When Walking Becomes Dance: Belgian Production Makes Shanghai Debut
Can walking become a form of dance? Belgian choreographer Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker explores this question in "EXIT ABOVE – AFTER THE TEMPEST," which will make its Asian premiere at the Shanghai International Dance Center on October 17 and 18.
Created by De Keersmaeker and her dance company Rosas, the production takes one of the simplest human movements – walking – and transforms it into a contemporary dance performance combining rhythm, music and choreography.
Premiered in Brussels in 2023, the work has since toured major international stages, including the Festival d'Avignon, Lyon Dance Biennale and Sadler's Wells in London.
Featuring 13 performers, the production draws inspiration from blues music, particularly Robert Johnson's classic "Walking Blues." Through repeated steps, shifting formations and evolving rhythms, the dancers gradually transform everyday movements into a complex visual and musical experience.
The performance also features music created with singer-songwriter Meskerem Mees, sound designer Jean-Marie Aerts and dancer-guitarist Carlos Garbin, bringing together blues, pop and contemporary sounds.
Rather than relying on elaborate scenery or storytelling, "EXIT ABOVE" focuses on the relationship between the human body and music, inviting audiences to discover new possibilities in familiar movements.
The performances form part of the 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival and the Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels program.
If you go
Date: October 17-18
Time: October 17 at 7:30pm; October 18 at 2pm
Venue: Shanghai International Dance Center, Grand Theater
Address: 1650 Hongqiao Road, Changning District
Ticket: 80-880 yuan
