CHANEL CHEIBAN - Studio 303

PROJECT // El kamar bi zaher

BIOGRAPHY

Originally from Lebanon, Chanel Cheiban began her career as a performer and choreographer with a variety of artistic projects in Tio’tia:ke (Montreal). She obtained her CID in the BIG BANG training program and a DEC from the École de danse contemporaine de Montréal. Since 2019, Chanel has been a performer for Veils of Bollywood. She dances in the pieces Dabav, Bindi, Un rêve Bollywoodien, and Jardin des Possibilités. Since 2022, she has been sharing different excerpts from her multidisciplinary project El kamar bi zaher, which she choreographs and performs. In 2022, she presented PLAYGROUND at Tangente, a co-creation with Maude Laurin-Beaulieu, merging street dances and oriental dances. Chanel’s diverse experiences inspire her to convey a story with her body and to share the common meaning found in live art.

DETAILS OF THE PROJECT
El kamar bi zaher is my multidisciplinary creation that combines dance, music, and singing. El kamar bi zaher means “The Blooming Moon”; it is a metaphor that aptly describes my inner and sacred universe, from seed to bloom. This piece alludes to my confusion and helplessness regarding my distant relationship with Lebanon, my parents’ country of origin. For, without even realizing it, my heart hums the melody of Alf Leila Wi Leila (A Thousand and One Nights). This great classic, sung by Oum Kalthoum, is a universal piece of music that musicians Nadine Altounji (oud), Oisin Hannigan (darbouka), and Najla Jaffel (vocals) reinterpret in my piece. I invite the audience into my family living room, where a dance unique to me is born, defining a gesture that navigates from oriental traditions to the world in which I live today. Movement practices such as Egyptian baladi, samā, kawliya, dabke, and contemporary dance inspire and merge in my choreographic composition. My contemporary approach allows me to firmly root myself in these styles while also making them my own to share with a broader audience.
Oisin Hannigan, Nadine Altounji, Najla Jaffel — Musicians, singers, performers Charlie Prince, Stéphanie Decourteille, Corinne Skaff — Artistic advisors Simon Pierre Desjardins – — Sound design Tifannie Boffa — Lighting design Étienne de Durocher — Photography and videography Support throughout the project — Many thanks to Vue sur la relève, École de danse contemporaine de Montréal, Espace Ouvert, Danses Laurentides, Circuit-Est, Nyata Nyata, Maison de la culture Villebon, Centre de Création O Vertigo, and Conseil des Arts et Lettres du Québec.

DETAILS OF THE PROJECT

El kamar bi zaher is my multidisciplinary creation that combines dance, music, and singing. El kamar bi zaher means “The Blooming Moon”; it is a metaphor that aptly describes my inner and sacred universe, from seed to bloom. This piece alludes to my confusion and helplessness regarding my distant relationship with Lebanon, my parents’ country of origin. For, without even realizing it, my heart hums the melody of Alf Leila Wi Leila (A Thousand and One Nights). This great classic, sung by Oum Kalthoum, is a universal piece of music that musicians Nadine Altounji (oud), Oisin Hannigan (darbouka), and Najla Jaffel (vocals) reinterpret in my piece.

I invite the audience into my family living room, where a dance unique to me is born, defining a gesture that navigates from oriental traditions to the world in which I live today. Movement practices such as Egyptian baladi, samā, kawliya, dabke, and contemporary dance inspire and merge in my choreographic composition. My contemporary approach allows me to firmly root myself in these styles while also making them my own to share with a broader audience.

Oisin Hannigan, Nadine Altounji, Najla Jaffel — Musicians, singers, performers
Charlie Prince, Stéphanie Decourteille, Corinne Skaff — Artistic advisors
Simon Pierre Desjardins – — Sound design
Tifannie Boffa — Lighting design
Étienne de Durocher — Photography and videography
Support throughout the project — Many thanks to Vue sur la relève, École de danse contemporaine de Montréal, Espace Ouvert, Danses Laurentides, Circuit-Est, Nyata Nyata, Maison de la culture Villebon, Centre de Création O Vertigo, and Conseil des Arts et Lettres du Québec.