Gravitating around the exploration of the contemporary human condition, my artistic approach is focused on the notion of kinesthetic experience and how to share the singularity of this experience.
I recently discovered “collapsology”, a neologism created by Pablo Servignes and Raphael Stevens, which refers to a multidisciplinary field of study dealing with the potential collapse of our post-industrial civilizations. The authors/researchers emphasize the importance of the artists, philosophers, or poet voices, and the creation of new narratives far from the apocalyptic clichés bombarded ad nauseam by the mass media.
Navigating between control and letting go, Sierranevada is simply an exercise, a laboratory practice, an abstraction, a cloud parade inviting you to envision its form, meaning, or the energy exuding from it.
This practice is an act of resistance, echoing what Naomi Klein calls “the colonization of our imaginations by neoliberalism”, in order to deconstruct or rebuild a world a little more in tune with our intimate aspirations.
Manuel Roque pursues a dual career as a dancer with such groundbreaking Quebec choreographers as Marie Chouinard, Sylvain Émard and Daniel Léveillé, while independently developing his own short choreographic forms. His first solo, Raw-me (2010), was presented to considerable acclaim at the Festival Vue sur la Relève and at OFFTA. In 2012, he co-created the duo Ne meurs pas tout de suite, on nous regarde with dancer Lucie Vigneault. He went on to complete the project In Situ, which was presented at Place des Arts’ Espace culturel Georges-Émile-Lapalme in 2014.
The same year, Manuel Roque created a solo that drew inspiration from the mutation of matter. The work, titled Data, was first presented at Usine C before being featured a second time at the Festival TransAmériques (FTA) in 2015, and then in several other cities around the world. Manuel Roque was invited to participate in Migrant Bodies, a project led by several Canadian and European partners. The project saw him create Matière Noire (2015). Other works would follow, including Aurora (2015), created for graduates of the École de danse contemporaine de Montréal, and 4-OR (2015), presented at Tangente. His most recent creation, the solo bang bang, was presented at Subsistances (Lyon), the FTA and the Festival June Events (Paris) in 2017, and then as part of an international tour (2018-2019). Manuel Roque was named the winner of the Prix du Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) for best choreographic work of the 2016-2017 season, as well as the Prix de la danse de Montréal, catégorie INTERPRÈTE (2017). Both prizes were awarded in recognition of his stunning performance in bang bang
Creation and performance: Manuel Roque
Co-creation: Marilène Bastien, Sophie Corriveau, Lucie Vigneault
Soundtrack: Manuel Roque
Technical director / production: Judith Allen
Production: Cie Manuel Roque
Co-production: Festival TransAmériques, Les Brigittines, La Rotonde, L’Agora de la danse, Atelier de Paris CDCN
With support from: La Briquetterie, La Rotonde, Circuit-Est Centre Chorégraphique, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, Conseil des Arts du Canada, Conseil des Arts de Montréal
Special thanks: Daniel Léveillé Danse, Marie-Andrée Gougeon, Martin Faucher et toute l’équipe du FTA : Anne Sauvage et toute l’équipe des Ateliers de paris, Patrick Bonté et toute l’équipe des Brigittines, Philippe Dupevroux, Indiana Escach, Pierre-Marie Toussaint.
