Gina
" Look at me, otherwise I don't exist.
I am dancing to feel alive. My movements are like the hills of my village. (...) I don't know if I have the body I'm supposed to have, but I have learned to work with that body. I should be happy. And yet, there is sadness hiding in my heart.
I don't know where I am going, but I have to go there. "
Eugénie Rebetez
In the center of this piece stands Gina, a figure who fascinates us through her contraryness and her self-irony. Ridiculous and sublime at the same time, she is dreaming her dream of an extraordinary life : shining under the spotlight and enrapturing the audience to applause. Gina reminds of charismatic stage artists such as Zouc, the great and hilarious comedian coming from the same region of Switzerland as her, or Joséphine Baker, the legendary music-hall star.
Eventhough Gina knows how to wrap up in her imagination and in her sumptuous curves, she still remains alone. Forced to make fun of this loneliness in order to survive, she indirectly questions the audience about the way everyone presents itself to the world : what do we show and what do we hide ? What do we assume and what do we pretend ? Who are we wishing to be and who are we really ? Gina travels constantly between a magic world and the reality. Sometimes her manners are pretty absurd or brutal, but then she dances like a mermaid, and right the way bucks against the dance rules. She talks with her body, gets lost in her fantasy and cuts into the world in several languages. The stage finally seems to be like her room : an intimate place where Gina faces herself, with all her fears and her illusions.
With her first piece, Eugénie Rebetez creates a work mixing dance, singing and humour. She plays in a unique way with her body and her voice to build a comic and profund choreography of the soul. Each performance is a discovery for herself and for the audience of the figure Gina that she created for the stage.
Eugénie Rebetez
"GINA"
Lenght : 55 minutes
Dance/Theater
Concept, choreography, text and performance :
Eugénie Rebetez
Original music :
Pascale Schaer and Eugénie Rebetez
Sound design :
Pascale Schaer
Light design :
Tina Bleuler and Patrik Rimann
Graphic design :
Aude Lehmann
Photos :
Augustin Rebetez
Production :
Verein Eugénie Rebetez
Coproduction :
Theaterhaus Gessnerallee Zürich
With the support of :
City of Zurich - cultural affairs, Department of the cultural affairs of the Canton Zurich, PREMIO (Migros cultural pourcentage), Fondation Nestlé pour l'Art, Pro Helvetia, Ernst Göhner Stiftung, Tanzhaus Zürich, Kaserne Basel
In cooperation with :
RESO / Dance Network Switzerland
Thanks to :
Mervelier my village
Premiere on March 11th, 2010 at Theaterhaus Gessnerallee Zürich.
