Choreographer Akram Khan on Jungle Book reimagined
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Choreographer Akram Khan shares his inspiration for his latest epic dance-theatre project: Jungle Book reimagined. He also explains what motivated him to create his reinterpretation of the classic children tale.
Akram Khan is one of the most celebrated and respected dance artists today. In the last 23 years he has created a body of work that has contributed significantly to the arts in the UK and abroad. His reputation has been built on the success of imaginative, highly accessible and relevant productions such as Jungle Book reimagined, Outwitting the Devil, XENOS, Until the Lions, Kaash, iTMOi (in the mind of igor), DESH, Vertical Road, Gnosis and zero degrees.
As an instinctive and natural collaborator, Khan’s choreography is the embodiment of shared exploration across multiple disciplines and cultures. His previous collaborators include the National Ballet of China, actress Juliette Binoche, ballerina Sylvie Guillem, choreographers/dancers Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Israel Galván, singer Kylie Minogue and indie rock band Florence and the Machine, visual artists Anish Kapoor, Antony Gormley and Tim Yip, writer Hanif Kureishi and composers Steve Reich, Nitin Sawhney, Jocelyn Pook and Ben Frost.
Khan’s work is recognised as being profoundly moving, in which his intelligently crafted storytelling is effortlessly intimate and epic. Described by the Financial Times as an artist “who speaks tremendously of tremendous things”, a highlight of his career was the creation of a section of the London 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony that was received with unanimous acclaim.
As a choreographer, Khan has developed a close collaboration with English National Ballet (ENB). He created the short piece Dust, part of the Lest We Forget programme, which led to an invitation to create his own critically acclaimed version of the iconic romantic ballet Giselle. His latest project with ENB is Creature. In recent years, Khan has moved into television, specifically documentaries. He has created three documentaries with Swan Films for Channel 4, the Sky Arts documentary series Why Do We Dance, and an episode of the Netflix series MOVE.
Khan has been the recipient of numerous awards throughout his career including two Laurence Olivier Awards, the Bessie Award (New York Dance and Performance Award), the prestigious ISPA (International Society for the Performing Arts) Distinguished Artist Award, the Fred and Adele Astaire Award, the Herald Archangel Award at the Edinburgh International Festival, the South Bank Sky Arts Award and nine Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards. Khan was awarded an MBE for services to dance in 2005. In 2022, he was announced as the new Chancellor of De Montfort University, and he is also an Honorary Graduate of University of London as well as Roehampton and De Montfort Universities, and an Honorary Fellow of Trinity Laban. Khan is an Associate Artist of Sadler’s Wells and Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, London as well as Curve.
M. Khan est l’un des danseurs-chorégraphes les plus célèbres et les plus estimés du Royaume-Uni. En un peu plus de 16 ans, il a créé une œuvre qui a contribué de manière significative au rayonnement des arts au Royaume-Uni et dans le monde. Sa réputation s’est construite sur le succès de productions originales telles que DESH, iTMOi, Vertical Road, Gnosis et zero degrees. Grâce à son sens de la collaboration instinctif et naturel, il a été un aimant pour des artistes de classe mondiale provenant d’autres cultures et disciplines. Parmi ses collaborations précédentes figurent le Ballet national de Chine, l’actrice Juliette Binoche, la danseuse-étoile Sylvie Guillem, les chorégraphes-danseurs Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui et Israel Galván, la chanteuse Kylie Minogue, les artistes Anish Kapoor, Antony Gormley et Tim Yip, l’écrivain Hanif Kureishi et les compositeurs Steve Reich, Nitin Sawhney, Jocelyn Pook et Ben Frost. Le travail d’Akram Khan est salué comme étant profondément émouvant, usant d’une narration intelligemment conçue, et aisément intime et épique à la fois. Décrit par le Financial Times comme un artiste « qui parle formidablement de choses formidables », Khan a chorégraphié une section de la cérémonie d’ouverture des Jeux Olympiques de Londres 2012, un moment de sa carrière qui fut unanimement salué. Il a reçu de nombreux prix tout au long de sa carrière, tels que le Laurence Olivier Award, le Bessie Awards, le prestigieux ISPA Distinguished Artist Award (New York), le South Bank Sky Arts Award et plusieurs UK Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards. Il est également membre de l’Ordre de l’Empire britannique depuis 2005 pour services rendus à la danse, ainsi que diplômé d’honneur des universités de Roehampton, De Montfort, de Londres, et membre honorifique du Trinity Laban.
