Heracles on his head brings us back to the origins of hip-hop culture. On a U.S. rap playlist that tells the sometimes-brutal reality of the Afro-American youth, from New-York City to South Central, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, or Philadelphia, four dancers, two B-Boys and two female hip-hop dancers, explore the principles of competition, hierarchy, and meritocracy. From Gil Scott Heron, KRS-One and Public Enemy to gangsta rap and contemporary conscious rap, the soundtrack immerses us into a vision of the system described from where one has to thrive to survive. Using embodied metaphors and symbols, the dancers, alone or as a group, compose a narrative about the strategic games we all play, but whose outcomes we undergo differently depending on the constraints that are imposed on us and on those we accept.

Steeped in the appeasement of violence philosophy in which hip-hop culture was born, Heracles on his head is a manifesto for peace that condemns corruption at all levels of society. It urges us to become conscious of our behaviors and question the purpose of our individual and collective trajectories.

Cast

Choreography: Anne Nguyen
Assistant choreographer: Pascal Luce
Performers: Janice Bieleu, Fabrice Mahicka aka “Faboo”, Clara Salge aka “K-Yoo”, Hugo de Vathaire aka “Schlag” in alternation with Konh-Ming Xiong
Lighting design: Alexis Beyer
Collaborateurs artistiques : Pipo Gomes, Sonia Bel Hadj Brahim, Simon Huet
Stage managers on tour (in alternation): Flora Lastouillat, Matthieu Marques

Partners

Coproduction:  Points communs – Nouvelle Scène nationale de Cergy-Pontoise / Val d’Oise; La Villette, Paris – Initiatives d’Artistes; L’Auditorium Seynod; Centre chorégraphique national de Rillieux-la-Pape, direction Yuval PICK, dans le cadre du dispositif Accueil-Studio.
Action financed by la Région Île-de-France.
With the support of La Ferme du Buisson / Scène nationale de Marne la Vallée; Le Conseil Départemental de la Seine-Saint-Denis dans le cadre du « Dispositif Résidences In Situ en collèges »; Centre d’Art et de Culture de Meudon; Centre de la danse de la Communauté Urbaine Grand Paris Seine & Oise; Mairie de La Courneuve – Houdremont centre culturel; CND Centre national de la danse – provision of studio.

The par Terre Dance Company is funded by l’Aide pluriannuelle du Ministère de la Culture / DRAC Île-de-France, la Région Île-de-France for “Permanence Artistique et Culturelle” and l’Aide au fonctionnement du Département du Val-de-Marne.
In 2022/2023, the par Terre / Anne Nguyen Dance Company is an associate artist to Théâtre Molière -> Sète scène nationale archipel de Thau (34), to L’Auditorium Seynod (74) and to Centre d’Art et de Culture de Meudon (92), and is in partnership with l’Orange Bleue d’Eaubonne (95).