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Watch & Talk
The Watch&Talk festival residency welcomes a group of six emerging artists from the Swiss and international performing arts scene. Over the course of the festival, they immerse themselves in the programme to reflect on the works presented and deepen their own artistic practices. Hailing from France, Jordan, Senegal, Switzerland and Tunisia, they meet at the festival to share perspectives, exchange sensibilities and form new connections – all while engaging in a transdisciplinary dialogue. In 2025, the group will be accompanied by Zineb Soulaimani, journalist, artistic advisor and podcast producer (Le Beau Bizarre).
Les artistes :
Jules Romain Djihounouck (sn)
Léna Bagutti (ch/fr)
Fanny Holland (ch/fr)
Mohammed Issaoui (tn)
Thaïs Martin (ch)
Sama Shahrouri (jo)
Watch & Talk
The Watch & Talk residency aims to create the conditions for genuine artistic effervescence. Accompanied by a specialist in the performing arts, six emerging artists from Switzerland and abroad are invited to immerse themselves in the works presented during the festival and to reflect on their own practice. These discussions, which resonate with the programme, are the breeding ground for dynamic artistic research, free from any constraints of production or outcome. Watch & Talk thus gives rise to an ephemeral collective of young artists who encourage exchanges and links while engaging in cross-disciplinary dialogue.
In 2024, the residency will be accompanied by performer, choreographer, and teacher Gregory Stauffer (ch).
The artists :
Oscar M. Damianaki (ch/gr)
Lou Golaz (ch)
Annatina Huwiler (ch)
Aïda Jamal (ma)
Ametonyo Silva (br)
Doan Thanh Toan (vn)
Concert
24 KIARA serves up an irresistible blend of electro, pop and indie rock. Think bouncy synth hooks, shimmering disco arpeggios and bold, hard-hitting beats. Following the release of their debut EP Hodophilia in 2023, the trio pushes things further, flirting with raw garage rock textures while keeping their unapologetic pop flair.
You may click down there to listen
Spotify
Concert
As a racialised artist living in exile and constantly navigating otherness, 3YOONI (pronounced “ayooni,” meaning “my eyes” in Arabic) explores themes of identity, language, racism and orientalism through his music. Blending traditional Arabic rhythms and oud-inspired textures with pulsating electronic beats and distorted synths, his songs, sung in Iraqi Arabic, resonate with both defiance and vulnerability.
Opening party
Embodying an unapologetically underground, hybrid and decolonial musical universe, Geneva-based DJ ANITA KIRPPIS brings their Eurolatina heritage into the present and plays a key role in the revival of alternative club music. Their mixes – filled with warm, dreamy melodies – sparkle with glitter, sweat, emotion and above all, collective trance. To achieve this, ANITA KIRPPIS joyfully blends Afro-Latin sounds and beats with techno, EDM and dancehall, restoring their rightful place and legitimacy on a scene that has historically marginalised or erased them.
You may click down there to listen
Soundcloud
a s s o m b r a ç ã o: apparition at Nyon station
With a s s o m b r a ç ã o: Apparition at Nyon Station, Brazilian artist Ametonyo Silva offers a dance where the body becomes a site of appearances and disappearances. In Brazilian Portuguese, “assombração” refers to a mysterious presence, an elusive trace that haunts or passes through a space, a body or a thought. More than a ghost, it speaks to a lingering imprint or an embodied memory. These invisible presences that pass through us and touch us resonate in our feet, stomachs, mouths, ears and eyes. For this site-specific performance at Nyon station, created in collaboration with Eduardo Joly, Ametonyo weaves together gestures, memories and sounds to shape a choreographed piece that is both committed and engaging. Powered by the sound setup co-designed with Joly, these ever-shifting apparitions are set in motion and shared with the intention of sparking dance-image-sensation in every passer-by. Feel free to join in and let yourself be moved by the dance!
a s s o m b r a ç ã o: apparition at Nyon station (shared apéritif)
The artists invite you to join them for a casual apéritif before the performance, to meet and share a moment together before dancing as a group. To make the table more magical, anyone who wishes is welcome to bring something to drink or nibble on and share it with others.
“I’ve been hosting communal breakfasts since I arrived in France in September 2022: it’s an invitation to spend time together. Above all, it’s an activity that fits into everyday life, something that repeats daily. Gestures and dances emerge even before we meet — walking to get manioc, corn couscous, croissants, pain au chocolat, picking apricots to make jam, arriving early to prepare crepes with the batter from the day before, and so on. You come with whatever you can bring or whatever you want to eat. We gather to enliven the table, and we leave stronger, with “bucho cheio,” as they say in Northeast Brazil — strengthening the body to stay healthy. Beyond just conviviality, breakfast is a place of life, warmth, vitality, and joy: a space of shared abundance. We invite you to join us for this breakfast at apéritif time on Sunday, August 10th at 6 pm at the Cour des Marchandises!”
_Ametonyo Silva
BESTIARIUM
Feathers drift through the air, dust shimmers, creaking doors echo… In the kitchen, the kettle whistles. In the attic, buried secrets lie waiting to be uncovered, and down in the cellar, a distant rumble can be heard. Who lives here? BESTIARIUM is an investigation into the house as a living being and a space of coexistence. Using puppets, found objects and familiar household figures, a stage bestiary of forgotten creatures emerges from an old shipping crate. Limbs, heads and bodies morph and rearrange. Inspired by dusty zoology books and classic vaudeville acts, these curious beings sing us stories about life together in tight quarters. A tribute to the home and to all those who live within it.
Confession – Solo with Sound
How do we bear the weight of existence when every step we take seems to lead us back to the slow destruction of our planet? Alone in a hotel room, cut off from the outside world – or so it seems – a young woman attempts to answer this daunting question. She disconnects from the world by turning inwards, deciding not to resurface until she feels ready. Drawing from a personal archive of sounds collected over time (fragments of voices, musical memories, everyday noises) she recreates a world of her own, a refuge where she might exist without constantly feeling the need to apologise for it. At least, that’s the hope… With Confession – Solo with Sound, Annina Polivka offers an intimate journey: an auditory journey through past, present and imagined futures. She crafts a space of quiet respite, where, for a brief moment, we might allow ourselves to believe, however naïvely, that things could still work out… and feel the faint spark of hope for reconciliation. All conveyed with humour, delicacy, sensitivity and a finely tuned ear for sonic detail.
Sisyphe(s) proliférations
It starts with three, four, maybe five people. Or perhaps many more? Their shared goal: to build the tallest tower in the world. On a square, a street or a pier, they spring into motion. They draw near, pull away, speed up, follow one another, fall, get back up… Never stopping, they transform a heap of wooden planks into a collective artwork. With each individual gesture and strategy of mutual support, they keep raising this tower, a breath-taking, ephemeral structure. Until it collapses. And then? What do we do with the ruins of capitalism? An evolving, immersive and fluid form, Sisyphe(s) proliférations spreads through the city of Nyon like a network of mushrooms. Sisyphe(s) proliférations is child’s play!
Performance followed by a participatory game using KAPLA® blocks.
