Vibrance, rhythm and inclusivity: Lyon welcomes back Dance Biennale to its streets

Nearly fifty shows from France, Europe, and around the world are presented over three weeks in Lyon and throughout the region.

Transcript

00:00 The dance Biennale has just opened in Lyon with its traditional parade, which is finally

00:06 returning to the streets after the Covid years.

00:08 Nearly 4,000 dancers, musicians, costume designers, most of them amateurs, brought the city centre

00:15 of Lyon to rhythm, with the dialogue between arts and sports as a common thread.

00:21 A unifying event which captures all audiences.

00:27 "The parade is really a flagship project of what we call today cultural action, cultural

00:35 mediation.

00:36 It's really one year of work between professional choreographers and amateurs at the level of

00:41 dance but also music, costumes, floats really.

00:44 It's total art.

00:46 The city is transformed into dance and everyone dances with this idea that dance is everywhere

00:51 and dance is for everyone and for all."

01:02 The Biennale must really give visibility to all dances and the parade is a great marker

01:06 of this idea of the democratisation of dance.

01:11 All the dance groups assembled on Lyon's Place Belcourt.

01:14 Nearly 50 shows from France, Europe and around the world are presented over three weeks in

01:20 Lyon and throughout the region, almost half of which are new creations.

01:26 The Biennale also invests in industrial wastelands to create ephemeral, unusual and friendly

01:31 events.

01:32 Under the name Club Bingo, the Biennale offers a programme focused on the world of night.

01:39 DJ battles and numerous evenings joyfully influenced by the culture of voguing, celebrating

01:44 the margins and minorities and where all publics are welcome.

01:48 "We are all dancers and that's what we wanted to show.

01:52 But in Lyon there were a lot of collectives that organised parties in lots of alternative

01:57 places.

01:58 And it's these collectives that we invited here to set up dance floors that are liberating,

02:05 joyful, inclusive and as safe as possible."

02:08 The key idea of this Biennale is to leave no one behind.

02:15 A way of also breaking the sometimes elitist image that contemporary dance can have and

02:21 of breaking down the barriers between genres and styles.

02:32 The Lyon Dance Biennale aims to, above all, be a popular, festive and of course artistic

02:37 event.

02:38 A resolutely contemporary, urban and inclusive Biennale here in Lyon.

02:48 The Lyon Dance Biennale runs until September 30th.

02:51 "We're dancing, we're dancing!"

02:58 [BLANK_AUDIO]