At the still point of the turning world. Neither flesh nor fleshless; Neither from nor towards; at the still point, there the dance is, But neither arrest nor movement. And do not call it fixity, Where past and future are gathered. Neither movement from nor towards, Neither ascent nor decline. Except for the point, the still point, There would be no dance, and there is only the dance. I can only say, there we have been: but I cannot say where. And I cannot say how long, for that is to place it in time. T.S. Eliot in Burnt Norton, Four Quartets

“'Décompositions 1 et 2' are two ‘small forms', trios presented successively within the same stage set. These two pieces, even though composed separately, ended up forming just one unit and representing for me the outcome of a reflection on the perception of time.

If ‘Décompositions 1' takes the footprint as the starting point for its work, and might be seen as the experience of an ever-elusive reasoning, ‘Décompositions 2' explores the idea of a process of infinite ramifications, in a progression which is endless in itself.”

Emmanuelle Vo-Dinh 

Updating : March 2010

Having worked as a dancer, principally under François Raffinot at the Centre chorégraphique national du Havre (National Choreography Centre of Le Havre), Emmanuelle Vo-Dinh created the company Sui Generis in Le Havre in 1998. If her early writing created a “figurative” body (Anthume ou la sensation du membre fantôme (Anthume or the sensation of a phantom limb), 1998) which favoured the singularity of each dancer, the choreographer gradually began to tackle more abstract work, using themes like neurology or psychiatry (Texture/Composite, 1999, Sagen, 2001).

With Décompositions (Décompositions) (2003), Emmanuelle Vo-Dinh embarked on a cycle of pieces (CROISéES (Crossed) 2004; White Light, 2005; ici/Per.For, 2006) which marked a very clear break from the preceding pieces. The principle of “repetition” allows a reflection on rhythm and space. More abstract and contemplative in nature, this work invites the spectator to experience pieces with a hypnotic character.

Above and beyond the principles of choreography, which are reinvented using themes based on the perception of time (running away, memory), the choreographer regularly joined forces with other disciplines for her works, through artistic collaborations with artists like the composer Zeena Parkins, the visual artist Laurent Pariente and the writer Frédéric-Yves Jeannet.

Since 2007, Emmanuelle Vo-Dinh has created works that focus mainly on musical writing (Aboli Bibelot…rebondi, 2007; 5'24, 2008), and has also been influenced by certain aspects from the history of painting (Eaux-fortes (Etchings), 2007). Her works also use questions which run into and overlap her previous experiences, to bring them all together, while consistently challenging the methods of operation.  
Today, the choreographer's desire to create is about a way of writing which questions the role of figuration in abstraction, and places the dancer at the heart of the writing process (Ad Astra, 2009 and - transire -, 2010).

Emmanuelle Vo-Dinh also carries out teaching work with different target groups (students, teachers, professional dancers…) in the form of training courses, workshops, conferences and public rehearsals as well as in original works conceived specifically for amateur dancers (Double-jeux (Double-games), Metz, 2001; Rainbow, Rennes, 2008).

The Sui Generis company was based in Rennes from 2004 to 2011 and was in residence at the Triangle, a state-subsidised dance theatre, from 2007 to 2009.

In July 2011, Emmanuelle Vo Dinh was appointed by the Minister of Culture to succeed Hervé Robbe as the director of the centre chorégraphique national du Havre – Haute Normandie (National Choreography Centre of Le Havre -Upper Normandy), from January 2012.

Further information

Le Phare, CCN Le Havre

Updating: July 2013

Since 2001, the National Center for Dance (CND) has been making recordings of its shows and educational programming and has created resources from these filmed performances (interviews, danced conferences, meetings with artists, demonstrations, major lessons, symposia specialized, thematic arrangements, etc.).