Frédéric Gies with Fiedel, Anton Stoianov and Thomas Zamolo
Dance Is Ancient

The durational performance Dance is Ancient (seven hours long) is conceived as a dance rite, performed and facilitated by Frédéric Gies, who dances to the infectious techno beats of Fiedel who is behind the turntables, around a totemic sculpture created by Anton Stoianov and under the lights, reminiscent of the dance floor, of Thomas Zamolo. The space in which it takes place is thought neither as a club, nor as a theatre/performance space, if not thought as both or as a space from another kind. The audience is invited to experience, spend time and engage with Fiedel’s compound of sounds, beats and intensities, and with Frédéric Gies’ dance. This dance, which addresses all together the bodily, perceptual, sensual, social, emotional and spiritual dimensions of the experience of dancing, summons up ghosts of other dancers and dances. It elicits and unleashes fathomless and primal forces that traverse the depths of dancing bodies and invokes faunlike, panic figures. It engenders forms that shape-shift into each other. Dance is Ancient opens up a space for a multiplicity of individual and collective movements yet to be written and un-written. It brings the focus back to the dance floor and to the magical powers of the act of dancing.
 

Frédéric Gies is an artist is the field of experimental dance, based in Sweden. He started to work in France beginning of the 90’s, where he danced for various choreographers and started his own work. Making dance performances or performing in other artists’ works, he collaborated with various choreographers (DD Dorvillier, Jefta van Dinther, Alice Chauchat, Manuel Pelmus, Antonija Livingstone, Frédéric de Carlo, Odile Seitz, Isabelle Schad, Cristina Caprioli…). Since 2014, he creates his pieces together with the DJ Fiedel (Berghain/Ostgut ton) and the visual artist Anton Stoianov.

Fiedel’s first DJ gigs in Berlin can be traced back to the early 90's, soon after the Wall fell. He started spinning records at Subversiv's weekly Monday events. MMM, a collaboration with his friend Errorsmith, was initiated shortly after he moved to Berlin. Later on, he also worked at the record store Hard Wax to which he is still connected, having been in charge of the Killasan sound system since 2001. Fiedel's residency at OstGut began in 2000 and was carried on to his current home base – Berghain. Further projects include an ongoing collaboration with the dancer Frédéric Gies.

Dance Frédéric Gies DJ Fiedel Sculpture Anton Stoianov Lights Thomas Zamolo Administration The Artist Cooperative Interim Kultur
Funded by the Swedish Arts Council, coproduced by Weld and Skogen, with the support of Röda Sten
With the support of The Swedish Arts Grants Committee

March 24, 21-4h (come and leave as you like)

@ Walcheturm
Kanonengasse 20, 8004 Zurich