witness to a long and profound creative process that has evolved over many years and in every corner of the world.

Over forty years, Marie Chouinard has built a choreographic, visual, and mythological universe that has no equal in this world. In 24 miniatures, this visual artist of the body travels through her repertory as if in a kaleidoscope. From her pieces created between 1980 and 2018, she selects solos and duos lasting from one to thirteen minutes, set to a strong rhythm. The programme includes Chouinard classics such as bODY_rEMIX/gOLDBERG_vARIATIONS as well as newly discovered projects such as the quirky Love Attack and the literally titled Crying-Laughing Duet. Going beyond a simple reinterpretation, Radical Vitality, Solos et Duos is heightened by new costumes, mise en scène, and sound environments.

Chouinard’s theatrical works have always been provocative, sensual, feministic and characterised by a raw energy – but how do we as an audience react to what were scandals at the time? The undisguised directness of Chouinard’s creativity unfolds in the richness of her solos and duets, which depict unfulfilled desire, the humour and madness of our neuroses, broken illusions and dehumanized bodies that are only capable of moving mechanically. A comprehensive portrait of a unique personality. A fascinating journey into the artistic world of Marie Chouinard; an encounter with the quintessence of her work.

“It is quite possible that this collage, with its at times brutal openness, is among the best work yet created by Marie Chouinard.” (Der Standard, Vienna)

“Chouinard has an astonishing imagination… surprising… a grand adventure for the viewer.” (The Globe and Mail, Canada)