LE GRAND CONTINENTAL
26/02/2016 - 26/02/2016
New Zealand Festival of the Arts 2016
Production Details
When is a crowd a work of art? When you make everyone in it feel like dancing.
Events like 2014’s The Big Bang have given the Festival a reputation for putting on the best opening night parties, and 2016 is going to be no exception, with a 30-minute dance spectacular created by French-Canadian choreographer Sylvain Émard and performed by volunteers from the Wellington region.
Inspired by line dancing and contemporary dance, Le Grand Continental® is a mass dance performance. This unforgettable experience has been to cities around Canada and the US, and in Mexico and South Korea, and to bring it to Civic Square we’ve hand-picked 150 amateur dancers aged between 10 and 75 who’ve been trained by Sylvain until they can bust a move like the best of them.
After the official performance, the whole crowd will be asked to join in for a giant freestyle dance party with music from Chocolate Box Deluxe.
You dancing? Because we’re asking.
A Sylvain Émard Danse and Festival TransAmériques co-production.
Spectacle , Outdoor , Family , Dance ,
30 mins followed by open dance party
Do You Feel Like Dancing?
Review by Donna Banicevich Gera 27th Feb 2016
Shelagh Magadza, Artistic Director of the New Zealand Festival 2016, quotes Samuel Beckett as saying: ‘Dance first. Think later. It’s the natural order.’ And last night proved there was no exception -for this is what Wellingtonians did.
Le Grand Continental® kicked off the opening of the 2016 festival in the Wellington Civic Square. At 8.30pm this mass dance performance, inspired by line dancing and contemporary dance, shimmied and shook its way across the square, to the joy of spectators jammed around its edges.
French-Canadian choreographer Sylvain Emard, from Sylvain Emard Danse, pulled off a real coup in the 30 minute production performed by volunteers from across the Wellington region. 150 amateur dancers, trained by Sylvain, were on their feet and strutting their stuff, proving to the crowd they could all move like the best of them.
Combining the sheer joy on the face of the small boy in the football jersey, with the slick style of the woman in the leopard skin top and black tulle skirt, followed by the smiles of satisfaction on the handful of pensioners performing in the group, it really was a ‘kick up the arts’ start to the festival.
From where I stood, wedged shoulder to shoulder amongst enthusiastic watchers, I observed a wave of engrossed awe. As the show began the crowd silenced itself; everyone spellbound by the superb co-ordinated vision stepping out in front of them. I heard a whisper somewhere behind me ‘the music’s cool isn’t it?’ Yes it was. As the dancers moved their heads to the sky so did the crowd. Let’s look up and seek who we really are? We’re all different but tonight we’re coming together as a group of individual shining stars. Coloured lighting spun out in circles surrounding the square, flickering across the faces in the crowd, and highlighting the sheen of sweat down the bodies of the dancers.
Across the way I saw ‘the privileged few’ peering down on the spectacle below from their vantage point in the council buildings. I wondered if they realised what they were missing. Being squashed in together was what it was really about. The vibrancy, the contentment in the air, and the feeling of community that was present. That was where the magic sat.
After the performance ended the crowd were invited to join the party. Slowly they surged forward, encouraged to take as many selfies as they could. ‘You were here’ was the message.’ You’ joining the crowd, and experiencing this work of art in process.
So did it make me feel like dancing? Hell yes!
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