The Université de Lyon in the Peace Parade for the 2018 Lyon Dance Biennale

The Université de Lyon as well as Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Lumière Lyon 2, Jean Moulin Lyon 3 universities and the Fred Bendongué company participated in the 2018 Dance Biennale Parade with "Joyous Cacophony".

"Joyous Cacophony" is a celebration of diversity, a hymn to the post-WWI cultural and musical effervescence, and an expression of electric, vibrant freedom.

The university parade theme: "Joyous cacophony" ("Joyeuse Cacophonie")

2018 marks the 100th anniversary of the First World War, which is also the year when Black American soldiers introduced jazz to their allies in France. The "men of bronze", as they were nicknamed at the time, were brass bands who not only played military marches, but traditional blues and jazz music. They revived and liberated life in France and shared these popular new dances from the Black American community. The breeding ground for this musical and dance tradition was Louisiana, and particularly New Orleans.

Since then, funk and hip hop rhythms have joined its repertoire. It is a vibrant and electric style where music and dance create energy, transcend ethnic and social belonging and transform this language of the street into a new resistance strategy in a joyous cacophony.

The Lyon Dance Biennale

The Lyon Dance Biennale is an internationally renowned dance festival which was created in Lyon in 1984. In 2018, the Dance Biennale will be organizing its twelfth dance Parade, the product of a collaborative effort between local actors that will rally together 5,000 amateur participants and teams of professional artists who will be directed by choreographers.

For 2018, the dancers, along with 300,000 spectators, will work diligently to create the Peace Parade, devise dance routines and create music to convey their message for much-needed fraternity and peace.

The Fred Bendongué company

Fred Bendongué began his career in hip hop, but very quickly moved beyond the confines of the genre to train with some of the greatest in classical dance and it was there that he made his mark. Using dance as a means of expression, Fred Bendongué endeavors to show his vision of the world that surrounds him. He is a committed artist who has never taken the easy route in order to keep hold of the lifeblood and spark that have motivated him from the beginning.

Partners

See all our partners (in French)