Laura
Cappelle

Laura Cappelle is an art sociologist, critic and journalist. A specialist in dance, she is currently an associate professor at the Université Sorbonne Nouvelle and associate researcher at CERLIS (UMR 8070). She edited the collective work, Nouvelle Histoire de la danse en Occident (New History of Dance in the West), published by Le Seuil in 2020, which received the Prix du Meilleur Livre de Danse (Best Dance Book Award) from the Syndicat Professionnel de la Critique de Théâtre, de Musique et de Danse (French professional union of theater, music and dance critics). She also adapted the book into a graphic novel, Une histoire dessinée de la danse (An Illustrated History of Dance), published by Le Seuil in 2024 and illustrated by Thomas Gilbert. The monograph resulting from her thesis, Créer des ballets au XXIème siècle (Making Ballet in the 21st Century), was published by CNRS Éditions in 2024. Based in Paris, she is a dance critic for the Financial Times, has been writing a column on French theater for the New York Times since 2017 and is editorial advisor to CND Magazine.



Since 2022, researcher and critic Laura Cappelle has been affiliated with the CCN•Opéra national du Rhin Ballet, working on the aesthetic and social evolution of contemporary ballet. Based on fieldwork in Mulhouse and Strasbourg and consistent coverage of the CCN•Ballet's seasons, this project aims to forge a link between dance research and the artists and staff who bring this art form to life on a daily basis, addressing in particular the aesthetic categories used to discuss creation today. Laura Cappelle assists the CCN•Ballet in contextualizing the works presented to the public (through program materials and audience meetings), in its partnership with the dance option at the Lycée Schweitzer in Mulhouse and in the Atelier's annual project.



For the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 seasons, this project benefited from the Centre National de la Danse's Aide à la Recherche et au Patrimoine en Danse funding program.