2007 Year-End Dance Review: Béjart's Death, Katrina, and Catastrophes

Maurice Béjart died on November 21, 2007, receiving international tributes even from media that rarely cover dance. His final tour, a best-of produced by TF1's Gérard Louvin, played in Zénith venues, funding his Lausanne school and company. The next day, Raimund Hoghe premiered Boléro Variations at the Festival d'Automne, featuring ex-Béjart dancer Ornella Ballestra and Ravel's score. Hoghe's piece, part of his repertoire work since 2004, quotes Béjart's Boléro as memory work. Marco Berrettini's Melk Prod Goes to New Orleans (December 7–13) uses a static poker table and a van trip to New Orleans seeking Katrina traces, culminating in a literal quote from Kurt Jooss's The Green Table (1932). Meg Stuart's Blessed (October 24–November 2, Théâtre de la Bastille) features 40 minutes of rain flooding the stage, a palm tree, a cabin, and a giant swan (set by Doris Dziersk), with Francisco Camacho as a survivor. Stuart includes a show-off dancer from Rio, Kotomi Nishiwaki, and ends with Camacho dressed as a Saint Sebastian go-go dancer. Dairakudakan's Paradise in a Jar Odyssey (October 4–6, Maison de la Culture du Japon, Paris) mixes cabaret, disco, and butoh, with leader Akaji Maro stating, 'Because the world is incomprehensible, everything has meaning.'