In The Karaoke Dialogues, Daniel Linehan applies the choreographic principles of karaoke to the great classics of the literary and philosophical canon. Imagine that Kafka goes to the karaoke bar and performs a dialogue of Plato, who is in the next room reading Cervantes from a screen.

The texts – which deal with laws, crimes, and other legal problems – are borrowed from many sources, but are blended together as if they tell the story of a single legal process. By using the dialogues as the basis for an intricate choreography, the seven dancers amplify the peculiarities of each text.

The words determine the rhythm of the dance. Each dancer shifts back and forth between their individual approach to the text scores and the group dynamics of a collective choreography. The Karaoke Dialogues offers an unconventional perspective on how we can give voice and body to what we read.

• The Karaoke Dialogues 3 April 2015, 20:30Théâtre de la Cité Internationale - Paris, France
• The Karaoke Dialogues 6 December 2014, 20:00Vooruit - Gent, Belgium
• The Karaoke Dialogues 12 June 2014, 20:30ADC - Genève, Switzerland
• The Karaoke Dialogues 11 June 2014, 20:30ADC - Genève, Switzerland
• The Karaoke Dialogues 4 June 2014, 20:30Rencontres Chorégraphiques Internationales de Seine-Saint-Denis, Théâtre de la Commune - Aubervilliers, France
• The Karaoke Dialogues 3 June 2014, 20:30Rencontres Chorégraphiques Internationales de Seine-Saint-Denis, Théâtre de la Commune - Aubervilliers, France
• The Karaoke Dialogues 2 June 2014, 20:30Rencontres Chorégraphiques Internationales de Seine-Saint-Denis, Théâtre de la Commune - Aubervilliers, France
• The Karaoke Dialogues 30 May 2014, 20:00DE SINGEL - Antwerpen, Belgium
• The Karaoke Dialogues 24 May 2014, 18:00Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Kaaitheater - Brussels, Belgium
• The Karaoke Dialogues 23 May 2014, 20:30Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Kaaitheater - Brussels, Belgium
• The Karaoke Dialogues 22 May 2014, 20:30Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Kaaitheater - Brussels, Belgium
• The Karaoke Dialogues 21 May 2014, 20:30Kunstenfestivaldesarts, Kaaitheater - Brussels, Belgium
• The Karaoke Dialogues 15 May 2014, 20:00Opéra de Lille - Lille, France
• The Karaoke Dialogues 14 May 2014, 20:00Opéra de Lille - Lille, France
• The Karaoke Dialogues PREMIÈRE 13 May 2014, 20:00Opéra de Lille - Lille, France

Concept, choreography Daniel Linehan
Dance, creation Cedric Andrieux/Daniel Linehan, Yumiko Funaya, Néstor García Díaz, Kennis Hawkins, Anneleen Keppens, Anne Pajunen, Víctor Pérez Armero
Texts adapted from The Republic, Plato; The Oresteia, Aeschylus; Don Quixote, Cervantes; The Trial, Kafka; Crime and Punishment, Dostoyevsky, Notes Upon A Case Of Obsessional Neurosis, Freud
Dramaturgy Aaron Schuster
Scenography 88888
Lighting design Jan Fedinger
Costume design Frédérick Denis
Technical coordination Elke Verachtert

Executive Production & distribution Belgium Caravan Production (BE)
International distribution Damien Valette (Paris, FR)
Co-production Opéra de Lille (FR), Kunstenfestivaldesarts (Brussels, BE), Rencontres chorégraphiques internationales de Seine-Saint-Denis (FR), Vooruit Arts Center (Gent, BE), PACT Zollverein (Essen, DE), DÉPARTS with the support of the Culture Program of the European Union
Residencies Kaaitheater (Brussels, BE), deSingel International Arts Campus (Antwerpen, BE), Opéra de Lille (FR), PACT Zollverein/CZNRW (Essen, DE)
Surtitling with the support of ONDA, Office national de diffusion artistique (FR)

Daniel Linehan/Hiatus is supported by the Flemish authorities