Une Utopie un peu merdique (work-in-progress)
In January 2025, far° launched the third Récits du futur, a residency programme for research, writing and creation. This year’s selected artist, Elise Perrin – director, performer and writer – presents a work-in-progress version of her new piece, Une Utopie un peu merdique (A Slightly Shitty Utopia).
“In a world going to pot, are we still capable of optimism? Une Utopie un peu merdique is a half-naïve, half-savvy snub to eco-anxiety. It’s about dismantling the barriers that stop us from imagining a better world. Let’s say it’s the future, the world has started to heal, and we can hardly believe our eyes. This brighter tomorrow? No one saw it coming. Capitalism is ancient history and although all our problems still exist, they’re… less terrible. Everyone has their own theory to explain the shift: revolutions, solar flares, or some other wild idea […]. This slightly shitty utopia is made up of a thousand clashing realities. It’s a homeopathic remedy to today’s grim headlines (it works even if you don’t believe in it). It’s also a wink to activist circles and a tribute to self-management.”
– Elise Perrin
DORIS (work-in-progress)
In 1950s America, Doris, a housewife, was filmed in her living room alongside interdisciplinary researcher Gregory Bateson as part of a study on human interaction. That brief, 18-second recording would go on to generate an extensive body of scientific literature. In countless analyses, Doris’s gestures and behaviour were dissected with precision, filtered through the cultural and sexist biases of the time, whose echoes still reverberate today. Using this footage, known as The Cigarette Scene, as their starting point, Flavia Papadaniel and Diane Dormet create DORIS: a critical reinterpretation of social representations, whether in scientific discourse, always shaped by those who produce it, or in everyday perception. Through choreography, sound and repetition, the two artists explore gesture, role-swapping, mirrored figures and shifts in voice and rhythm to expose the underlying power dynamics at play. With humour and a touch of irreverence, DORIS goes further still, challenging our own perceptions. How do we reduce the complexity of human behaviour to codified attitudes we think we understand? And how can we begin to unpick our own gaze, to recognise the biases shaping our judgement?
Venir meno
Between poetry and political engagement, Venir meno explores forms of resistance in the face of creeping contemporary fascism and the widespread exhaustion imposed by a performance-driven society. Two symbolic figures share the stage in this dreamlike, sonic creation: Hypnos, the god of sleep, and Battista, the great-grandfather of Francesca Sproccati, a partisan fighter. What might emerge from their encounter? What kinds of struggles are we ready, or unwilling, to take part in? Can we collectively desert the systems that oppress us without retreating into ignorance or becoming trapped in our own privilege? On stage, Ticino-based performer Francesca Sproccati and composer Léo Collin weave a timeless space, between memory, dreams, echoes of past resistance and a yearning for gentle disobedience. Through live electronic music, vivid imagery and twisted songs, Venir meno asks: how might we refuse what is imposed upon us?
(M)other
In this latest creation, choreographer Jeanne Brouaye continues her exploration of possible worlds, this time drawing inspiration from the work of sociologist Geneviève Pruvost. Interweaving feminism, ecology and self-sufficiency, Pruvost highlights the revolutionary power of everyday gestures. (M)other unfolds through the story of Cristal, a woman who loses custody of her daughter on the grounds that she lives in a yurt – a shift in perspective that opens up the kinds of alternatives imagined by the sociologist. Performed by five artists, somewhere between tale and fantasy, (M)other is a poetic journey that blends dance, storytelling, music and visual art. Here, dance becomes cathartic, joyful and furious, and sparks visions: glimpses of a world already in motion, seeking a way out of the violence of capitalism.
Bibliographic references
- Pruvost Geneviève (2021), Quotidien politique. Féminisme, écologie, subsistance, Paris: La Découverte;
- Pruvost Geneviève (2024), La subsistance au quotidien, Paris: La Découverte;
- Interview with Jeanne Brouaye for JUNE EVENTS 2025, click there.
valse, valse, valse (workshop)
Come to a workshop led by Johanna Heusser, artistic director of the performance valse, valse, valse. You will discover the universe of the show while experiencing waltz dance moves. It is possible to take part in the workshop without coming to the performance.
valse, valse, valse
When the waltz arrived in Europe in the 18th century, it caused quite a scandal: face-to-face, arms entwined, spinning bodies – it broke all conventions. Considered overly sensual and uncontrollable, it sparked unease, particularly due to the freedom it implied. But more than its lack of decorum, it was the sheer intensity of the movement that made it so intoxicating. The continuous turning creates a dizzying effect that borders on trance or drunkenness. In valse, valse, valse (Waltz, Waltz, Waltz) Johanna Heusser and a team of four dancers and three musicians revive this raw energy, questioning the waltz’s duality in the present day. Is it a dance of aristocratic refinement or a whirlwind of dizzying ecstasy? How can it be rewritten today to reveal its subversive, liberating power? A performance where bodies launch, spin and surrender to the music – between euphoria and disorientation.
Jusque dans nos lits
“When discrimination follows us even into our beds.” From this idea emerges Lucile Saada Choquet’s performative installation, which transforms the bed into a space for politics, dialogue and healing. Inside a wooden structure surrounded by translucent curtains, the artist invites racialised individuals – perceived as Black, Arab, Amazigh, Latina, Asian or mixed-race – to lie down beside her. One by one, they engage in intimate, one-to-one conversations with the artist about their relationships with beds, bodies and their heritage, in a safe space designed to liberate speech. At the crossroads of activism and art, Saada Choquet uses intimacy to reveal silenced experiences and the often-hidden violence of social realities. Each conversation becomes a blow against silencing processes and the power dynamics between those who are used to speaking and those who have been taught to remain quiet. By politicising the private realm, Jusque dans nos lits (Even in Our Beds) challenges dominant cultural narratives and attempts to open space, however symbolic, for racial and social justice within the confines of the bedroom.
“As a Black woman who was adopted, I need to dismantle my own racism. These feelings concern us all; they act as a lens through which to perceive our collective imagination, in motion.”
— Lucile Saada Choquet
Faire troupeau
Faire troupeau (“Herding Together”) invites audiences to take part in an immersive experience by becoming a herd of sheep on a transhumance journey*. Attacked by a pack of wolves along the way, the flock survives thanks to its social intelligence and collective solidarity. With a generous dose of humour and playful nods to pop culture, Marion Thomas playfully reclaims the often-dismissed image of the sheep to explore themes of cooperation and community living. Blending scientific investigation, apocalyptic storytelling and personal narrative, Faire troupeau questions our ability to come together and protect one another in times of crisis. A joyful invitation to think of empathy as a powerful force for political resistance.
*Transhumance: the seasonal migration of animals between summer and winter pastures.
