watch: JR animates his paris opera cavern facade with 'chiroptera' shadow-light performance

JR presents chiroptera show at palais garnier in paris

Following the transformation of the Palais Garnier, which JR adorned with an expansive cavern facade, the artist returns to animate the space with the mesmerizing CHIROPTERA performance. The show features 153 dancers, including Amandine Albisson, the principal dancer of the Opera, following the choreography of Damien Jalet accompanied by the music of Thomas Bangalter. The spectacle revolves around the interplay of darkness and light, emphasizing the symbiotic relationship between the two elements. While the initial installation in September urged viewers to emerge from the cave and embrace the light, this time the narrative takes a turn, inviting spectators to re-enter the symbolic passageway within the cave, illuminated only by a subtle glow.

Retour à la Caverne – Acte II, 12 novembre 2023, 21h22, Chiroptera, Représentation, Palais Garnier, Paris, France, 2023 (c) JR

JR’s CHIROPTERA Performance Unveils the Artistic Quest for Light

On November 12th, 2023, the Opera House in Paris witnessed the enchanting transformation of its cavern facade during the CHIROPTERA performance. This captivating show, choreographed by Damien Jalet with music by Thomas Bangalter, delved into the allegorical themes of Act I and II of Retour à la caverne. JR (find more here), addressing the audience at the commencement of the event, said, ‘Back in September, we invited you to step out of the cave to go and explore. This time, we’re inviting you back inside the cave.’

A crowd of 25,000 spectators gathered at the Place de l’Opéra to witness the principal ballerina, Amandine Albisson, opening the entrance to the cave with her imposing, anthropomorphic shadow. The performance unfolded in complete darkness, with spectators illuminating the stage using their phones and torches, and the stage deliberately incorporating minimal light. Albisson’s human shadow figure set the tone, while later, dancers adorned in glow-in-the-dark costumes elevated the visual experience by creating captivating shapes and phrases. ‘In the last few weeks, we’ve seen so much darkness that all of us, artists and dancers, stopped and asked ourselves: What good is dancing? What good is creating? What good is putting on a show with all this darkness around us? But we said no; our role as artists is always to search for the light. We know this much: You don’t chase away the darkness with more darkness. You chase is away with light, however tiny,’ added JR.

Retour à la Caverne – Acte II, 12 novembre 2023, 19h29, Chiroptera, Représentation, Palais Garnier, Paris, France, 2023 (c) JR

Retour à la Caverne – Acte II, 12 novembre 2023, Chiroptera, Show, Palais Garnier, Paris, France, 2023, Photo: Justin Weiler (c) JR

Retour à la Caverne – Acte II, 12 novembre 2023, Chiroptera, Show, Palais Garnier, Paris, France, 2023, Photo: Justin Weiler (c) JR

project info: 

name: CHIROPTERA
set design: JR

choreography: Damien Jalet

assistant for choreography: Shawn Fitzgerald Ahern assisted by Lola Ruscica, Valentin Goniot

sound creation and music: Thomas Bangalter

music recording: Florian Lagatta – Tecnica Musica

costumes creation: CHANEL

executive producer atelier JR: Marc Azoulay

creative director: Camille Pajot

executive producer: Maud Malfettes

film directed and produced by: CHANEL

dancers: Amandine Albisson, Azuli Anastasio, Sara Andrieu, Matthew Antonucci, Judith Arazi, Gautier Asensi, Maryna Ashotivna, Jade Barkati-Martial, Alexia Barré, Irina Bashuk, Thea Bautista, Ismaël Belabid-Lenoir, Sophie Blet, Lara Bonnel, Eve Bouchelot, Marie Bruel, Clara Brunet, Ilona Cabrera, Coralie Calfond, Daniela Carler, Mariano Carluccio, Louise Carrière, Verdiano Cassone, Elena Cattardico, Mélen Cazenave, Yumio Chanoki, Manon Chapuis, Elia Chataigner, Hung-Ling Chen, Simon Chereze, Camille Cibrot, Alex Clair, Tiago Coelho, Margaux Colemonts, Pietro Conti Milani, Lou Couton, Sebastian Cuiza Galan, Laure D’Eszlary, Odéric Daluz, Pavel Danko, Noé, Amélie De Figueiredo, Miguel De Sousa, Zoé De Reynier, Inês De Vilhena, Domitille Demaret, Fanny Didelot, Sophia Dinkel, Shirley Domoison Capello, Evane Duguet, Vladimir Duparc, Anaëlle Echalier, Even Eileraas, Axel Escot, Hajiba Fahmy, Solenn Favre, Giulia Federico, Ludivine Ferrara, Elsa Ferret, Lisa Fleury, Anne Fotso, Julie Franken, Louka Gailliez, Eve Ganneau, Marie Gibaud, Ludmila Gilles, Andrea Givanovitch, Nikita Goile, Valentin Goniot, Thomas Gounot, Emma Guillet, Camille Hinsinger, Ange-Clémentine Hiroki, Daria Hordiichuk, Valérie Igolnikov, Sonia Ivashchenko, Pepe Jaimes, Matthieu Jean, Tramayne Johnson-Pauillac, Mary Katakura, Natacha Kierbel, Jordan Kindell, Polina Kliuchnikova, Maharu Kumakawa, , Aimée Lagrange, Claire Lamothe, Lou Landré, Maeva Lassere, Isabel Le Cras, Charlotte Le Hir, Margaux Le Roy, Yi-Chi Lee, Alexis Lemoine, Laura Lille, Mickael Lips, Alice Llorente, Matteo Lochu, Deborah Lotti, Raphaël Ludon, Sarah Lutz, Dayana Mankovska, Camille Marchand, Isidora Markovic, Elena Martello, Pauline Martin, Matteo Masson, Marien Mazzoni, Lola Mérieux, Aurore Mettray, Félicia Monod, Marion Morlier, Maïlee Mouttou, Maureen Mouttou, Antonin Muno, Nicole Muratov, Alexandre Nadra, Devon Nelson, Sakiko Oishi, Hugo Olagnon, Alice Pan, Camilla Paris, Daisy Phillips, Joana Pimentel, Fiona Pincé, Vilim Poljanec, Romane Postel, Tara Prosser, Giulia Quacqueri, Elín Signý Ragnarsdóttir, Mohana Rapin, Paul Redier, Pauline Richard, Roberta Riontino, Semina Rizou, Matias Rocha Moura, Cristina Roggerini, Mona Roucan, Lola Ruscica, Iman Sahli, Emma Segura, Anastasia Senikova, Yanis Siah, Kayleigh Smerud, Yui Sugano, Alice Sundara, Astrid Sweeney, Hugo Thabaret, Flora Theault, Pierre-Adrien Touret, Marine Tournet, Inès Tressens, Mattéo Trutat, Anaïs Vallières, Myana Van Cuijlenborg, Pol Van Den Broek, Théo Vanpoperinghe, Anabelle Villechenoux, Amandine Villeneuve