Rosas danst Rosas by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker / Rosas

A landmark of contemporary dance, Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker's "Rosas danst Rosas" returns to Paris for a limited run at Chaillot – Théâtre national de la Danse. Created in 1983, this seminal piece propelled the choreographer onto the international stage with its relentless mechanics of everyday gestures, extreme rigor, and fierce intensity. The work is built around three elementary body positions—lying, sitting, standing—and unfolds with implacable precision while generating raw emotion.

Four performers drive the choreography through a whirlwind of swings, spirals, suspensions, and abrupt reversals, as if traversed by forces of anger, desire, and violence. The maximalist score by Thierry De Mey and Peter Vermeersch, the 1997 film adaptation, and the participatory platform Re:Rosas! have all contributed to making this piece timeless. Danced nearly 500 times by 28 performers across five generations, "Rosas danst Rosas" remains a radical, sensual, and electrifying experience that continues to captivate audiences.