Guiding principles
La Briqueterie is a non-for-profit association whose mission is to promote choreographic creation and artist development (through co-productions, studio space and artists’ residencies), transnational programmes and participatory activities to foster and support dance at multiple levels. The organisation encourages the active involvement in dance for diverse audiences, through an extensive programme of workshops, encounters, studio showings and activities aimed at widening the audience experience. A place of collaboration, putting dance at the centre of a social project within an urban environment undergoing rapid changes, La Briqueterie underlines cooperation as an act of transformation.
History
La Briqueterie opened its doors in March 2013. It is home to the CDCN/Centre de Développement Chorégraphique National du Val-de-Marne, one of the 12 dance organisations that currently make up the national network of CDCNs in France. While the venue is young, the organisation – formerly known as Biennale de danse du Val-de-Marne – dates back to 1979 and was officially incorporated in 1980.
The building was renovated by architect Philippe Prost thanks to the support of the Departmental Council of Val-de-Marne, the French State, and the Ile-de-France Region.
Its annual ongoing programme comprises residencies, studio showings, commissions and co-productions, EU-funded collaborative projects, masterclasses, workshops and an international exchange programme. It organises Les Plateaux (an annual 3-day festival for national and international companies open to professionals and the larger public) and an international dance Biennale (in partnership with over 30 venues, including regional theatres, museums and other organisations). The Biennale reaches over 11,000 people across the Ile de France region.
Since 2003, La Briqueterie has been publishing a dedicated dance magazine, Repères, cahier de danse, available also on the online publishing platform Cairn. Recently, it as launched a new “screen dance” initiative in collaboration with the International Video Dance Festival of Burgundy and Cinema Utopia.
Building and facilities
Situated in Vitry-sur-Seine at the outskirts of Paris, La Briqueterie is a former brick factory of 3,500m², converted into a dedicated dance venue. It features three dance rehearsal studios (studio Est – 171m², studio Nord 115 m² and studio oust 227m²), a fully-equipped performance space (383m²), a landscaped garden and forecourt that can also turn into presentation spaces, two production offices, and a media room.
While many EDN members are still closed for public, activities continue to take place remotely - both for artists and audiences! We bring to you plenty of shows, trainings, celebrations, reflections. Take your peak!
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As a practice-led project, Dancing Museums thoroughly documents its various activities. Let's go back to La Briqueterie & MAC VAL for an exploration of the topic of inclusion, that took place in November 2019.
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In order to support the vitality of screendance production, La Briqueterie CDCN du Val-de-Marne and its partners have launched the new submission call for their Screendance Production Residency that supports the creation of a short film.
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The director, who shall start on 15 October 2020, is reponsible for designing and implementing an artistic and cultural project for La Briqueterie - CDCN. English & French fluency are required for this position.
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Initiated by EDN, A Hundred aimed to create a map of European Dance Resources that promote and support contemporary dance and stimulate international dialogue and collaboration.
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360º - Building Strategies for Communication in Contemporary Dance (BSCD) supported dance artists and makers at all stages of their careers to communicate their work effectively.
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Migrant Bodies developed a shared international research, focusing on identifying, developing and testing new and relevant actions for the inclusion of refugees and migrants with dance and movement based initiatives.
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Empowering Dance - Developing Soft Skills is a European project that aims to research if and how the practice of contemporary dance helps people of all ages to acquire and develop soft skills.
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Dancing Museums is an action-research project designed to foster and sustain long-term collaborations between dance organisations, museums, universities and local communities in order to develop inspiring and long-lasting arts and cultural programmes that people in those communities want to get involved in.
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Many dancehouses in Europe have been created over preexisting buildings: convents, factories, industrial sites, brick houses, distilleries, to name some examples. This Atelier at CSC Bassano del Grappa took place in a series of meetings aimed at considering and tracing the European, as well as the international, dancehouses history.
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This activity aimed to open new forms of dialogue with artists, organisations and dance professionals based in the African continent, investigating new forms of relationship and collaboration based on ethical values, respect and sustainability.
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