Bibliographic references
- Porcher Jocelyne, Despret Vinciane (2007), Être bête, Paris: Actes Sud;
- Quarantelli Enrico Louis (2000), Emergencies, disasters and catastrophes are different phenomena, Disaster Research Center, University of Delaware;
- Tierney Kathleen (2019), Disasters: A Sociological Approach, polity;
- Tierney Kathleen (2014), The social Roots of Risk, Producing Disasters, Promoting Resilience, Stanford University Press
Summoning a chorus of vilaines (« Invoquer un choeur de vilaines »)
From the hyper-performativity of classical ballet to the constraints of illness, Marion Zurbach maps out a physical, aesthetic and political metamorphosis in this solo work. Living with a chronic joint condition, the choreographer draws from her own body and personal history to question normative ideals. In the eyes of convention, she now aligns with anti-heroic representations, like the “villain” of the romantic ballet, whose figure she summons. Broadening the scope beyond the human, she identifies with so-called “pests” or “invasive species”. Inspired by these marginalised beings, she seeks out poetics of impure, fantastical figures. The performance traces the journey toward activating these real or imagined presences: suspended movements on high alert; creatures lurking in a not-yet-fulfilled future to become a nuisance, to sabotage, to corrupt and to take pleasure in the fight. Transformation is an endless process, offered up by the flux of identity.
Tu ne reposeras jamais en paix
With Tu ne reposeras jamais en paix (“You Will Never Rest in Peace”), visual artist and performer Mbaye Diop and choreographer Alioune Diagne present a powerful performance inspired by a moment of historical tension: the dispute that erupted during the funeral of the poet and first president of Senegal, Léopold Sédar Senghor. This conflict arose from the wishes of his Serer community and those of his wife, Colette Senghor. The point of contention: where should his body be laid to rest? In Joal-Fadiouth, his birthplace, or in Bel-Air, a district of Dakar? The resolution was an unexpected and symbolic compromise – a separation of body and spirit, each assigned a different grave. Through the grace of movement and the force of spoken word, Tu ne reposeras jamais en paix seeks to mend the fracture caused by this imposed division. In Senegal, particularly in Casamance, Senghor’s native region, dance plays a vital role in funeral rites. It honours the deceased but can also restore justice by revealing causes of death or summoning spirits to punish the irreparable. Shifting between the poetics and politics of the body, this performance becomes a posthumous tribute to Senghor, a sensitive weaving of memory, reparation and ritual, in search of reconciliation and peace.
La demande d’asile (workshop)
Come to a workshop led by Nicolas Barry, choregrapher of the performance La demande d’asile ([15.08, Gland], [16.08, Nyon]). You will discover the universe of the show while experiencing dance and movement. It is possible to take part in the workshop without coming to the performance. Open to all ages, no experience needed.
Le demande d’asile [16.08, Nyon]
A powerful dance-theatre duet, La demande d’asile (The Asylum Application) shines a spotlight on the rigid protocols that structure France’s asylum process, overseen by Ofpra (the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons). Because the credibility of each applicant’s account can determine the outcome, support groups help individuals prepare for their official interview. Still, recounting trauma in front of officials remains an intense physical and emotional ordeal. This is all the more harrowing for LGBTQIA+ individuals: how do you put into words an identity kept hidden for so long? How do you speak of love? With La demande d’asile, Nicolas Barry exposes the cold, procedural logic of a system that often feels more like a criminal investigation than a gesture of refuge. Using the language of theatre, he choreographs the tense exchange between an Ofpra agent and a woman seeking asylum on the grounds of her sexual orientation. Their bodies spiral as do the sharp, repeated and increasingly suspicious questions. What unfolds teeters on the edge of absurdity. Until perhaps, the story takes another unexpected turn?
Le demande d’asile [15.08, Gland]
A powerful dance-theatre duet, La demande d’asile (The Asylum Application) shines a spotlight on the rigid protocols that structure France’s asylum process, overseen by Ofpra (the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons). Because the credibility of each applicant’s account can determine the outcome, support groups help individuals prepare for their official interview. Still, recounting trauma in front of officials remains an intense physical and emotional ordeal. This is all the more harrowing for LGBTQIA+ individuals: how do you put into words an identity kept hidden for so long? How do you speak of love? With La demande d’asile, Nicolas Barry exposes the cold, procedural logic of a system that often feels more like a criminal investigation than a gesture of refuge. Using the language of theatre, he choreographs the tense exchange between an Ofpra agent and a woman seeking asylum on the grounds of her sexual orientation. Their bodies spiral as do the sharp, repeated and increasingly suspicious questions. What unfolds teeters on the edge of absurdity. Until perhaps, the story takes another unexpected turn?
Le rêve de voler
“I’ve never known how to fly. That’s normal, no one has ever taught me.” Part dialogue, part duet, part lesson in dance and theatre, Le rêve de voler (“The Dream of Flying”) is a whimsical exploration of the absurdities tied to our obsession with self-optimisation. In this theatre and dance piece, Sophie Billon and Nicolas Barry take to the stage in a series of exercises meant to lead to flight – a goal that, from the outset, is doomed to fail. Neither is a bird and neither will soar. They won’t even manage much of a jump. Set against a political and public backdrop overwhelmed by economic performance, social pressure and the cult of physical power, Le rêve de voler offers a humorous and dreamlike alternative. It unfolds as a deliberately clumsy, methodical dance – a manifesto of fragility and joyful inadequacy.
All of Me
In All of Me, we meet three artists – Living Smile Vidya, Meret Landolt and Nina Langensand – sharing a stage together for the first time. Through this collective creation, they carve out a space of poetic and political resistance where their stories, gestures and voices become vehicles for reflection, feeling and transformation. One always carries visible sanitary pads in her bag. Another cuts her sponges in half before using them. A third only wears clothes that were given to her. These might be the things said about them. Or perhaps: one must navigate complex bureaucracy just to step on stage. Another feels scrutinised the moment she leaves home. A third recalls emotions of fear and shame. Together, they explore identity, belonging and the many forms of exclusion experienced by marginalised individuals. What kind of body is deemed “acceptable” on stage? Who is allowed to tell their story, and how? All of Me is woven from speech, lived experience, humour and shared vulnerability. It illuminates the strength of those too often denied a space, offering an inclusive experience that invites us to see, and hear, differently.
The Stumble Corner (workshop)
To take the exploration further, Salomé Mooij has created The Stumble Corner: a space dedicated to experimenting with stumbling techniques, both choreographed and spontaneous. Located at the heart of Cour des Marchandises, this open, inclusive space invites us to embrace imbalance, play with slapstick, welcome vulnerability and meet each other in an experience that’s joyfully imperfect.
Study of a Stumble
In the performance Study of a Stumble, she unravels the mechanics of the misstep and investigates the ripple effect of this unexpected event. What are the ingredients of a successful stumble? What happens when it occurs in a public space? What becomes of our sense of internal cohesion when a gesture escapes us, when our body’s coordination breaks down? What remains of our control when the mask slips and we stumble under others’ gaze? Can we make room for the unexpected and let ourselves be seen in moments of fragility?
The Shelteratelier
The Shelteratelier is an artistic investigation by Salomé Mooij into our intimate and personal places of refuge. Places where we find rest and shelter. Silent places where the noise of the world fades and where we can make contact with other layers of existence. Layers that sometimes seem difficult to access, but which are essential to our roots. Based on a privileged one-to-one discussion with Mooij, your “own room” is transposed into a miniature model, using small everyday objects collected by the artist beforehand. The work can then be taken home or added to the collection of possible shelters, a testament to the wealth of worlds that relate to the issue of rest. A wonderful way to take refuge, away from the world.
