There are twelve of us on the set. 11 people from Wetr and me. Men and women of all ages, from "old hands" like me to 20-year-olds. Since childhood, all Wetr members have learned to dance, sing and accompany each other on small plant-based percussion instruments, cushions of woven coconut leaves and large, deep-sounding bamboos. Traditionally, it's the elders who sing and the youngsters who dance. For our Very Wetr! creation, co-written by Umune Hnamano and myself, I asked them to change their habits. They are ready for these changes and approach them with openness and calm. Their dances are always accompanied and punctuated by foot strikes on the floor, amplifying a feeling of strength and precision. Their physical engagement is both skilful and generous, freely and dynamically mobilizing all the body's articulations. Each glance is written in multiple orientations, complementary to the movements...
Their singing is polyphonic. They weave their voices, moving between major and minor modes, assonances and lead voices to keep us awake, repeating in unison a simple melody in which all pitches harmonize. Their lyrics juggle Drehu and French.
Jean-Paul Gaultier joins us to find the right balance between pandanus tutus and streetwear. And to work on body painting in white, red and black, the colors used for parties.
Long-standing collaborators Maryse Gautier (lighting) and Nicolas Barillot (sound) are at my side as I continue to innovate.
I realize that during all these experiences so far from here, I've been constantly refining and putting in place the blueprint for a piece that will see one of its outcomes expressed next July. With Le Wetr by my side, there's every chance that the result will be joyous and Very Wetr!
Régine Chopinot
Co-created by Régine Chopinot and Umuissi Hnamano
Co-produced by Festival d'Avignon, Centre National de la Danse - Pantin and Centre Culturel Tjibaou - Nouméa
2012 premiere - Festival d'Avignon - Cloître des Célestins
July 9-16, 2012
a project by Cornucopiae and Wetr
Running time: 1 hour 12 minutes
Dance, song and music: Qane Angajoxue, Monu Draikolo, Hawe Hnaije, Umuissi Hnamano, Wemo Hnamano, Drengène Hnamano, Tewie Hnawang, Milie Milie, Zelue Sailuegeje, Ixepe Sihaze, Epiätre Wawine et Régine Chopinot
Lighting: Maryse Gautier
Sound: Nicolas Barillot
Costumes: Jean Paul Gaultier
Set: Fabrice Barbotin
Administration: Monique Brin
Distribution: Marie-Françoise George
Photos, films: João Garcia
New Caledonia coordination: Guillaume Soulard
Production: Cornucopiae - the independent dance
Coproduction: Festival d'Avignon, Centre National de la Danse - Pantin, Centre Culturel Tjibaou - Nouméa,
With the support of FEAC Fonds d'aides aux échanges artistiques et culturels pour l'outre-mer, Institut Français, Région Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Groupe du Wetr, Théâtre Liberté de Toulon, CNCDC Chateauvallon and the Loyalty Islands Province.
Sound and musical quotes: Maria Callas (in Appel d'Air - 1981), André Serré (in KOK - 1988), Knud Viktor (in Végétal - 1995), Richard Maxwell (I'm feeling so emotional), soundtrack based on interviews with Umuissi Hnamano
Very Wetr! will be hosted
from February 27 to March 1, 2013, at the Centre national de la Danse in Pantin and at
from March 28 to 30, 2013 at the Centre Culturel Tjibaou in Nouméa - New Caledonia.
oleti ("thank you" in Drehu) to Nadine Gomez and Thomas Wierzbinski of the Musée Gassendi in Digne, to Delphine Cornut and Gregory Lewis, Jean-Paul Gaultier's assistants, to Jean Castarède, President of Cornucopiae and each member of the Board of Directors, to Patrick Barbanneau, Gianni Fornet, Tony Baker, Myriam Mazouzi, Gilles Seclin and to Eden Gérart, administrative trainee.
