With All Around, the dancer and choreographer Mette Ingvartsen stages her artistic encounter with an unclassifiable drummer: Will Guthrie, an Australian who has settled in France. Their interest in collaborating initially came about by following each other’s work from a distance, over several years. On stage, they now attempt to merge their disciplines in an intense performance. In the centre of a space surrounded by the audience, where the lighting (designed by Hans Meijer) is constantly in motion, Mette Ingvartsen deploys a minimalist vocabulary for the occasion, with a strong emphasis on repetition and speed. Rotations and gyrations maintain a dialogue with the edgy music of improviser and percussionist Will Guthrie. Created in 2019, this dance concert aims to produce a state of trance, the better to confront two bodies and two imaginations.

Source: programme of the CND

The work of choreographer and dancer Mette Ingvarsten blends performance, installation, theory and music, exploring the states of the  body in its physical, organic and social dimensions. Since her early works such as 50/50 and To Come, she has been scrutinizing representations by pushing the body to its limits. With The artificial nature series, she examines the workings of complex ecosystems, and the relationship between the human and the non-human, while the series initiated with 7 pleasures or 21 pornographies examines the political and imaginary ramifications of sexuality.

Will Guthrie, Australian-born and now based in Nantes, is a drummer and percussionist familiar with the experimental and improvisational scenes. Alongside his solo career, he leads the Nist-Nah Ensemble, which combines gamelan and contemporary percussion.

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.).