Alain Platel — choreofrapher, director

Alain Platel was born in 1956 in Ghent. He trained as a teacher of the physically handicapped, studied mime at the Hosted-Sabbatini-Mime School in Geneva from 1969 to 1973. In 1979 he moved on to study with Wim Vandekerckhove and then at the Paul Grinwis Academy of Ballet. A modern dance workshop in Paris led him to Barbara Pearce, in whose choreographies he performed in Paris, Lyon and Luxembourg. In 1984, together with friends and members of his family he founded the company of Les Ballets C. de la B. in Ghent.

After having produced Emma (1988) he insensibly moved to directing. The company becomes internationally known after the productions of Bonjour Madame (1993), La Tristeza Complice (The Shared Sorrow, 1995) and Iets op Bach (A Little Something set to Bach, 1998). Together with Arne Sierens (his frequent co-author) he staged Moeder en kind (Mother and child, 1995), Bernadetje (Little Bernadette, 1996), Allemaal Indiaan (Tous des Indiens, All are Indians, 1999).

From the start of his artistic career, Alain Platel opted for a mixture of genres, working with performers from different countries and artistic backgrounds, some of them teenagers or even amateurs. In the past few years, he has included musicians and vocalists in his productions. Within this particular relationship between circus acts and dance solos, between sketches and ensemble dance pieces or baroque music, the anarchic humanity of the Ballets C. de la B. has made its niche and its reputation.

After Tous des Indiens Platel has announced that he does not intend to direct anymore, but in spite of this produced the performance Wolf after Mozart at the Ruhr-Triennale in 2003. This production was reproduced at the Opéra Garnier in Paris in 2005. In 2006 he produced VSPRS.

In the meantime Platel has for some time been the artistic head of Les Ballets C de la B, but is not interested in the role of quality controller or relief worker. He has no need of his own organisation for his activities. But he certainly remains a supporter of all the company's activities. Platel currently shares the artistic leadership of Les Ballets with Christine De Smedt and Koen Augustijnen

Alain Platel also conducts workshops on dance theatre and works for film and video projects. One of them was a documentary Les Ballets de ci de là (2006), dedicated to the essence of the peculiar human characteristics which have been fuelling the work of Les Ballets C. de la B. for the past twenty years.

Alain Platel?s awards include the Golden msk prize at the Festival of the Americas theatre in Montreal for Moeder en kind, Time Out Live Award in London for Iets op Bach, UBU prize, Frans Van Acker Prize of the city of Bruges, Europe Theatre Prize — New Theatrical Realities (2001), Europe Theatre Prize for his life achievement (2004).