In the Choreographer's Manifesto from 1935, Serge Lifar proposed a new word for the creator who invents and composes dance parts, that of choreauthor so that we could make a clear distinction between the one who creates (choreauthor), the one who stages again a ballet performance created by somebody else (ballet maestro) and the one that makes the choreographic movement (choreographer). Mentioned only in dictionaries as a synonym for the word "choreographer", the term "choreauthor" didn't manage to impose itself but its repetition is welcomed when we want to underline the fact that we are in front of some authentic creators. We take up the word again because this season – spiced throughout the country with about three valuable shows of contemporary dance – ends brilliantly and very promising for the fate of the Romanian choreography, with a real "avalanche" of original creations by some choreauthors. They are equally the ones who chose the theme, wrote the libretto and searched for the music (sometimes in collaboration), created the choreography, directed it and, in some cases, they even proposed new forms of performance. This is not a spontaneous generation. They all work with well-known Romanian and French choreographers but found their own way very quickly. Moreover, they have all graduated or are still attending the Theatre and FilmAcademy, the choreography department, even if they are of different ages. Besides their own talent and personality, they are the beneficiaries of the changing times: of the intense connections for the last five years with the French contemporary dance school, of free circulation, of the founding of the first higher education form in choreography in our country and especially of the change of mentality. Even if they struggle for their performances to be staged, they know how to be free and can be free. They learned to work their way up in society on their own. None of them is in a ballet ensemble financed from the budget. They all made up small ensembles based on affinities and found the ones to back up a cultural project. However menacing the ghost of the past still is, they are the guarantee that we won't return to the starting point.
by Liana Tugearu
