French Institute Alliance Française Announces Fall 2023 Programs For the 125th Anniversary Year

The French Institute Alliance Française, FIAF, New York's premier French language and francophone cultural center, announces its fall 2023 cultural programs for its celebratory 125th anniversary. The annual arts and performance festival, Crossing The Line, leads the fall season from Sept. 8 – Oct.13.

Now in its 16th year, this installment will include a video installation by Julian Charrière, and premiere performances by Tatiana Desardouin, Smaïl Kanouté, Olivier Tarpaga, Simon Senn & Tammara Leites, and Isabelle Adjani. There are two exciting film series this fall: New Voices in French Cinema, Sept. 5 – 31, highlighting new films from francophone filmmakers, and Film Fantastique, Oct. 31 – Dec. 18, a series dedicated to classic French fantasy films.

In honor of its 125th anniversary, FIAF commissioned a permanent installation by the Swiss artist collective Plonk & Replonk - Bébert entitled Cabinet of Curiosities on view beginning Sept. 21. Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels and FIAF present the U.S. premiere of Ola Maciejewska's dance Bombyx Mori on Nov. 2 and 3, and FIAF presents the staged monologue, Françoise by Sagan with Caroline Loeb on Nov. 6.

FILM
New Voices in French Cinema
A series of nine new French films
Tuesdays from September 4 through October 31 at 4pm and 7:30pm

New Voices in French Cinema is back for its seventh edition, showcasing the exceptional talent of emerging filmmakers making their mark in French cinema. This year's edition will highlight nine visionary storytellers making contributions to the art of filmmaking.

The full film line-up will be announced in July.

CROSSING THE LINE FESTIVAL
VIDEO INSTALLATION
And Beneath It All Flows Liquid Fire
Julian Charrière
Friday, September 8, 2023 (on view through October 13)

French-Swiss artist Julian Charrière's intriguing and often provocative work invites reflection on our engagement with the natural world. This video installation encapsulates his thoughts on tensions between modern societies and ideas of nature.

Click here for more info.

CROSSING THE LINE FESTIVAL
DANCE
Trapped
Tatiana Desardouin
Friday, September 8 at 8pm

NY-based choreographer Tatiana Desardouin and Passion Fruit Dance Company bring their bold street and club dance styles to the stage, in an inspiring piece that shares the social and personal challenges faced by four women of different backgrounds.

Click here for more info.

CROSSING THE LINE FESTIVAL
DANCE
Les 5 Sens
Tatiana Desardouin
NY Premiere
Thursday, September 14 at 10pm

NY-based choreographer Tatiana Desardouin and artist Nubian Néné create a conceptual, all-night experience featuring live music, dance, food, and drinks. This immersive performance engages all five senses in a welcoming and diverse club-culture refresh.

Click here for more info.

EXHIBITION
Cabinet of Curiosities
Plonk & Replonk - Bébert
Thursday, September 21 (permanent installation)

In honor of its 125th anniversary, FIAF has commissioned a new, permanent installation by the Swiss artist collective Plonk & Replonk - Bébert. For the collective's U.S. premiere, Cabinet of Curiosities will take visitors on a humorously reimagined journey through FIAF's historical artifacts.

Click here for more info.

CROSSING THE LINE FESTIVAL
DANCE
Never Twenty One
Smaïl Kanouté
U.S. Premiere
Wednesday, September 27 at 7:30pm

Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement's #Never21 hashtag, this deeply resonant piece by French-Malian choreographer/dancer Smaïl Kanouté pays tribute to young people of color who have lost their lives to gun violence before reaching the age of 21.

Click here for more info.

CROSSING THE LINE FESTIVAL
DANCE
Once the dust settles, flowers bloom
Olivier Tarpaga
NYC Premiere
Wednesday, October 3—Sunday, October 8

Performed with seven dancers and five musicians, Olivier Tarpaga's powerful work acknowledges the strength of refugees from Africa's Burkina Faso and its Sahel region—Tarpaga's ancestral homeland—now settled in distant camps after fleeing violent jihadists.

Click here for more info.

CROSSING THE LINE FESTIVAL
THEATER
dSimon
Simon Senn & Tammara Leites
NY Premiere
Thursday, October 6 & Friday, October 7 at 7:30pm

Swiss artist Simon Senn explores today's most exciting and controversial technology, artificial intelligence. This timely story relates the creation of an AI entity with Senn's personality and personal data, and grapples with its transformation into an autonomous, disturbing, and yet familiar monster.

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CROSSING THE LINE FESTIVAL
THEATER
Marilyn's Vertigo
Isabelle Adjani
North American Premiere
Friday, October 12 & Saturday, October 13 at 7:30pm

This extraordinary homage to Marilyn Monroe is based on her final interview, two days before her death. Renowned French actress Isabelle Adjani, in a riveting solo stage performance, engages in a surreal dialogue with Monroe, exploring the complexities of stardom, identity, and legacy.

Click here for more info

FILM
Film Fantastique
A series of eight classic French fantasy films
Tuesdays beginning October 31 through December 18 at 4pm and 7:30pm

Just in time for Halloween, FIAF presents a series of classic French fantasy films, transporting audiences to extraordinary worlds beyond the realm of reality with eight whimsical films.

The full film line-up will be announced in July.

DANCE
Bombyx Mori
Ola Maciejewska
U.S. Premiere
Thursday, November 2 and Friday, November 3 at 7:30pm

Dancer and artist Ola Maciejewska creates a work of both dance and visual art, as three dancers use voluminous lengths of silk to create large swirling patterns. Bombyx Mori is presented by Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels and FIAF.

Click here for more information.