The Moon in Your Mouth
The Moon in Your Mouth explores the kinship between human and non-human beings through astrology and food. Accompanied by an olive tree – a powerful symbol of the Palestinian people – and a gathering of familiar plants, Samah Hijawi invites you to taste the flavours of the Middle East while gently and poetically mapping the cosmology of the ancient world. Drawing on the old Arabic adage “What is above is like what is below”, from The Emerald Tablet, she defends the fundamental belief that the universe and the earth are deeply interconnected. By revealing unexpected relationships between beings, their lands, trees and stars, Hijawi sheds light on what we collectively lose in times of war and destruction.
*The Emerald Tablet is a centuries-old text, written between the 6th and 8th centuries. It expresses the idea that everything in the universe is connected, that what happens in the sky is reflected on the earth, and vice versa. This philosophy invites us to perceive profound harmony between body, nature and the cosmos. It remains a key reference in many mystical and philosophical traditions in the West.
Le point du départ
Le point du départ (The Starting Point) is a journey in itself – one of misunderstandings, of attempts to connect and of efforts to translate what slips through our grasp. The performance unfolds in this in-between space, where language falters, interpretation goes off course and absurdity, confusion and humour become unexpected tools for encounter. Blending open-air theatre with sculptural installation, Le point du départ is both a shared adventure and a mosaic of fleeting moments, figures and collective impulses. By questioning how much distance is needed to truly meet one another, and what we gain by trying, Supersurface offers a tender reflection on otherness, uncertainty and the fragile beauty of human connection.
Specially adapted for far°, this version invites you to gather in Cour des Marchandises and walk together toward the “point du départ”, the starting point, between the sky and the hillside.
Concert
Inspired by a 17th-century fairy tale where the princess saves the prince, Verde Prato is the musical project of Ana Arsuaga from the Spanish Basque Country. Her genre-defying sound draws from pop, electronica and folk, creating a subtle yet magnetic blend. With raw sensitivity and total on-stage presence, she weaves voice and synths into a sensory journey that reconnects us with the essentials: friendship, fear, hope, love… and the haunting call of the forest.
Closing party, DJ-set
Born in Chile and raised in Geneva, awka has been developing a musical approach since 2017 centred on feminist and queer reggaeton. Drawing inspiration from perreo, neoperreo, guaracha and Latin American genres such as salsa, cumbia and merengue, she champions women and LGBTQIA+ artists who are reclaiming a genre long dominated by straight men. Expect a fiery, politically charged set in Cour des Marchandises!
You may click down there to listen
Soundcloud
Concert
Zurich-based singer-songwriter claire my flair offers gentle, yet luminous indie folk infused with soft melancholy. Her enchanting melodies create a timeless space to sit with one’s emotions, unfiltered and unhurried. Joined by her musicians, she invites us into a sensitive refuge, a space to pause, move through life’s turbulence or simply feel… and remember that it’s okay to be exactly as we are.
Collective cooking and writing around tamal
To foster dialogue and the sharing of practices, far° is teaming up with AVDC – the Vaud Organisation for Contemporary Dance – to host a ddd* day (dramaturgy, dance, dialogue) during the festival. Everyone is welcome to take part and enjoy this shared moment.
Proposed by visual and performance artist Maria Fernanda Ordoñez, also known as Mafé, this collective creation workshop invites participants to gather around the making of a tamal: a traditional Latin American dish wrapped in leaves, steeped in popular knowledge and migratory stories. Here, cooking together becomes a moment for transmission and shared anecdotes. Through the preparation of the tamal, the group explores the connection between cooking and dramaturgy. As the dish steams, the group moves into a writing session – a time to activate other forms of presence, to summon voices and landscapes and to reflect on what it means to offer something of oneself: a dish, a story or a memory. This workshop is envisioned as a convivio – a moment of collective action, of speaking of the present and celebrating togetherness through the act of cooking.
For this day of workshops, Chloé Démétriadès joins Mafé to open up new lines of reflection on how we create and share with audiences. Who do we speak to when imagining a performance or cultural project? Who are we hoping to meet through these processes? And with whom is it most urgent to build shared spaces today? By rethinking cultural outreach beyond rigid institutional frameworks, Chloé invites us to move past inclusion “labels” that often fail to manifest in real action. Come share your thoughts, frustrations and aspirations around the meaningful projects you’re working on.
*The ddd (dramaturgy, dance, dialogue) meetings were initiated by AVDC (Vaud Association for Contemporary Dance) in 2022. They approach dramaturgy not as a scholarly discipline, but as an intuitive and multifaceted practice that circulates between people, ideas, working processes and gestures.
RUN THEM ALL (public sharing)
While IMPACT D’UNE COURSE [Nyon] explores the joys of childhood, RUN THEM ALL gives voice and body to the turbulence of adolescence. In this night time version, the acrobats take over the urban space, questioning, reimagining and reinventing it. Through lifts, sprints, falls and supports, they seek connection, expression and a shared presence. A powerful, physical, collective declaration that is raw, vibrant and deeply felt!
IMPACT D’UNE COURSE [nyon]
With IMPACT D’UNE COURSE [Nyon] (Impact of a Race), la horde dans les pavés pays tribute to the people of Nyon by exploring the city in an unexpected way. In this acrobatic and aerial journey, five performers and a sprinting musician blend contemporary dance, rebellious circus arts and urban climbing. At the heart of a constantly-evolving performance, the collective invites audiences to awaken their inner explorer and witness discoveries as they unfold, all at a relentless, exhilarating pace. A breath-taking experience for all ages to be shared together!
– working title –
With this debut contemporary circus solo, Nyon-based artist lili parson piguet transports us into a timeless world, poised between physical performance and emotional resonance. She transforms the stage into a boundless playground, where each movement becomes an invitation to complicity and shared trust with the audience. In this collective journey, bodies brush past one another and speak – through acrobatics as well as silences – of human fragility and the beauty of connection. Blending trapeze, Cyr wheel, hair hanging and singing, the performance unfolds a poetic language of gesture, where every move is both a feat and an embrace… Spellbinding!
“– working title – isn’t afraid of words: circus, virtuosity, sincerity.
– working title – opens and holds the space needed for acrobatics, for catching your breath after the race, for a body held in an embrace, one that feeds both love and rage.”
— lili parson piguet
LUGAR
With LUGAR (“place” in Spanish), nyamnyam invites us to look anew at how we perceive landscapes and construct images. Enriched by conversations with geographers, farmers, art restorers, climatologists, philosophers and filmmakers, the Spanish collective breaks down disciplinary boundaries to reimagine our relationship with space. Here, a place is not a fixed point on a map but a shifting and imaginative landscape. The scenery is no longer just a backdrop, it becomes character, memory and fiction. Through a kind of cinema of listening, LUGAR offers space to what escapes the eye, unfolding through words, silences and sensations. An inclusive space, where the unseen becomes essential.
Opening night, DJ-set
ven3mo believes in the transformative power of music and loves to share emotional, sensitive DJ sets. Through performance and sound, her chosen mediums, she playfully bends the rules and leaps between genres, to the great delight of our ears… and dancing bodies.
