Artistic Director and Choreographer
Mourad Merzouki
A major figure on the hip hop scene since the early 1990s, choreographer Mourad Merzouki works at the crossroads of many different disciplines: he adds circus, martial arts, fine arts, video, and live music to his exploration of hip hop dance. Beginning at the age of seven, Merzouki trained in the circus school of Saint-Priest, in Lyon’s eastern suburbs, while also practicing martial arts. At age 15, inspired by hip hop culture, he gravitated towards dance. He created his first dance company, Accrorap, in 1989, with Kader Attou, Eric Mezino, and Chaouki Saïd. He continued to develop his unique brand of hip hop movement while simultaneously exploring other dance genres with contemporaries Maryse Delente, Josef Nadj, and Jean-François Duroure. Accrorap performed Athina during the Biennale de la Danse in Lyon in 1994 and earned acclaim for bringing hip hop from the street to the stage, enabling the troupe to perform internationally.