Vancouver International Dance Festival presents DEBORDEMENTS from March 8 to 11

The piece from Montreal-based company La Otra Orilla fuses flamenco and punk culture

SPONSORED POST BY VIDF

La Otra Orilla. Photo by Vanessa Fortin

Vancouver International Dance Festival will showcase the premiere of La Otra Orilla’s DEBORDEMENTS from March 8 to 11 at KW Production Studio.

An artistic production company based out of Montréal, La Otra Orilla was founded in 2006 by Québécoise dancer-choreographer Myriam Allard and Franco-Tunisian singer-stage director Hedi Graja.

The company’s latest piece, DEBORDEMENTS, is a choreographic and sound-based work that combines flamenco dance with punk philosophy. Created by Allard and Graja in collaboration with composer-performer Jonathan Parant playing electric guitar on-stage, this new piece sees the trio deliver a striking performance in which dance, music, space, light, and actions are driven by instinct and counterculture. The urban production is rooted in a cry, a common desire to speak, and a never-say-die vision of life.

La Otra Orilla develops pieces that involve a sensory dialogue between artistic languages. The pair’s productions are performed in a variety of different venues from New York to Inuvik, N.W.T. The company tours widely in Quebec and throughout Canada, as well as internationally—notably in the U.S., Scotland, and Colombia.

Over the years, Allard has become a true reference in the field of flamenco in Canada. She spent over a decade training in Spain, where her professional debut took place atop the country’s traditional tablao boards, and where she danced for the great Spanish choreographer Israel Galván.

It was in Spain where Allard met Graja, who was developing his flamenco singing in Seville after honing in on his classical vocal training in the French cities of Paris and Toulouse.

Parant is a Montreal-based experimental rock musician and founding member of three bands: Fly Pan Am, K.A.N.T.N.A.G.A.N.O., and Feu Thérèse.

DEBORDEMENTS’s thrilling neon lighting design was imagined by Étienne Boucher, and punk-inspired costumes are by Elen Ewing.

Tickets for the show can be purchased at the Vancouver International Dance Festival. The VIDF runs at various venues from February 27 to March 25.

Post sponsored by Vancouver International Dance Festival.