You may click down there to listen
Soundcloud
Entepfuhl
“Like the ouroboros, the mythical snake that bites its own tail, Alina Arshi engages her dance process through loops and ‘knots’ of intensity. Twisting her body in series of repetitive movements, echoing the percussive and progressive density of the soundtrack, she stages visceral, all-consuming choreography. Entepfuhl expresses a quest for identity and the feeling of never fitting in when living between different cultures”.
_Wren Cellier, Les Urbaines, 2023
Photographs
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Insomnia, A Dance to Interrupt Oneself
Insomnia is one of the stops offered by Alix Eynaudi as part of her long-term project Institute of Rest(s), which aims to unravel the forms of rest as they are practised in an age marked by over-productivity and the profitability of the body. As its title suggests, this dance to interrupt oneself is an invitation to slow down the pace, to come to a standstill, and reflect on the political potential of resting, an act that goes against the grain of neo-liberal productive thinking, in order to build more dignified destinies. By combining dance, performance, poetry, writing, and philosophy, she points to the possibility of new narratives and new choreographies outside the cycles of violence, oppression, and exhaustion. Take a seat and let yourself be transported by dances, thoughts, encounters and quiet moments, in company of guests Myriam Lefkowitz, Geoffroy Solhelac and Cécile Tonizzo.
“Insomnia. Nothing ever happens there. This play, a recessive miniature imagined in the shadow of festivals, of research, of lakes (of thoughts), and of acts of love, will take up residence in Salle des Marchandises at far°. ‘Nothing’ will happen there, but it will happen around a library. Dances without thresholds will appear here and there, like earthquakes, welcoming the formation of lines and cracks along our folds. To our endless nights.”
_Alix Eynaudi
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
À la limite du visible / Borderline Visible
This 80-minute immersive experience traces a journey from Lausanne to Izmir. Enhanced by the music of Oren Ambarchi and Perila, it aims to give value and meaning to the all-too-human ruins of ambition, history, and language. This new “live” book format from Time Based Editions presents the audio and visual as two distinct elements, uniquely connected to the present through the physical synchronisation of our hands. Together, we immerse ourselves in the here and now of the page: photographs and prints come to life while a sound track guides and envelops us at the same time. Hampton’s painstaking and at times miraculous process of recomposition gradually reveals a constellation: voices and earthquakes, the Sephardic diaspora, tourism and forced migration, mental health, dementia, the end of the Ottoman Empire, swifts and swallows, T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land, and a glimpse of the hidden atrocities perpetuated at the edges of Europe, now funded at its centre.
“Your understanding of what a book can be will change forever.”
_Lara Pawson
Voi·es·x de résistance
Every year, far° showcases its activities in Nyon and the surrounding region, while forging close partnerships. At this 40th festival, you will have the opportunity to discover two projects in the town of Nyon that we are keen to promote.
The Nyon Library will host Voi·es·x de résistance, a sound installation based on the testimonies of asylum seekers in the Canton of Vaud. They give us their points of view on their personal situation, as well as suggestions for developing better social cohesion. The result is a new way of thinking about how to welcome asylum seekers in Switzerland. Association Reliefs creates the conditions for a community dialogue on these issues.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Une Leçon de Ténèbres
In Une Leçon de Ténèbres, Betty Tchomanga creates a searing picture from a number of elements, the links between which are a joy to extract. She blends dance extracts, travel accounts, the spoken word, and archive footage to make visible the path that leads to the production of a powerful and committed decolonial work. Drawing part of her inspiration from Malcolm Ferdinand’s Decolonial Ecology, Tchomanga invites audiences to travel between the reflections of the Caribbean Doctor of Political Science and her own research into voodoo cults. Encouraging circulation, bringing together references, juxtaposing images, worlds, and beliefs from dominant and dominated cultures – this is the artist’s aim, and she tackles with panache the possibility of a “world ship”, where encounters, coexistence, and the design of a common future would be possible.
Photographs
Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Bi-tà
Imagine the fusion of two worlds that are, at least on the surface, opposites: mathematics and contemporary dance. Now visualise what is happening around you: some things are predictable while others happen completely at random. Now follow Bianca Berger’s choreography, which translates all the concepts linked to these probabilities into movement: bodies are functions, movements are numbers, and events are subsets.
Introducing Bi-tà. An invitation to enter a space of probability where dance, music, and mathematics come together.
“Throughout my career as a dancer, I’ve felt the need to integrate a scientific perspective into my dance practice. This has led me to study mathematics at the University of Bologna. Despite the obvious differences, I found significant similarities between dance and maths. This revelation led me to explore the possible interactions between the two disciplines and the connections that could help them be mutually enriching. That’s why, in my creations, I use mathematics as a tool to generate dramaturgy, choreography, and movement.”
_Bianca Berger
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Open air concert
At the forefront of contemporary Celtic music, Brìghde Chaimbeul is a mistress of the Scottish smallpipes. By diverting the instrument from its traditional use, she transcends folk music through unique arrangements and experimental sounds, giving her melodies a mesmerising and bewitching dimension. The performance will lend a whole new atmosphere to Cour des Marchandises as the 40th far° festival comes to a gentle, poetic close.
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Opening DJ set
After years of quietly dreaming of getting her hands on some turntables, Bâtarde Internationale finally broke onto the Geneva scene in 2022, and the magic began. She sprinkles the dancefloor with glitter, dishing out bouncing tracks and bangers that will make you want to sing at the top of your lungs. Her sets are full of stories and journeys through the worlds of hip hop, raï, electro châabi, reggaeton, and dancehall. This true celebration of beats, melodies, languages, and voices will tug at your heartstrings and have you grooving the night away !
Workshop big pennant
Following in the footsteps of the Collectif and then… to honor the Levratte district, let’s get together to create a textile garland to decorate the square. What would a KERMESSE be without a big pennant ?
Come and imagine, chat, cut, draw and assemble fabrics, which will in turn be joined together, like big arms embracing the space of the KERMESSE show.
You don’t need to know how to do anything special, it’s super simple, for all ages, you just need a lot of people to make it big and splendid !
Grandeur Nature
In site-specific art projects, the place and its inhabitants are sources of creation. Art insinuates itself into the everyday and fictions challenge concrete realities, whether they are of an environmental, political, or social nature. So how do we make the transition from the empirical experience of a place as a sensitive source of creation to an aesthetic transposition leading to the creation of a work of art? How does this impact creative processes and practices? This is what the members of the CCC collective have sought to answer in this full-scale presentation of their research.
“How does the great outdoors affect actors?
We’ve been active for several years in what we call in situ shows – in situ because they’re performed outside the conventional theatre frame, in urban spaces, or in the middle of nowhere. We wanted to go and meet other artists who are exploring this field of ‘open-air theatre’ in their own way, so that together we could ask ourselves how this approach has changed our artistic practice. After conducting a survey of around ten different companies in Switzerland and France, as well as of members of our collective, we offer to share the results of this research in the form of a lecture/performance, showcased outdoors, of course!”
_Collectif CCC
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
KERMESSE: morning warm-ups for seniors
Le Collectif and then…’s circus approach is designed to be accessible to all ages, individuals and mobility levels. We invite you to a gentle physical introduction led by the artists of the show KERMESSE. Most of the workshop will take place seated on a chair. Wear clothes you feel comfortable moving in, and they’ll take care of the rest !
