White Matter
Caroline Laurin-Beaucage
[white matter: a substance composed of neural axons that transmits signals throughout the brain, thus distributing “action potentials”]
White Matter is a shared cerebral space where sensations, thoughts, fears and instincts are experienced as nervous connections passing through the bodies of the performers. In a darkened room, the spectators are arranged in a circle. The stage, vast, becomes an arena. In the center, overhung by hooks, two performers (Rachel Harris, Esther Rousseau-Morin) move together, oscillating between desires, impulses and vulnerability. They complement and oppose each other, unite and break apart. Without any struggle nor spectacle, their movements suggest the evolution of a mental process in front of involved spectators. White Matter presents a choreography full of interdependence and fragility, which unfolds under the subtle and fluctuating lighting by Jean Jauvin. Carried by the soundtrack conceived by David Drury, White Matter is an invitation to a sensorial and visceral experience.
production
In 2012, Caroline Laurin-Beaucage participated in Montréal Danse’s Choreographic Research Workshop. This encounter marks the beginning of a fruitful and active collaboration between the choreographer and the company: White Matter was created in 2015, followed by GROUND and REBO(U)ND in 2018, the latter in collaboration with mirari. Caroline Laurin-Beaucage and Kathy Casey share a unique vision that explores unchartered waters. Their artistic partnership is still active to this day.
Premiere
2015
Process
GALLERY
CREDITS
Choreographer
Caroline Laurin-Beaucage
Performers
Rachel Harris, Esther-Rousseau-Morin
Dramaturge
Kathy Casey
Costumes
Odile Gamache
Sound design
David Drury
Lighting
Jean Jauvin
Set design
Odile Gamache, Caroline Laurin-Beaucage