A playful, physical, and theatrical exploration of group dynamics, balance, and resilience through a bold reinterpretation of the game of musical chairs.
A creation combining dance and acrobatics by Mehdi Kerkouche.
This choreographic piece, created for first-year students at the Académie Fratellini, is a playful, physical, and theatrical exploration of group dynamics, balance, and resilience through a bold reinterpretation of the game of musical chairs.
“With Mauvais joueurs, I aim to offer the apprentices of the Académie Fratellini a space for creative freedom where they can express their individuality while building a strong collective work. At the crossroads of dance, acrobatics, and comedy, this piece seeks to surprise, move, and entertain, while engaging the audience in a unique and memorable stage experience.”
Mehdi Kerkouche
Note of intent
The starting point is the well-known game of musical chairs: nine performers, eight chairs, and music that stops unpredictably. With each round, a chair is removed, but here, no one is eliminated. Instead, as the number of chairs gradually decreases, the performers must demonstrate inventiveness, agility, and cooperation to find collective solutions. Through balancing acts, layering, lifts, and comedic play, they support one another so that everyone remains in the game, defying the laws of gravity and competition. This absence of elimination lies at the heart of the piece: a celebration of solidarity, adaptability, and creativity in the face of constraint.
The audience, actively involved in the piece, becomes complicit in the evolution of the game. By choosing the music or deciding when it stops, they influence the rhythm and energy of the performance, making each show unique. This interaction reinforces the live and unpredictable nature of the piece, where the students must respond in real time with spontaneity and presence.
The work draws on the core principles of the Académie Fratellini: movement, balance, and theatrical play. The minimalist scenography centers on the chairs, which are transformed into partners, obstacles, or acrobatic supports. The music, partially selected by the audience, shifts between a variety of styles (pop, classical, electronic, etc.), creating contrasts and surprises that fuel the performers’ improvisation.
Mauvais joueurs is an ode to cooperation and inventiveness. By rejecting elimination, the piece challenges competitive logic and proposes an optimistic vision in which everyone finds their place, even in adversity. It celebrates the diversity of bodies, energies, and imaginations of the apprentices, while offering the audience a participatory, joyful, and unrestrained experience.
Mehdi Kerkouche
