Following on from the projects Amour (2023) and Reines (2024), Juliette Guignard, executive director and violist, and Nina Lainville, co-founder and singer for Atelier Misuk, have conceived a third educational program titled Corps. This new edition is aimed at women in exile, with the aim of exploring the theme of the body and the many ways of inhabiting it. How do we view another person’s body? How is it shaped by emotions, movement, or the voice? These are the questions that guided the design of this immersive project.

Hosted for three days at the Ferme de Villefavard in the Haute-Vienne department, the participants discovered this cultural meeting center, its heritage, and its natural surroundings. Punctuated by artistic workshops, walks, tours, and moments of camaraderie, this stay allowed for a deepening of vocal and physical work, as well as the forging of strong bonds between the participants and the facilitators.

To carry out this project, the ensemble Les Surprises was able to count on the support of several partners, including UFOLEP, the project’s funder and a committed advocate for access to sports and cultural activities; the ANCV; the Ferme de Villefavard, which hosted the workshops and the final performance; as well as Audacia, Coallia, and the Mission Locale d’Insertion du Poitou, organizations that helped identify and support the participants.

A total of thirteen women, aged 12 to 68 and hailing from Peru, Afghanistan, Syria, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Tibet, and Armenia, took part in this arts and culture program offered by the ensemble Les Surprises:

• A three-day immersion stay at the Ferme de Villefavard, featuring workshops in artistic and physical expression ;
• Opportunities to explore local heritage and take walks in the great outdoors ;
• The project’s final presentation at the Ferme de Villefavard, open to the public, led by the participants accompanied by musicians from the ensemble Les Surprises.

Building on the success of the project Amour during the 2023–2024 season, Juliette Guignard, executive director and violist, and Nina Lainville, co-founder and singer for Atelier Misuk, have decided to continue the initiative in 2024, this time focusing exclusively on women. This project, titled Reines, offers a journey linking the theme of queens and their kingdoms to musical practice and the discovery of local heritage, allowing participants to immerse themselves in our history.

To successfully carry out this project, the ensemble Les Surprises has partnered with several organizations, including Audacia Poitiers, Ufolep ANCV and Ufolep86, the City of Poitiers and the Poitiers Prefecture (Territorial Contract for Reception and Integration), the Grand Poitiers Tourist Office, the Sainte-Croix Museum, and the Château d’Oiron.

In total, seven participants from Chad, Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Georgia, and Sri Lanka were able to take part in this arts and culture program offered by the ensemble Les Surprises:

• The program kicked off with an immersion weekend at the Château d’Oiron ;
• About ten workshops on artistic practice and cultural visits over a three-month period ;
• Closing of the project at the Auditorium of the Sainte Croix Museum, featuring a public performance by the participants, accompanied by musicians from the ensemble Les Surprises.

Led by Juliette Guignard, executive director and violist, and Nina Lainville, singer for Atelier Misuk, this project, titled Amour, was conceived as a journey linking the theme of love to musical practice and the discovery of local heritage, allowing participants to immerse themselves in our history.

To bring this project to fruition, the ensemble Les Surprises has partnered with several organizations, including the CEMEA of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the Buddy-System Réfugié·es collective, the City of Poitiers and the Poitiers Prefecture (Territorial Contract for Reception and Integration), the Grand Poitiers Tourist Office, the Sainte-Croix Museum, and the Château d’Oiron.

A dozen participants, accompanied by several volunteers from Buddy System Réfugiés and members of CEMEA, were able to take part in this arts and culture program offered by the ensemble Les Surprises:

• The program kicked off with an immersion weekend at the Château d’Oiron ;
• About ten arts workshops and cultural tours over three months ;
• Closing of the project at the Auditorium of the Sainte Croix Museum, featuring a public performance by the participants, accompanied by musicians from the Les Surprises ensemble.

After three seasons filled with discoveries, learning, and sharing, Les Petites Surprises are back for the 2025 fall season:

• SEPTEMBER 22 & OCTOBRE 2 : Juliette Guignard, viola da gamba (5 performances)
• OCTOBER 6 & 7 : Lucile Tessier, recorders, oboe, and bassoon (6 performances)
• DECEMBER 8, 9, 11 & 12 : Sandra Latour, flutes (11 performances)
• MARCH 12 & 13 : Damien Pouvreau, theorbo (6 performances)
• MAY 21 & 22 : Anaëlle Blanc-Verdin, violin (6 performances)

In 2018–2019, the association Les Surprises partnered with the Compagnie éclats to create Les petites surprises d’éclats, a season of concerts and performances for young audiences, bringing together school groups and families. After two seasons in Bordeaux, the residency with the Centre de musique baroque de Versailles and the Sinfonia en Périgord festival made it possible to develop a touring season, with concerts held directly in schools across the Dordogne.

Since this initiative was a real success, we have decided to repeat the experience for the 2023–2024, 2024–2025, and 2025–2026 seasons. Touring concerts are scheduled for classes ranging from kindergarten through high school. The goal is to introduce students to Baroque music and familiarize them with the instruments used in this repertoire.

This program, called Les petites Surprises, is structured as a journey and unfolds in three stages:

1. Before the concert : an educator meets with the students to introduce the upcoming concert, familiarize them with Baroque music, and provide key historical context.
2. During the concert : a musician visits each school to perform a recital followed by a Q&A session with students and teachers, lasting about an hour.
3. After the concert : an educational kit is sent to teachers so they can explore the concepts covered in greater depth.