Before every beginning is the theme. In order to remain potentially creative, the working method must allow the theme to evolve, if necessary breaking new paths. But first and foremost, the theme must be a questioning process.

[ob]seen

Here, the questioning process is applied to ask what “may” and “may not” be presented to an audience. In today’s media, as well as in the performing arts, opinions as to what may or may not be displayed to public gaze, over a field extending to the most intimate domains, is undergoing basic reconsideration. The nakedness of the inner self is more revealing by far, than simple physical nudity. Formerly, the private sphere was always in the background as an inviolable retreat from the exposure of everyday life. Today however, even this sanctuary is becoming more and more vulnerable, sometimes to the point where it dissolves entirely, and the private becomes public.

My idea for this work is to demonstrate a reaction to what I consider to be a form of decadence: taking the intimate and the banal as a focal point for the performing arts. To bring back some of the enchantment that we are in danger of losing.

Coming from the world of dance, this variant of the questioning process may appear somewhat serious, and more suited to a verbal form of expression. But for me, the expressive power of dance lies in the physical contact and the movement, by which any theme can be addressed. In this choreography, the aim is to translate all aspects of the theme into a language involving only the senses. To allow intuition to take the place of explicitness.

Philippe Saire, choreographer

In 2001, I developed a new method of choreographic conception, which led to two new works: Impostures and Les Affluents. In this concept, a creative environment is set aside for each dancer. The framework and choreography of Les Affluents were the results of individual research based on primary reflection. This allowed the work of the dancers to be influenced by a field of experience noticeably richer and more radical than formerly, considerably amplifying each one’s characteristic presence, both in the conceptual phases and onstage.

For a number of years I have been giving more and more importance to implementing this method. It has allowed me to develop my techniques for the direction and support of our team, in motivating them for new projects, in managing time and resources dynamically, and in the many auxiliary functions which my position demands. This approach comes, perhaps, from my increasingly strong belief that choreographic creation is a human adventure. The new process is being continually refined; its success depends on the people involved, and the way it is used to transmit the message embodied in the work.

The concept’s main objective is to provide sufficient time and space for each individual to develop their specific attributes and potential. The finished work will then incorporate the results of the imaginative and practical contributions of all participants. In the first instance the global structure of the work is developed by intuition and “lightning sketches”, comparable to the preparatory drawings made by painters before putting brush to canvas. The ideas emerging at this stage are recorded, and later on assessed, selected and refined, to take their place in the final choreography. The working method I have gradually developed is unusual for a choreographer. At an early stage the global structure is defined, and from this point the content of the message, the rhythms and the priorities can be discerned more and more clearly, and translated into movements and effects.

Philippe Saire

[ob]seen shakes up a few performing conventions (…) The sexual reference is torpedoed by sudden humorous touches which appear as if from nowhere (…) Philippe Saire’s strength is drawn from theses provocative missiles of meaning. Support and touch are the two main characteristics of his excessive art. Partners do not, for instance, simply brush past one another; they grab hold of each other, pummelling and kneading the flesh like dough. Such is the mastery that it transcends the context of the sketch to attain the heights of pure movement. A movement which at times raises up the group in waves, in a common élan composed of falls, fights, and high energy spirals. Muriel Steinmetz in L’Humanité [France], 23 September 2003.