Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xxvi

   PDF

2. Introduction—Kaleidoscopic Identity and Aesthetics

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 1-29

3. Rien de Rien—Dramaturgy Inviting an Engaged Spectatorship

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 31-66

4. Transculturality and Its Limits in Zero Degrees and Sutra

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 67-101

5. Thematic Explorations of Religion in Foi and Apocrifu

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 103-129

6. Heteroglossia and Non-translation in Myth

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 131-149

7. Dreamwork, Circumambulation and Engaged Spectatorship in Myth

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 151-174

8. Geopolitical Re-framing of the Nation and Language in Babel^(words)

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 175-204

9. Final Reflections

   • Lise Uytterhoeven

   Pages 205-221

10. Back Matter

    Pages 223-245

    PDF

This book analyses the world-renowned Belgian choreographer’s key approaches and dramaturgical strategies through selected case studies from his oeuvre between 2000 and 2010, from Rien de Rien to Babel(words). It investigates Cherkaoui’s choreographic and dramaturgic interventions in debates on the nation, culture, religion and language, by emphasising the transcultural, transreligious and geopolitical dimensions of the dialogues and exchanges he explored during this initial decade. 
 
Engaged spectatorship refers to the ongoing thinking, talking, research and writing that the spectator is invited to do in order to fulfil the work’s macro-dramaturgical potential to resist nationalism, populism and religious fundamentalism. The book meticulously explores Cherkaoui’s rich, multi-layered theatrical imagery and aural landscapes to demonstrate the agile and ever-shifting interpretive acts the works elicit from their audiences. Offering a full-length analysis of Cherkaoui’s work, the book is essential reading for students, researchers, practitioners and Cherkaoui fans.

• Choreographers
• Choreography
• Rien de Rien
• Foi
• Babel
• Les Ballets C. de la B
• Eastman dance company

“Uytterhoeven focuses on one choreographer, but her scholarship expands outward into a myriad of directions. Her book inspires continued engagement … . her strategies can inspire the viewer to go deeper. … Different disciplines will see her scholarship through distinct lenses—the eye of a choreographer, dancer, anthropologist, or dance studies scholar. ... Many conversations and lines of inquiry are being birthed. Reading her book may take you down a new path that you did not foresee.” (Heather Harrington, Dance Research Journal, Vol. 53 (3), December, 2021)

“Complete with vast analyses and extensive sources, it provides a unique and valuable perspective on engaged spectatorship in contemporary dance. This book is ideal for scholars and educators interested in either Cherkaoui or a new approach to dance dramaturgy. … Uytterhoeven reminds the reader that engaged spectatorship is a skill that must be practiced and developed, even by the most seasoned audience members.” (Gretchen McLaine, Journal of Dance Education, May 12, 2020)

“This is the first academic monograph on the work of Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, who has established himself as one of the most important and prolific choreographers of the first decades of the 21^st Century. From the perspective of a ‘dramaturgically engaged spectator’ and introducing innovative approaches in the field of dance studies, Uytterhoeven gives a unique and multi-layered perspective on Cherkaoui’s ‘transcultural’ artistic practice.” (Guy Cools, Dance Dramaturg)

• London Studio Centre, London, UK

  Lise Uytterhoeven

Lise Uytterhoeven teaches critical dance studies at London Studio Centre, UK. She has published in Contemporary Theatre Review, The Bloomsbury Companion to Dance Studies and The Ethics of Art. A co-author of What Moves You? Shaping Your Dissertation in Dance, Lise is also Chair of the Society for Dance Research.

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