Mouse Art [Duo / Solo]

This production by the Groupe Lolita was commissioned by the Szene Festival in Salzburg, Austria, and its title is an anagram—Mouse Art/Mozart.

A play on words that, among other things, marks the dawn of the digital age, as the visuals were created on the brand-new Atari computer, and the music made use of the latest technological innovations (vocoder, sampler, sequencer, digital recorder). At the time, they were working in their office across from the Moulin Rouge in Paris.

It is also their darkest work, as AIDS heralded the end of the carefree freedom of the 1980s and the group, like the entire dance community, was hit hard.

Lolita decides on one final move by commissioning a script from a painter friend. Titled “Moqdishu”, this lyrical text features portraits of the group’s members, depicting the famous “characters” from the beginning of each production. Plante, Tsannah, Khat…

An elegy for the artist and his work, a memory of love. The solitary protagonist and his double explore the mechanism of premature inner wear and tear.

Against the black backdrop of the theater appears the square of a metal village: three structures with sharp angles—an archway, a kiosk, and a square tower from which light spills out.

Light sources integrated into the set design. Types of light sources: arc lamps, metal halide, sodium, and low-voltage.

The music is an original composition. Synthetic sounds and rhythms created using a computer; pre-recorded string instruments; sound clips and naturalistic sound effects.

This involved significant work in sound distribution and live mixing, as there were numerous sound sources spread throughout the space.

The costumes are the only elements that evoke the fashion of Salzburg during Mozart’s time.

Performers: Thierry Azam, Marcia Barcellos, Philippe Chevalier, Catherine Langlade, Daria Elies, Alain Michon, Dominique Rebaud, Arnaud Sauer, Éric Wurtz ; Argument: Patrick Rocard ; Costumes: Sylvie Skinazi

Production: Lolita danse, Ministère de la Culture, Mairie de Paris as part of «37-87», Szene Festival de Salzbourg.

Firstly produced in May 1987 at the Festival Szene in Salzbourg and in June at the Festival Paris 37/87, the Collective brought its story full circle with a tour of Brazil in 1989, just as it had begun!…Sao Paulo, Brasilia, Joinville, Belo Horizonte, and Belem…