After forty years of exploring the depths and flaws of the human soul Josef Nadj stages an intimate and deeply enchanting new work. 

Drawing inspiration from Japanese Zen as well as Central European surrealism, Nadj and the highly talented dancer Ivan Fatjo delve into the realms of the unconscious, set to the famous pieces for prepared piano by John Cage. Wearing white masks and black hats, the duo ventures into the realms between the animate and the inanimate, the material and the immaterial, the living organic and the mechanical artifact. While their faces do not yet seem to have abandoned our world, we instinctively sense that they are no longer quite a part of it. Between newfound freedoms and fears of the unfathomable, this new work by Josef Nadj—who comes from the worlds of fine arts, mime, and martial arts—marks a return to his roots. He explores a space of tension between the human and the puppet, where the body transcends the limits of its physical reality.

Josef Nadj was born into a Hungarian-speaking family in Kanjiža, Vojvodina, in present-day Serbia. After training at the Academy of Fine Arts in Budapest, he moved to Paris, where he took mime lessons and was introduced to tai chi, butoh, and contemporary dance. A choreographer, dancer, as well as a visual artist and photographer, he has a poetic and passionate view of humanity, always in search of new forms. The originality of his creative approach stems from his artistic journey, shaped by the upheavals of European history. His innovative and bold approach established him as a pioneer of contemporary dance in the 1980s. Since Canard Pékinois (1986), his debut work, Josef Nadj has been pursuing a demanding and passionate choreography. Whether exploring atypical authors (Beckett, Kafka, Michaux) or bringing painters (Miquel Barceló) and musicians (Akosh Szelevényi, Joëlle Léandre) onto the stage with him, Josef Nadj thrives in total freedom. In an effort to awaken our senses, he blends references, signs, and materials. Josef Nadj is the author of over thirty creations presented in nearly 50 countries. He has been invited to major international events (Festival d’Avignon, International Chekhov Festival, Prague Quadrennial, etc.). He led the Centre Chorégraphique National in Orléans from 1995 to 2016 before establishing his new company, Atelier 3+1 in Paris, in 2017. Josef Nadj was made a Chevalier of the Arts and Letters in 2002 for the contribution of his works to the prominence of the arts in France and around the world. 

Choreography: Josef Nadj, Ivan Fatjo
Music: John Cage
Creation of masks: Anaëlle Impe

Technical direction: Nicolas Sochas / Samuel Dosiere
Production and diffusion: PLATÔ - Séverine Péan
Administration: Laura Petit

Music: Living Room Music: I.To Begin, Cage: The Choral Works, Vol. 1, Gert Sorensen & Tamas Veto, John Cage; Living Room Music: IV. End, Cage: The Choral Works, Vol. 1, Gert Sorensen,Tamas Veto & Ars Nova, John Cage; First Interlude, John Cage: Sonatas & Interludes for Prepared Piano, Joshua Pierce, John Cage ; Sonata No. 5, John Cage: Sonatas & Interludes for Prepared Piano, Joshua Pierce, John Cage; Sonata No. 3, John Cage: Sonatas & Interludes for Prepared Piano, Joshua Pierce, John Cage; Three Dances for two prepared pianos: II, John Cage: Works for Piano & Prepared PianoVol. II (1944-1958), Joshua Pierce, Dorothy Jonas, John Cage; Sonata No. 2, John Cage: Sonatas & Interludes for Prepared Piano, Joshua Pierce, John Cage (50s)

Coproductions: Agora, Cité Internationale de la Danse; Montpellier Danse + CCN Occitanie / L’Onde - Théâtre et Centre d’Art 

Supports: DRAC Ile-de-France, La Région Ile-de-France

In Memory of Hijikata Tatsumi.

Photos: Laurent Phillippe

Duration: 00:50

Gallery