KERMESSE
The town of Nyon has been the birthplace of a number of circus artists who are now pursuing international careers. Today, four of them are returning to the place where they were born, accompanied by circus performers from all over the world, to share their passion and pay tribute to the place where they grew up. KERMESSE is an original, made-to-measure artistic creation: a contemporary circus project for the neighbourhood’s kermesse – a tradition that dates back more than thirty-five years. On the programme: high-flying acrobatics, trapeze, roller skates hurtling down the streets, smoke bombs of all colours, and other surprises… All in a fun, multilingual, and exhilarating atmosphere!
“KERMESSE is a tribute to and celebration of this place, what it means to us and to those who live or have lived there. There are a thousand and one ways of paying tribute; we chose the circus. The circus can be used to sublimate and transform places and fuel the imagination (…)”.
_Lucie N’Duhirahe
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Let’s Dance
Based on the personal experience that a dancing body provokes a state of intense joy and jubilation, the du feu de dieu collective has imagined an immersive, participatory, and playful performance to mark the 40th anniversary of far°. Let’s Dance is an itinerant show, guided by two mad choreographers who will take you on a dancing stroll through Nyon’s town centre. Along the way, you will dance simple choreographed pieces to a euphoric playlist, create lively tableaux, feel powerful emotions, and above all… learn to let go!
“All dance induces a modified state of consciousness, a kind of trance. It transforms us because it invigorates us. It’s not for nothing that the Greeks called ‘enthusiasm’ – which means having God inside you – the trance that dance can put you in.”
_Collectif du Feu de dieu
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Amour Super : Blowing Out Our Candles !
In a hilarious and offbeat setting in Cour des Marchandises, the Fléchir le Vide collective will take over the venue for a festive ball, or rather a super disco, Amour Super! With two female DJs on the decks, the atmosphere is guaranteed to be wild with hits ranging from 80s slow songs and 90s/2000 Eurodance to today’s Gabber. The programme will feature a tribute to entertainment and funfair, activities, challenges, a giant conga, a panther dance, a wheel of fortune, and group choreography… And lots more surprises from the entertainers. All under the guidance of three MCs and a wild lifeguard who will keep an eye on the crowd’s love level.
“I hear you dance every slow song like it’s your last.
I hear Donna Summer was limbo champion in 1997.
I hear Eurodance has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
I hear you missed the firemen’s ball and cried all summer.
So put on your best flip-flops, your zip-up waterproof jacket, your leopard print leggings, and come and beat the world record for the longest conga with us (1,338 people. EASY!)”.
_Collective Fléchir le Vide en Avant…
Photographies
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Stéréo Vulcani
Stéréo Vulcani is a lively, sensitive sound creation. Three performers on stage weave together sounds, collected recordings, electronic music, and intimate accounts gathered from friends and family to talk about troubled mental states, distorting horizons, and landscapes. It is a plunge into the abyss that raises questions, analyses, upsets, stirs things up, and opens up the space for dialogue on mental conditions.
“Stereocaulon vulcani is a pioneering living species that can be found on the lava flows of certain volcanoes. The first trace of life after an explosion, it’s a transitional space between two different landscapes: a smooth black expanse/trees and plants. Like a hinge between two states, like certain crises that enable us to move forward, like a necessity to rebuild things differently. It’s a dual organism, a mutual exchange between algae and fungi. This species evokes the porosity of things, of beings, of their representation and their resilience. By drawing inspiration from the behaviour of Stereocaulon vulcani, we seek to explore the dual landscape that constitutes us, both the external landscape, that which we see and can embrace with our eyes, and the internal landscape, our psychic state, our mental landscape.”
_ Collective Fléchir le Vide en Avant en Faisant une Torsion de Côté
La Chaire des Poules
In January 2024, far° launched the second Récits du futur, a writing, research, and creative residency. French-speaking actress Danae Dario, who won the first prize, presents a stage in the work of her first play La Chaire des Poules.
“The story is as follows :
Two female bodies go on strike. A hen and a woman,
Secluded in a waiting room,
Waiting together
To grow old.
Their reproductive function over,
Perhaps their bodies will be returned to them?
No more insatiable devouring of their flesh by Man. But perhaps…
Their bodies face each other.
Two unique forms of being in the world.
The hen clutches the perch with her reptilian legs, a trace of the long evolution of living beings.
But behind the feathered dinosaur some might see only nuggets in a tub.
Of the woman perched on heels, some would see only the outlines of a fuckable, controllable body.
As an act of resistance to these visions, the human woman casts an open gaze on the animal,
Rehabilitating both bodies as subjects.”
_Danae Dario
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Open air concert
After being a member of numerous collective musical projects, including The Great Hillary Hillman, and VISITOR, David Koch has gone solo with his debut album Dormant (2023). His music is a bold exploration of melodies and sounds that are at times dark and minimalist, at others fragile and experimental. He takes to the stage with a whole collection of effects that he has modified or designed himself, to give free rein to the pathways of sound and its possible transformations. We recommend you listen carefully, let yourself be charmed by his spellbinding voice – tinkered with by analogue synthesisers – and immerse yourself in his dense, deep universe, which encourages introspection and silence… And live the experience to the full.
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Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Où va-t-on ?
Davide Brancato took time out for a bivouac at the far° festival des arts vivants in Nyon. He collected the words of young people and artists to try and answer this question. We invite you to listen to his podcast, produced with the help of Alma Catin, on the Cour des Marchandises. This subjective exploration of the festival is also broadcast online on Radio 40.
This collective listening session replaces Dream Teen, Young people take the mic.
Director: Davide Brancato
Sound design: Alma Catin
Closing music: Leonard Cohen
Opening party
For the opening party of this 40th far festival, duo Disco Shorley will bring out their finest collection of LPs, from disco funk to techno. Warning: BANGERS ONLY. We’ll say no more, see you on the dancefloor !
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Photographs
Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Permaculture – situated dance
How can we rethink our links to ourselves, to our bodies, to the bodies of others, to our living environments and to the living beings that populate our landscapes ?
A 3-voice workshop between dancer-choreographer Marion Baeriswyl, scenographer-videographer Laurent Valdès and permaculture and environmental humanities researcher Leila Chakroun. With a view to strengthening the links between the performing arts and the care of the living, this day will combine moments of bodily research and sensory experimentation with (self-)reflexivity on one’s practices, in order to anchor these moments in the conscious and offer them as common, shareable material. To let the themes discussed resonate, the day continues with a performance of Laura Kirshenbaum’s The Calling at far° at 7 p.m. (please reserve your ticket via the festival ticket office office).
Marion Baeriswyl and Leila Chakroun both took part in the HIVE residency held at far° in June 2023. Led by choreographer Shannon Cooney, the residency revealed possible ways of co-creating with nature, while drawing inspiration from the collective strategies of bees.
