Bondieu
How did you get your stage name?
Bon dieu means good lord in French, meaning that “I’m a perfect little angel”! Appearance or reality, for me to know!
How did you get into dancing?
I started modern jazz and artistic gymnastics when I was six. Once, with one of my girlfriends, we started pretending to be dance teachers. From that moment on, I knew that dancing would become my life and that I’d become a dance teacher! After high school I attended the Rick Odums School in Paris, then passed my Examen d’Aptitude Technique and finally trained for another two years to get my state diploma. I then had the technical, pedagogical and theoretical know-how to allow me to teach dancing professionally, but I felt like was still lacking actual stage experience to be able to teach effectively. So I took up hip hop classes and went to several auditions. That’s when my passion for the stage was revealed and my goal of teaching secondary.
How did you get into the Crazy Horse?
I had two distinct stories with the Crazy Horse. The first time in 2015 I was looking at all costs to get experience performing on stage and stumbled upon an audition at the Crazy Horse. As I fit all the necessary requirements, I was immediately taken, but only stayed for a year. In the years that followed far from the Crazy Horse, I realised how perfect this house had been for me. I missed the precision, the rigour, the demanding technical level, the aesthetics and the signature concept of the Crazy Horse very much, so, in 2018, I fought heart and soul to get back in a second time!
Notoriously intimidating, how did your Crazy Horse audition go?
Ah, I’ve got a funny story to tell! When auditioning for the Crazy Horse, the dancers have to of course show their bodies. I had chosen a nice lace thong, but as I felt like it was a bit too transparent, I put on a second skin-coloured one underneath. Unfortunately, this one was larger on one side than on the other and so it looked like one of my buttocks was misshapen. The jury thought this very bizarre! Finally, one of them got up to take a closer look at what was going on and realised I was wearing two thongs! So it wasn’t my behind that was misshapen, it was all because of my underwear!
Which moment in your life are you most proud of?
Perhaps right this very day, because I’m about to sign my permanent contract with the Crazy Horse. After three years of relentless efforts and perseverance that were a struggle for me to make my dream come true. So, I’m not only immensely happy, but also very proud.
Owl by night and mother by day, an extraordinary adventure or a bit crazy?
Extraordinary! Lots of work and hours, it’s true. After the show I get to bed at around 1 a.m. and my son wakes me up at around 6:30 a.m. Nights are short, but small catnaps help me catch up on sleep. What’s most important is spending some quality time with my son every day and time for myself and my dancing. Thanks to this daily balancing act I am both a fulfilled woman and happy mother.
Which act of the Totally Crazy! Show do you love the most?
Lay Laser Lay ! What I really like at the Crazy Horse is that every act is the representation of a concept and an aspect of femininity. Everything fascinates me about Lay Laser Lay! This twirling wheel, the position of the dancer in relation to the audience, the energy in which she finds herself, the lasers, the smoke… it’s an amazing act!
Discover Banny Bondieu in video :
Photos : Paul-Henri Pesquet, Michel Dierickx
Vidéo : Paul-Henri Pesquet
