Lara Barsacq (FR)

Lara Barsacq graduated in 1991 from Conservatoire national de Musique et de Danse de Paris, at the age of 17. Her first professional engagement took her to Israel, within the Batsheva company. Very quickly, Ohad Naharin asked her to choreograph a piece for the young Cie Batsheva. Based on this experience, Lara decided to throw herself fully into choreography. She produced several choreographic pieces for the Batsheva ensemble, the CNSMD in Paris, several independent companies in Israel and Amsterdam (Danswerkplaats), but also for her own.

In 2002, she decided to focus on her career as a performer, curious to confront the universe of other choreographers or creators, among whom we can mention: Benny Claessens, Lies Pauwels, Lisi Estaras or Jérôme Bel.

After 15 years of stimulating encounters, Lara returned to choreography, charged with an experience that now encompasses her many talents as a dancer, choreographer and performer. Lara is also regularly invited as an outside eye on other projects, such as Talk Show and Garcimore est mort by Gaël Santisteva, with whom she develops her choreographic work.

Based in Brussels since 2007, Lara Barsacq finds in this city an attractive, free and uninhibited artistic universe. In 2016, she began to imagine new projects taking their source in the past, while regularly bringing back female figures forgotten in the history of dance. “Lara Barsacq’s work is inspired by choreographic archives and favors above all research on the imaginary where history confronts the present. She likes to mix the tracks between archives, fictions, incarnation and documentary; talk about the big story as well as personal stories through which the vulnerability and the sincerity of being are revealed. Starting from historical events, autobiographical rituals and the material of reality, she tries to imagine dances, metaphors and to switch into incarnation.”

Since 2016, Lara Barsacq created 4 pieces:

- Lost in Ballets russes: a solo mixing the history of dance with her personal story. The creation took place on April 19, 2018 as part of LEGS festival at La Raffinerie - Charleroi danse (Brussels).

- IDA don't cry me love: a trio in which Lara invites two other women on stage and celebrates the figure of Ida Rubinstein, while making a manifesto on the freedom of female bodies. The piece was created on October 18, 2019 as part of the Biennale de Charleroi danse (Brussels) and was nominated for the Prix Maeterlinck de la Critique 2019-2020, as Best Dance Production.

- Fruit Tree: a quartet around Les Noces by Bronislava Nijinska and Igor Stravinsky revolving around the symbolism of fruit trees. The premiere took place on October 15, 2021 at the Biennale de Charleroi danse (Brussels).

- La Grande Nymphe: a piece for six performers around the ballet L’Après-midi d’un Faune by Vaslav Nijinski, with two dancers (Marta Capaccioli, Lara Barsacq) and a composer (Cate Hortl) on stage, accompanied by 3 musicians. It premiered on May 17, 2023 at Kunstenfestivaldesarts, in co-presentation with Charleroi danse (La Raffinerie, Brussels). This piece was was nominated for the Prix Maeterlinck de la Critique 2022-2023, as Best Dance Production.

In February 2024, at the invitation of Théâtre de Liège, Lara Barsacq directed Le fabuleux destin des Ballets russes with the OPRL-Orchestre Philharmonique Royal de Liège, a program composed of major works from the history of dance and the Ballets Russes. The premiere series took place on February 2 and 3, 2024 in Liège (Salle Philharmonique), in the frame of Pays de Danses festival.

In October 2025, Lara Barsacq will create her fifth project entitled Kassia Undead.

Lara Barsacq was resident choreographer at Charleroi danse from 2020 to 2022. She is accompanied by Grand Studio and was one of the artists of Réseau Grand Luxe. Lara Barsacq is artist in residence at Théâtre de Liège (2024-2028) and at Cité musicale-Metz (2024-2026).

Read here a portrait (in French) by Rosita Boisseau (Le Monde, 24.09.2023).