To find out more, discover the various proposals in the vivifying cohabitations program at far° :
Une Leçon de Ténèbres, Betty Tchomanga
La Chaire des Poules, Danae Dario
Mille lieues – in situ, de Marion Baeriswyl et D.C.P
The Calling, Laura Kirshenbaum
In spring 2022, with the PERMA-CULTURE, As part of a perma-curatorial and artistic experiment, far° has embarked on a process of exploring the principles of permaculture, in order to transpose them to its working dynamics. The far° team is convinced that this way of thinking, which originated in the agricultural world, can be relevant in guiding the transformation of the cultural environment in the light of the current challenges of ecological and social sustainability. The fruit of experiments by far° and its partners has given rise to the publication PERMA- CULTURE (work in progress), a perma-curatorial and artistic essay, on sale at the box office.
To take the exchange and circulation of perma-cultural practices a step further, far° is joining forces with the AVDC – association vaudoise de danse contemporaine to organise two days of ddd* meetings as part of the festival.
*ddd meetings – dramaturgie danse dialogue – were initiated by AVDC – association vaudoise de danse contemporaine in 2022. The aim is to understand dramaturgy not as a learned approach, in which the dramaturge is seen as the police of meaning, but as an intuitive and protean practice that moves between people, ideas, work processes and gestures. ddd is structured around two formats: experimental and collaborative dramaturgy at the table, and workshops for sharing practices.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Performing arts and parenting
In spring 2022, with its PERMA-CULTURE project, far° embarked on a process of exploring the principles of permaculture in order to transpose them to the team’s working dynamics. Despite the principle’s agricultural background, the far° team is convinced that this way of thinking can be relevant in guiding the transformation of the cultural environment in light of the current challenges of ecological and social sustainability. The fruits of the experimentation around this project gave rise to the publication PERMA-CULTURE (work in progress), a perma-curatorial and artistic essay, on sale at the far° ticket office.
To take the exchange and circulation of perma-cultural practices a step further, far° has joined forces with AVDC – association vaudoise de danse contemporaine – to organise two days of ddd* meetings as part of the festival. All those wishing to take part and benefit from the sharing of experience and knowledge are welcome.
*ddd meetings (for dramaturgy, dance, and dialogue) were initiated by AVDC – association vaudoise de danse contemporaine in 2022. The aim is to understand dramaturgy not as a learned approach, in which the dramaturge is seen as a guardian of meaning, but as an intuitive and protean practice that moves between people, ideas, work processes, and disciplines. ddd is structured around two formats: experimental and collaborative dramaturgy studios and workshops for sharing practices.
This day is led by Caroline de Cornière (Cie C2C) and Nina Langensand (art+care).
Umarmung / Embrace
With Umarmung (embrace in German), Elvio Avila offers an introspective and intimate point of view on mental health, invoking the power of embrace and the resulting production of serotonin – commonly known as the happiness hormone. Her relationship with Chuchi on stage, a young dog rescued from the streets of Argentina, gives a special colour to this creation, which reminds us of the importance of bonding, of physical proximity with others, and of the inexorable power of connection that can exist between living beings. Against a backdrop of nostalgic music, Avila questions our need to be one with others, and how this can affect the course of our emotions and even our lives. A touching reflection on the individual, the psyche and the relationship with flesh in all its beauty and complexity.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
1984-2024 : 40 Years of far° in Pictures, A Certain Outlook
For the 40th anniversary of far°, the idea of retracing the festival’s history in the form of a photographic retrospective quickly imposed itself. far° has a large number of photographic archives, the authors of which have come and gone since 1984. The richness of this material is invaluable, as these photographs are sometimes the only witnesses to performances that have taken place in Nyon, a particularity that is all the more evident when it comes to in situ artistic projects – outside the conventional theatre frame.
The photographs chosen for this exhibition weave links between past and present festivals, showcasing a certain history of far° from 1984 to 2024. The route has been designed along three lines: in situ creation, conviviality, and emergence. It pays tribute both to the evolution of the festival, to the artists who have been programmed there and who make up today’s local and international scene, and to the photographers who immortalised these moments. All the photographs on display are also available as postcards from the far° ticket office, so feel free to pick up your favourites and leave with a souvenir. We hope you enjoy your visit !
Photographs from the exhibition opening
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Je vis dans une maison qui n’existe pas
In this new play, Laurène Marx shines, illuminates, uplifts, and upsets as she lifts the veil on dealing with childhood trauma, the inertia of the psychiatric care system, and the need to fragment one’s personality in order to survive in a world where neuro-diverse people feel excluded, maladjusted, and irredeemable. Somewhere between the naivety of a childish tale and the pragmatic brutality of direct, raw prose, Je vis dans une maison qui n’existe pas (I Live in a House that Doesn’t Exist) weaves a portrait of the psyche of a person suffering from dissociative personality disorder and anger management problems. A moment of rare intensity.
“Nikki lives in a house that doesn’t exist. In that house you’ll meet Madame Monster, the Little Ones, and Nuage the cloud. Not long ago, Nikki flew into a rage and now she’s looking for what she’s lost: her composure. Nikki needs to regain her composure and to do that she needs Madame Monster, the Littles Ones and Nuage the cloud. Otherwise she won’t be able to leave the house that doesn’t exist and go home…”.
_Laurène Marx, Je vis dans une maison qui n’existe pas
Mille lieues – in situ
In their duo work, Marion Baeriswyl and D.C.P question the way we inhabit the world and relate to the Earth. With Mille lieues, they suggest new ways of engaging with, learning from, and communicating with the environments on which we are interdependent. Inspired by the behaviour of the lichen, an algae fungus that acts in symbiosis with the elements on which it spreads, their new creation is born at the crossroads of several textures, materials, and disciplines that intertwine, dialogue, collide, and cohabit. Paying particular attention to slowness, detail, and precision, Marion Baeriswyl’s dance seems at one with the elements of nature, while D.C.P’s deep layers of music envelop, develop, and in turn contaminate us. It’s a timeless moment in the face of climate change, an invitation to be more attentive to what lies around us.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
The Calling
Like parrots learning human language, the artists in The Calling try to become something they are not, i.e. birds. In this dance-concert, mouths and bodies give voice to a range of bird songs from the Nyon region, transcribed from observations and field recordings. The result of this environmental research is an exhilarating soundscape that blurs and expands the boundaries between humans and the environment, the inside and the outside. With this new work, Laura Kirshenbaum urges us to rethink our relationship with living things and offers a new framework for inter-species dialogue through the prism of enunciation and vocal practices.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Workshop EN VOL with Maëva Longvert
Through her huge birds, fabulous and fearsome crows, artist Maëva Longvert questions the territory, the public space and our relationship with narration. Her installations combine real and fictional stories. They celebrate and bring to life our stories of flight, like those of our sisters, mothers and grandmothers. Maëva Longvert is organising a workshop at the Esplanade des Marronniers, where you can make a bird together. Anyone who wants to can also share their stories of flight with Maëva Longvert, so that she can use them as inspiration for her artistic creations.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
EN VOL
Through her huge birds, fabulous and fearsome crows, visual artist Maëva Longvert questions the territory, the public domain, and our relationship with storytelling. Her installations combine real and fictional stories. They celebrate and bring to life our stories of flight, like those of our sisters, mothers, and grandmothers. Inspired by the book Living as a Bird by philosopher Vinciane Despret, EN VOL follows the artist’s desire to explore different ways of being in the world and learning from other species. If we are willing to listen carefully, the birds speak to us of collective strategies, sensitive intelligence, protection, evading traps, joy, playing, and escaping. EN VOL is a marvellous way of sublimating our failures and our dreams by giving them a place at the heart of the city.
