What is the best thing that I love about my work? The satisfaction of being a Dance Artist comes from this necessity to be sharing an experience with an artistic collaborator or an audience member. I love creating a world in which one I can invite people to dive into. I intend to create an emotional environment that enables people to forget about our everyday world with its threats and aggressions.
What is my idea of perfect happiness? Not worrying about anything
What is my greatest fear? To have my freedom of expression and of appearance taken away from me
What is the trait that I most deplore in myself? My stubbornness
Which living persons in my profession do i most admire? Ohad Naharin, Dimitris Papaioannou, Crystal Pite, Sasha Velour, Angelin Preljocaj and all the performers who are brave enough to dedicate their entire being to the artform for the time of a project.
What is my greatest extravagance? Queen’s Day 2011. Only some people will remember
On what occasion would I lie? To protect someone if I don’t feel that it is necessary to communicate the true information.
What is the thing that I dislike the most in my work? The splits under my feet.
When and where was I the happiest, in my work? When, in collaboration with National Dance Company Wales, we managed to send a group of young dancers to perform my work for them Le Bal as part of the Aberdeen International Youth Festival
If I could, what would I change about myself? My impatience
What is my greatest achievement in work? What songs may do
What do the words ‘The Financial Freedom to Create’ mean to me? It means being able to create a work and pay each artistic collaborator at the level they deserve. Nowadays, many of the contemporary dance pieces are the fruit of conversations and researches instigated by a choreographer but devised through conveying the energies of many passionate collaborators. I don’t believe the rates of pays for the professional dance artists are high enough in many countries.
Where would I most like to live? In a European United Kingdom
What is my most treasured possession? My engagement ring
What is my most marked characteristic? I have a soft spot for the early 2000’s pop music
What is my most inspirational location, in my city? The Saatchi Gallery
What is my favourite place to eat and drink, in my city? It happens that I treat myself with some take aways from Ottolenghi Belgravia.
What books influenced my life and how? The Baron in the Trees by Italo Calvino as a manifesto for freedom of speech and of thought.
Who are my favorite writers? Reinaldo Arenas, Amélie Nothomb, Boris Vian, Jean Michel Ribes for his plays and Yorgos Lanthimos dialogues.
You Only Die Once. What music would I listen on my last day? Probably Fratres by Arvo Part
Who is my hero or heroine in fiction? Offred played by Elizabeth Moss in The Handmaid’s Tale
Who are my heroes and heroines in real life? Nina Simone, Rupaul, Arvo Part, the Dalai Lama, and everyone who contributes to make the world healthier and more equal.
Which movie would i recommend to see once in a lifetime? It’s only the end of the world by Xavier Dolan
What role plays art in my life and work? Art is the most reliable witness for life, we wouldn’t know anything about our History without Art, Art is the only way for us to leave a trace for future generations to know who we were.
Who is my greatest fan, sponsor, partner in crime? My fiancé Andrew.
Whom would I like to work with in 2018? Sasha Velour
Which people in my profession would i love to meet in 2018? Any brave, eager, talented and generous artist.
What project, in 2018, am I looking forward to work on? I am very much looking forward to keep developing my new solo work ACT. A first version of the work will be presented at The Place (London) on the 12th of January 2018 at 8pm.
https://www.theplace.org.uk/whats-on/mathieu-geffré-dance-kendall-farrell-lucy-palmer-dance
Where can you see me or my work in 2018? Following ACT first outing I will be teaching professional class at Greenwich Dance for one week. Then I will keep dancing for Didy Veldman and Eleesha Drennan while making new works for different organisations in the UK. More informations to find on my website. www.mathieugeffre.com
What do the words “Passion Never Retires” mean to me? I don’t foresee myself to step away from Dance… ever. Utopic…maybe…I just love what I do.
Who would i like to be invited by Peter to tell their story? Sasha Velour
How can you contact me?
mathieu.geffre.dance@gmail.com
Mathieu Geffré Dance on Facebook
@mathieugeffre on Twitter and Instagram.
The Hero's Journey 