What the body does not remember at The Brussels City Theatre

The staggering 1987 debut by Wim Vandekeybus and Ultima Vez struck the dance world dumb. In New York Vandekeybus and the composers Thierry De Mey and Peter Vermeersch received the renowned Bessie Award for this ‘brutal confrontation of dance and music: the dangerous, combative landscape of What the Body Does Not Remember’.

Last season, 25 years after its first performance and with a new cast, this production once again went on a world tour. Vandekeybus’ first choreographic work balances on the knife-edge of attraction and rejection. This makes for a confrontation first between two dancers, then between two groups, between the dancers and the music, between the dancers and a strict set of lines. But the aggression, fear and danger resound through it all. KVS coproduced the revival of What the Body Does Not Remember and is presenting the production for the second season in a row, now with the music performed live by the Brussels contemporary music ensemble Ictus.