Written by Rhodnie Désir — Creative Director, Choreographer and Performer
Clark Ferguson — Documentary Director / Director of Photography
Series of short form documentary focusing on different phases of Rhodnie Désir and AKō Studio’s unique choreographic documentary process.
KOSA - LAB'Ò N°1 de 6 - Découvrir les dimensions de la mort
KÒSA explores the theme of death by examining its various dimensions: the physical force, the gravity and the universal metaphor of it, the liminal world, mourning and the void, dreams and spirituality, scientific knowledge and youthful wisdom. The LAB’Ò is informed by interviews made with children as well as specialists in theology, thanatology, physics, and astrophysics. It traverses the body and the kinesthetic states of collapsing, falling, and open the way to multiple realms. The documentary approach and the gathering of testimonies, central to all of Rhodnie’s productions, anchor, nourish, and refine KÒSA’s creative process.
Production Stills
SCÒ - First Creation Lab
SCÒ tends to explores the physical and social tensions and distortions that arise from the diagnosis of scoliosis in adolescence, the role of caregivers and support staff, and the perpetual social adaptations to which human beings are subjected. After 36 hours of intensive work in our studio, we produced the first 15 minutes of this performance. These minutes lay the foundation for a choreographic exploration that goes far beyond mere representation. They weave a physical narrative that speaks of resilience, inner strength, and beauty in adversity.
Production Stills
The Choreographic Documentary
Rhodnie Désir has developed a new creative method with documentary choreography. For the past 10 years, she has been honing this methodology as a vehicle for human unification. A pioneering process that draws inspiration from human encounters to create Afro-contemporary choreography. These encounters take the form of interviews with what she calls “memory-bearers”: citizens and experts from all walks of life who share their history and experience. The choreographer then draws inspiration from these oral testimonies, accumulating new knowledge through movement. A movement of body, music and spirit is first rhythmically created, in collaboration with a musician, in order to transcribe the essence of these testimonies and of the territory in the form of a musical framework incorporating vocal compositions by Rhodnie Désir. This sharing gave rise to an initial concept of gestures: choreography, lighting, costumes, set design, video, etc. During this journey, dialogue is at the heart of the practice, forging the essence of the transmission and interweaving of art-science data. In short, a new work is born. The gesture is then anchored in the territory, becoming a tribute and a memory.
Production Stills
