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2025/10/19
Refusal Destroys Us All—(LA)HORDE’s "Room With A View" Explores the Possibilities of Unity and Love
By pupulin
In 2020, (LA)HORDE assumed the role of artistic directors at the Ballet national de Marseille. At the time, rebranding the company was one of their primary goals. They brought in a new generation of dancers, working to balance the dynamic with existing veterans while fostering collaborations with external artists. Their bold ambition and urgency to speak out were embodied in Room With A View—a work that exposes humanity’s persistent sense of frustration and anxiety. Are these emotions merely byproducts of survival? Or harbingers of an impending end?
Charging in alone is no match for fighting side by side
Difference once brought joy—until the world began to spiral out of control. Now, conflicts erupt by the second, and collapse could come within a day. Yet still, might we try once more? Before forming (LA)HORDE, Marine Brutti, Jonathan Debrouwer, and Arthur Harel each pushed boundaries within their artistic fields. After joining forces in 2013, the trio combined their expertise in dance, visual art, styling, and video creation into a highly complementary practice—one that resists hierarchy.
Because they believed in art, they saw disrupting the system as a possible path forward. “At first, the three of us didn’t have a clear ambition to become artistic directors of the Ballet National de Marseille. But we shared one conviction: we believed in public art—in the idea that art should be accessible to everyone. When we decided to apply for the position, our hope was that our artistic vision might reach policy makers. If we could step inside the institution, we thought, there might be a chance to bring more young people in.”
Unafraid of disorder and resistant to rigidity, (LA)HORDE has always craved more faces, more voices, and more ways of moving. That conviction was forged over a decade ago, when the three first met in queer spaces. The dancers of Room With A View came from more than sixteen countries around the world. “We were like a small global village,” they recalled. And it was this very multiplicity that reshaped the work’s energy. “We experienced collapse and reconstruction together. And in that process, everyone—every region—was free to express their own voice.”
And without the French electronic music producer Rone, Room With A View, no matter how much rage or talent fueled it, could not have come to life.
The collaboration between (LA)HORDE and Rone was fluid and organic. At the time, Rone frequently moved between the rehearsal room, the recording studio, and (LA)HORDE’s office. Conversations of all kinds and fragments of ideas sparked inspiration—from references to books, music, and photographs to exhibitions. “At first, the music Rone composed was incredibly intense. There was a kind of suffocating density, packed with sounds and rhythms, and it was strongly melodic. But we had to find a balance between the performance and the music itself. Rone was a genius—no doubt. As our discussions deepened, he began to pare down the score, embracing simplicity and opening more space for lighting and choreography.”
It speaker louder in dance
Beyond the music, (LA)HORDE also placed great importance on the dancers’ costumes. They collaborated with Glenn Martens, the creative director of Maison Margiela and Diesel, Nicolas Di Felice of Courrèges, and filmmakers Megaforce, also the creative team behind Burberry. “In our work, costumes matter a lot. They reflect identity and personality, and they help shape the narrative of a performance. If you look back over the past half-century of the Ballet National de Marseille, there’s a long history of collaborations with remarkable fashion designers—Yves Saint Laurent and Gianni Versace, for instance. The connection between the arts, dance, and fashion has always been strong. And really—who better to embody the beauty and power of fashion than dancers?”
In a world overwhelmed by noise, (LA)HORDE continues to choose dance—a form that may seem wordless, yet speaks volumes. “Dance is universal. It expresses diverse identities, stories, and cultures. It doesn’t speak, but it tells stories with extraordinary force—and that’s profoundly moving. Right now, we need a more politicized sense of poetic grace to imagine a different future.”
Room With A View doesn’t claim to offer answers, nor is it merely an outcry or a cathartic release. What it throws itself into—fully and fiercely—is not a blind embrace of the void, but an attempt to reach out and touch every heart left displaced. Collapse itself is not what we should fear; it is absolute refusal that will ultimately destroy both us and the world.