The Power (of) The Fragile
After being separated from her for several years by increasingly marked borders, dancer and choreographer Mohamed Toukabri invites his mother, Latifa Khamessi, to join him on stage. The space becomes the country where they can meet again and reunite their two cultures, their dance vocabularies, and their lives that have drifted apart. Mother and son meet again, learn about and rediscover each other, and, when words are no longer enough to express parent/child love, their bodies take over. Their dance becomes a caress, caring and attentive. Their skins and identities merge delicately. The demarcation between the two beings and their generations is diluted in a to-and-fro of weights and counterweights, in reference to the heaviness of life, the passage of time, broken ties, distance, and unacknowledged dreams – Khamessi has always dreamed of being a dancer, but her dream was suppressed for years, while Toukabri has made it his profession. Le Pouvoir de la Fragilité is a tender, mischievous portrait of a close relationship, and a manifesto for freedom and the right to go wherever one wants.
Open air concert
Moltomale (very bad in Italian) is a new, outlandish duo from Ticino whose unique musical language will take you into a mesmerising world of synthesisers, vocals, and beats, mastering the ‘worst’ – and irony – to perfection: from Italian pop to drum’n’bass and picturesque disco.
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DOWN (full album)
DOWN (Full album) showcases the cosmic encounter between two preachers of improvisation and rhythm, dancer Mélissa Guex and drummer Clément Grin. Together, they lift hearts, sharing an explosive, generous, and extraordinary performance, somewhere between a rave and a punk concert. If down is the first word to describe a descent after ecstasy, this brightly coloured duo in party costumes offer a radical response to the sensation of the body letting go, beating the drum to rediscover joy in a collective burst.
Photographs
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Cohabitations Multiples
Every year, far° showcases its activities in Nyon and the surrounding region, while forging close partnerships. At this 40th festival, you will have the opportunity to discover two projects in the town of Nyon that we are keen to promote.
Cohabitations Multiples is a cultural participation project that examines the ways in which we live together as human beings and with living things, using a number of stations in the Greater Geneva area as a testing ground. For this event, the team stopped off at La Roulotte, behind Nyon station, for an invitation to experiment with a first ephemeral architectural installation: the AbriSon. Cohabitations Multiples is the story of a place, artists, craftspeople, intercultural mediators, young migrants, hazelnut trees, earth, a caravan, cakes, syrup, farmers, hay, and stations coming together. It is a call to question our ways of living together beyond stereotypes, a quest to build new shared worlds.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Schönheit ist Nebensache ou Beauty is Incidental
“Beauty is incidental” (Schönheit ist Nebensache in German) is one of the statements at the beginning of the 4th movement of the sonata for solo viola Op. 25 No. 1 by German composer Paul Hindemith (1895-1963) – a statement that could have been uttered by his compatriot and expressionist choreographer Dore Hoyer (1911-1967), author of the dance cycle Afectos Humanos (Human Affections), on which Pol Pi has been working for several years. Schönheit ist Nebensache or Beauty is Incidental is a dialogue between the works of Hindemith and Hoyer, each structured around five short solos as minimalistic as they are expressive, each composed by artists who have suffered the consequences of totalitarian governments. Through this poignant performance, which combines words with music and movement, Pol Pi links the biographies of the two artists to more general questions, such as the value of thought and art in these political regimes.
Pretend it’s a toilet – Free 2 Pee Starter Pack
In Pretend It’s A Toilet, Sara Leghissa takes a concrete look at the representation of bodies in public space, as a space for queer socialisation and, at the same time, a place where binary thinking is applied par excellence. Can public toilets serve as a pretext for questioning the power dynamics that allow or prevent us from taking a stand on implicit rules? Why do certain bodies seem to be in the right place, and de facto more legitimate in dictating to others what they should do? This starter pack for peeing freely is an invitation to get together around hard-hitting slogans to bypass these dominant trends.
“Space is neutral, it’s the presence of ‘normalised’ bodies that makes a specific place a place of power.”
_Sandra Cane
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
Ten Ways to put up a Tent
formative for Westerners – and specifically for the Swiss – and which is rapidly gaining ground in his native India. For some, the practice is associated with well-being, while for others it is deeply marked by the history of colonial empires and territorial expansion. Ten Ways to Put Up a Tent is an exhilarating decolonial dance that confronts and challenges points of view.
“Camping is an act of faith and survival. As he walks into the unknown, Q feels well prepared. Q has water, food and, above all, shelter. Q is a fully-fledged adult and has decided, in the manner of a rite of passage, to go out and establish a link with nature. As far as the rite of passage is concerned, none of Q’s recent ancestors ever voluntarily took up a tent and walked into a forest for fun. The act of pitching a tent is a precarious one. What appears to be an act of temporary habitation quickly leads to a camp, a hunting party, a trig survey, a railway, and before you know it, they’re fighting for independence. Sometimes it’s not like that, sometimes it’s just a couple of days in the Alps.”
_Tejus Menon
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Open air concert
Drawing their inspiration from the shores of Lake Geneva, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Valais Alps, reggaeton duo Tendinites formed by Camille Poudret and Tania Praz recently erupted onto the French-speaking Swiss scene with their explosive energy and sharp lyrics, mixing Spanish and French. Let the beat sweep you along and dance the night away with a smile on your face !
SQUEEZE
SQUEEZE lets you breathe, smell, and see the multiple dimensions and potential of massage therapy. This ancestral practice is taken out of the treatment room and expressed in a social dance show in a performance space. Driven by haptic desire and anatomical curiosity, five performers massage, press, shake, and stretch each other’s body tissues, the thick textiles scattered around the space, and the interstices between solid materials. These actions give rise to ephemeral sculptural constellations imbued with pleasure/pain and tension/relaxation that dissolve in space. Together, the alternating sounds of electronic music and nature recordings, the costumes, set design, and choreography suggest that massage could and should spread into other spheres of everyday life, such as clubbing or hiking.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Workshop Sacs à murmures with Yasmine Hugonnet
Take part in a workshop led by Yasmine Hugonnet, choreographer of the show Sacs à murmures / Die Flüstertüten (The Whisper Bags). You’ll discover the world of the show through games of “magic techniques” and coordination between sounds and gestures. You can come to the workshop only, without taking part in the far° show.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
Sacs à murmures / Die Flüstertüten
Around and between the fragments of a mysterious cave/magical jaw made of rock, or perhaps bone, three characters play at discovering the world. But each time they speak, their voices resound where we least expect them: in another body, or in a hand… or in a foot! Sacs à murmures (The Whisper Bags) is all about playful, joyful learning, testing the limits of others and getting to know oneself. But it is also about language, and in particular the language of ventriloquism, a superpower that opens up a hitherto unknown world.
Photographs
©Arya Dil, far° Nyon 2024
©Matthieu Moerlen, Mr Jadis Production, far° Nyon 2024
