Drift Wood

‘Drift Wood’ is a reflection on the relationship between our essential human nature and the layers of conditioning that shape who we become.

Taking its inspiration from the romanticism of nature and the collective memory of community, the piece unfolds through the surreal lens of a diorama, created yet real and alive. Like pieces of driftwood carried by unseen currents, we are each marked by time, memory, and circumstance.

Through movement, sound and image, Drift Wood peels back the layers, revealing fragments of instinct and resistance but also of connection and contradiction. What emerges is a play between the raw and the constructed, the private and the prescribed, the solitude we carry and the bonds we cannot escape.

What remains when we strip everything away?
What parts of us are shaped by the tide—and what parts are still our own?

credits

Choreography / Concept / Direction: Imre van Opstal & Marne van Opstal

Assistent Choregraphy: Chloe Albaret

Music: Amos Ben-Tal & Salvador Breed (new composition)

Sound Design: Salvador Breed

Set Design: Tom Visser, Imre van Opstal & Marne van Opstal

Light Design: Tom Visser

Costume Design: Alain Paul

Performers: Clemence Gross, Caroline Osmont, Ida Viikinkoski, Mickael Lafon, Jennifer Visocchi, Yvon Demol, Adele Belem, Marion Gautier de Charnace, Takeru Coste, Loup Marcault- Derouard, Baptiste Berniere

Duration: 42 minutes

Premiere: Paris Opera Ballet , 2026