Alliance of International Production Houses

The choreographer Wen Hui is almost a legend in her home country China with her works, in which she combines dance and documentary film: in 1994 she founded the first independent dance theatre group in the one-party state, is internationally renowned and an important voice in the fight for women’s rights. One of the works that brought her international recognition was “Report on Giving Birth” from 1999. This was based on interviews with female factory workers, doctors, journalists, midwives and her own mother about their experiences of pregnancy and birth. Now, 24 years after its world premiere, in “New Report on Giving Birth” four dancers reveal current perspectives on the female body. They come together as mothers, non-mothers and women with migrant backgrounds from China, Thailand, Iran, Italy and Germany. They translate the realities and ascriptions associated with this status into choreographies that are powerful, playful, poetic and intimate. Together with the dancers, Wen Hui investigates how structural violence and control become codified in the body. Here dance serves both as a means of communication and a moving archive; their communal process is a route to both empathy and resistance.

Concept & choreography: Wen Hui, Living Dance Studio / Dance & performance: Alessandra Corti, Patscharaporn Distakul, Parvin Saljoughi, Wen Hui / Dramaturgy: Alexandra Hennig / Music: Matthias Engelke / Video: Rémi Crépeau / Light design: Matthias Rieker / Sound: Willi Bopp / Dramaturgical & research advice: Zhang Zhen / Producer: Katja Armknecht / Operational production management: Nadine Branca / Outside eye & consultation: Julia Alsdorf / Distribution: Damien Valette