the beginning | НАЧАЛОТО

THE BEGINNING is an alternative dance piece of beginnings: beginnings of shows, beginnings of relationships, beginnings of difficult moments...

Bert and Nasi explore and muse on the different ways they could have started their show and lives together; touching on all the joys, difficulties, excitement and exhaustion that comes with beginning again and again.

The two performers work with a chorus of fifteen participants, all aged 60 and over: they watch the two dance and they dance alongside them. Their presence is a gentle reminder that life is a series of new beginnings.

The piece is a life affirming, surreal meditation on life and relationships. Guiding the audience to a place of emotion and heart where neither the performers, audience, or participants know exactly how they got there...

If you want to take part in the performance please read more information HERE.

THE BEGINNING is a new work created by the performing duo Bertrand Lesca and Nasi Voutsas, also known as Bert and Nasi. The project arises as a natural development of their previous show together, THE END which was first created in 2019 and has toured Europe and the UK since.

THE END & THE BEGINNING are two works that can be presented together in a double bill or independently; like two parts of a same cycle of performative work in which the two performers tirelessly dance and exhaust themselves while they
project carefully selected text and dialogues hinting at the meaning of each dance they make.

In their previous piece THE END, Bert and Nasi imagine a near future in which they decide to stop working together again. This intimate story of what is to come is written and projected above the stage as the two performers dance the end of their collaboration and time together.

THE BEGINNING is the flipside of the coin or the B-side of the same tape. The two performers instead of envisaging the end, show their renewed enthusiasm for their work together and for live performance as a whole. They celebrate the many beginnings that have led them to where they are now. Though they are similar in terms of choreographic style and their obsession with minimalism, they have been conceived at two very different times of their careers (nearly four years apart). They provide interesting reflections on the times we have been through and subtly evoke the pandemic that has put a sudden halt to everyone’s creative practice.

Bert and Nasi also invite a group of elders on stage to begin a dance with them all aged 60 and over. Their beginnings on stage are talked about. During the performance, we hear voice recordings in which they talk about the excitement and the reticence of stepping into a new project with a new group of people. Similarly, to an ancient chorus, the group of local volunteers are present throughout to watch Bert & Nasi’s beginnings and attempts to create ‘something’ on stage. They support the action and the dances of the performers while sitting on stage with them, dancing or reading a text at the end of the performance.

Their presence is that of an older generation contemplating what the younger generation is doing. Their attentive gaze may at first signify their disapproval or in turn their encouragement. Their presence becomes a catalyst for each sequence that Bert and Nasi have made.

The show is an invitation to the beginning and to the unceasing restarting at the very moment when one could think that we had arrived at the end. From the beginning, we think back to the end and vice versa...