Empreintes at the Palais Garnier: dance in dialogue with images

In March 2026,the Opéra national de Paris welcomes a new evening of contemporary dance with Empreintes, presented at the Palais Garnier from March 11 to 28. This two-part program invites three choreographers to explore the memory of gesture and the power of image: Jessica Wright and Morgann Runacre-Temple, for their first joint creation in Paris, and Marcos Morau, a well-known figure on the Spanish dance scene. The show lasts 2 hours with a 20-minute intermission, and tickets will be available from October 14, 2025.

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Jessica Wright and Morgann Runacre-Temple, British choreographers working for theParis Opera for the first time, propose a work that questions the relationship between video and movement. Their research, already developed in their work with the Jess and Morgs collective , features filmed, multiplied or fragmented bodies, where the camera becomes an integral part of the choreography. With original music composed by Mikael Karlsson- already noted for his score for Play - the piece plays on the porosity between stage and screen, between physical presence and digital traces, to offer an unusual sensory experience.

In the second half of the evening, Marcos Morau presents a new work entitled Étude. This choreographer, known for his powerful visual universes and scenographies composed like living tableaux, explores here the tension between light and shadow. The show revolves around a reflection on the act of creation: how can one continue to imagine, to draw forms and narratives in spaces traversed by uncertainty and doubt? Light becomes a material in its own right, guiding the eye and sculpting movement in a deliberately uncluttered scenic space.

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Empreintes is aimed at contemporary dance aficionados who are curious about the crossover between disciplines and hybrid visual forms. Audiences sensitive to stage experimentation, singular aesthetic universes and dance as a narrative language will find a rich field of discovery in this proposal. On the other hand, fans of classical ballet or purely musical approaches may be less receptive, given the emphasis here on conceptual staging and plastic reflection.

With Empreintes, on view from March 11 to 28, 2026 at the Palais Garnier, the Opéra de Paris presents a two-part evening exploring the links between dance, video, light and perception. A meeting between choreographers from different horizons, united by the same desire to expand the frontiers of choreographic language.

Transparency note: this article is based on information available to date and is not based on a viewing of the show.