
Compagnie Massala
Oüm
Tour Dates
Duration: 60 mins. without break
Théâtre du Passage - ADN
Neuchâtel
Passage Maximilien-de-Meuron 4
www.theatredupassage.ch +41 32 717 79 07Oüm is a wondrous journey that fuses together music, poetry, dance and improvisation. Six pulsating bodies move to the evocative sounds of live music, collectively generating an inescapable force that brings the entire room into a pleasant trance-like state. Choreographer Fouad Boussouf, who is the heart and soul of the French company, is known for his diverse style. He combines hip-hop with contemporary dance and weaves stylistic elements from his native country into his work, including traditional dance from Morocco and the North African region. The work is an homage to the Egyptian singer Oum Kalthoum, who died in 1975, and Omar Khayyam, the Persian mathematician and poet from the 11th century. The Massala Company, which will perform for the first time at Migros Culture Percentage Dance Festival Steps, creates an impressive poetic encounter between individuals on stage and in the audience. Accompanied by two live musicians playing guitar, oud and percussion, Oüm invites the audience to enjoy the spectacle.
Video

Teaser "Oüm"

Trailer «Oüm»
Photos

Oüm © Elian Bachini

Oüm © Elian Bachini

Oüm © Elian Bachini
Fouad Boussouf

Fouad Boussouf is a choreographer, dancer and educator, who was born in Morocco and moved with his family to France as a child, where he later trained as a hip-hop dancer. He founded the Massala Company in 2010. His modern style, which combines hip-hop, contemporary dance, traditional forms of dance from North Africa and contemporary circus, is based on his multidisciplinary career and experience as a dancer. These influences merge into something new in his stylistically diverse choreographic works. In 2021, he served as artiste associé at Maison de la Danse in Lyon and at Équinoxe, Scène nationale de Châteauroux. He moved to Le Phare – Centre chorégraphique national du Havre Normandie as its newly appointed director at the beginning of 2022. Picture: Karo Cottier
Compagnie Massala

The Massala Company features a lively mix of different styles of dance, such as hip-hop and contemporary dance and circus as well as traditional forms of dance from Bassouf’s native country Morocco and the Arabic world. Massala’s creations intentionally combine various forms of dance and rhythm and celebrate different aspects of the art of dance. Picture: Elian Bachini
Programme:
Oüm
Choreography:
Fouad Boussouf
Choreography assistant:
Sami Blond
Dramaturgy:
Mona El Yafi
Live music:
Mohanand Aljaramani, Lucien Zerrad
Costumes:
Anaïs Heureaux
Stage design:
Raymond Sarti
Lighting:
Fabrice Sarcy
Sound:
Marion Castor, Lucien Zerrad
Dancers:
Nadim Bahsoun, Sami Blond, Loïc Elice, Maelo Hernandez, Filipa Correia Lecuyer, Mwendwa Marchand
Production:
Le Phare – CCN du Havre Normandie / director Fouad Boussouf
Co-production:
La Briqueterie, CDCN du Val-de-Marne; Le POC, Alfortvill; Institut français de Meknès, Marokko; CCN de Créteil et du Val-de-Marne, Cie. Käfig; Pôle-Sud, CDCN de Strasbourg; Les Hivernales, CDCN d’Avignon; Fontenay-en-Scènes, Fontenay-sous-Bois; Hessisches Staatsballett – Tanzplattform Rhein-Main, Deutschland; Théâtre Paul Eluard (TPE), Bezons
Premiere:
22 February 2020 at Théâtre Benoît XII, Les Hivernales – CDCN d’Avignon
Age recommendation:
8 years and older