ナショナル・クリエーション・ファンド

A a |a B : B E N D is an electrifying collaboration – the brainchild of choreographer Aszure Barton and composer Ambrose Akinmusire. This glitch in the matrix creates an immersive world where sound, movement, and human connection pulse with life. The work embraces a transformative practice of unlearning - releasing old patterns and opening to fresh possibilities built on trust, awareness, and intimacy. It’s about discovering vibrant new ways of being together through movement and music. Barton’s bold choreographic language flows and responds to Akinmusire’s original score for electronics and trumpet, while his music breathes and shifts with the dancers’ bodies. This living exchange ensures every performance sparkles with spontaneity - a constantly evolving, energetic interplay between sound and movement that feels raw, immediate, and powerfully human. For Akinmusire, the music pulses as the heartbeat of the experience, energizing and reshaping the stage while Barton’s movement becomes an instrument of emotional resonance, dancing in real-time dialogue with the sonic landscape he creates. But Akinmusire isn’t just making music - he becomes a dancer himself, his sound moving through space as another body of expression, blurring the line between musician and mover. Together, they cultivate a thriving ecosystem where dancers, music, and audience unite to celebrate human connection, creative tension, and infinite possibility. B E N D breaks free from traditional categories. This isn’t distant "stuffy art" - it’s an urgent, joyful invitation to witness extraordinary movers, to bend with one another, to groove together, to listen deeply, to yield and be transformed. It’s a living artwork that celebrates connection, humanity, and the exhilarating adventure of not knowing exactly where the journey will take us.

time, space and resources to make inspiring and impactful work

Projects must be led by Canadian creators and meet the following criteria: Are artistically ambitious and compelling, Have a strong artistic team and committed producing and presenting partners, Are likely to have a national or international impact