Step back in time to 1930s Paris by night

Led by Rendez-Vous Dance’s award-winning choreographer Mathieu Geffré, it’s at Hartlepool Borough Hall on Saturday 12th February at 7.30pm.

The Monocle is inspired by the secretly notorious 1930s Parisian lesbian club Le Monocle and is performed by six outstanding dancers.

Conceived as a fun night out, The Monocle will re-shape traditional theatre settings into a club where audiences can participate in a highly virtuosic evening mixing dance and live music.

Following the show there will be a post-show talk and Q&A with choreographer Mathieu Geffré as well as a stunning live performance in the bar area by North East singer Devon Dolman.

Be our guest at The Monocle! In here the air is thick and warm with secrets and sensuality. Women laugh loudly, drink the night away and dance in each other’s arms ...

Susan French, Performance Venues Manager at Hartlepool Borough Council, said: “We are looking forward to a world-class performance from the prestigious Rendez-Vous dance company here in Hartlepool.

“We want as many people as possible to come and enjoy this show, so we have made The Monocle part of our Pay What You Decide initiative to remove the cost barrier and to encourage people who might not have seen a dance production before to try something new.

“People simply book their tickets online and then following the show they are given the opportunity to pay what they think the performance is worth based on their experience.”

The Monocle is A Made In The North East (MITNE) commission. Mathieu Geffré was awarded this prestigious commission by a consortium of nine North East venues which are working together on a three-year strategic dance audience development project led by Dance City and made possible with funding from the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

The project aims for the partners to develop a better understanding and commitment to programming dance performances in the region. The original commission was added to by a National Lottery grant through Arts Council England.

Rendez-Vous dance creates projects to tell past and present stories of LGBTQIA+ communities.

It is led by Mathieu Geffré, who established the company following a fifteen-year career as a performer. He collaborated with some of the most celebrated artists in the world including Itzik Galili, Christopher Bruce, Didy Veldman, Angelin Preljocaj and Johann Inger.

Mathieu Geffré said: “I would like to thank Arts Council England for their generous support towards the development of our Made In The North East project The Monocle.

“Being awarded a National Lottery grant represents a significant career change for me. I am very honoured and excited to be offered the resources to create and develop a project which aims to find, attract, develop and showcase talent in the North East of England.

“I would like to extend my thanks to Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and all the partner venues for trusting me and Rendez-Vous dance in championing their idea for the development of dance in the region.

“This project aims to bring people together and involve them whilst we’ll constantly try to challenge perceptions of engagement with dance, who it is for and who it is made by.’’

The commission opportunity was offered exclusively to dance and physical theatre artists and companies based in the North East of England who were able to demonstrate a commitment to building the long-term dance ecology of the region.

To book your Pay What You Decide tickets for The Monocle visit www.hartlepoolboroughhall.com.