The Les Twins, French identical twins Laurent and Larry Bourgeois, have gained international fame as dancers, choreographers, entrepreneurs, producers, and actors. Their talent has brought them opportunities worldwide, including multiple tours dancing with Beyoncé.

The duo is using their platform and passion to partner with The Kids Write Network (KWN) to bring their Rise for Mental Health Tour to the U.S. in October. The tour began with great success in 2022 in Montreal, Quebec. The KWN is an award-winning science based mental health program researched and validated at McGill University. It is the only program known that is adapted into school curricula because it uses all four arts; writing, art, music, and now with Les Twins, dance to create coping skills and build confidence in children and young adults facing a variety of hardships.

Photo: Les Twins, courtesy of Connor ” Heisenberg” McCollam

“There is so much stigma that surrounds mental health as always being related to ‘mental illness,’ which is not what we focus on; we focus on keeping your brain healthy,” remarked KWN Founder and President Helen Georgaklis. “By reducing chaos, we have scientifically proven that we can increase focus and discipline to stay on track and achieve your goals.”

The program’s combination of using storytelling and movement made the partnership with Les Twins a perfect fit. “We often use the analogy of running. You practice running until you build endurance to run the race. Mental health is the same thing – you train your brain through movement and feel empowered to be able to face your challenges,” Georgaklis described. “The KWN has proven that through the arts, a structured storytelling process builds positive mindsets. We chose Les Twins because of how they connect with their own storytelling through movement, showing youth how to work through emotions and not let them stop you from doing what you want to do. As the twins always say, ‘Music is the question. Your body is the answer.’”

The fit was equally perfect for Les Twins. “We have been telling stories through our dance for decades, so for us, it was natural to teach youth how to help their mental health using the Kids Write Network since that is precisely what it does: tell stories!” Larry and Laurent stated. “We look forward to empowering youth throughout North America, connecting with youth and professionals to build skills and to learn to use dance to help them overcome their challenges.”

LES TWINS RISE TO STARDOM

The Les Twins grew up dancing on the streets of Paris and first started to receive national attention when performing on the third season of France’s Incroyable Talent.

Although they were already recognized for their immeasurable talent by then, U.S. audiences became enraptured by the twins when their 2010 World of Dance performance in San Diego became a viral sensation. The video continues to gain new viewers even 13 years later and now has more than 50 million views.

Their international status as premier dancers got further bolstered when they captured the New Style Hip Hop division at Juste Debout, an international competition bringing together thousands of dancers, in March of 2011.

Since then, Les Twins have traveled the world many times over, working with legendary performers and taking the first NBC World of Dance title in 2017. They had starring roles on “Michael Jackson: The Immortal World Tour” by Cirque de Soleil.

Their modeling careers have spanned various companies and fashion magazines, leading them to previously be named among Vogue’s 30 Most Stylish Men in Fashion. They also starred in the 2019 movie Men in Black International, the fourth installment in the Men in Black movie franchise.

KIDS WRITE NETWORK AND MENTAL HEALTH

Based on a rigorous four-year research project at McGill University in Montreal, KWN has developed a process that combines positive psychology and neuroscience design to assist individuals to work through negative experiences in a way that builds empowerment, coping skills and all-around well-being.

“Mental health means focus and discipline. If those two things are compromised, you lose yourself. Too many young people today give up so easily, and we want to give them an opportunity to think twice before giving up,” explained Georgaklis. “We have seen, met, and spoken to thousands of people who say the same thing, that it’s impossible. We don’t understand what that means. For us, being able to use our gift that reaches young and old, giving them a newfound freedom in their body is what matters to us. When they do better, then we feel better.”

KWN’s six-step process, which Deloitte is assisting with developing into a digital platform using their proprietary Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, guides users to shift their decision-making process. This innovative intervention has scientifically proven that as young as four years old, we can harness brain plasticity to stop focusing on the negative life events but instead to look at what we gained and how we grew as a person. The program targets brain functions associated with amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex. Though it is a linear process, each step uses tailored specifications to ensure each sector receives positive and relevant responses when communicating with AI.

KWN AND LES TWINS WORKSHOPS

“To be able to do what we are doing with the people that we want to do it for is very powerful for us. We have been doing workshops and outreach for two decades literally all over the world so today to have a very specific type of workshop that we offer to help promote a positive mindset for us gives us a feeling of great pride,” Les Twins commented.

Georgaklis notes that one of the keys to the workshops is the Les Twins’ transparency and that they do not shy away from sharing their own challenges. “That is why we have had the success we have by keeping it real. Our audience feels comfortable with them,” she articulated.

Each student receives the KWN program prior to the workshop with Les Twins so they have had the chance to go through the six steps. This helps them to connect with their own creativity of building their toolbox of coping skills with the exercises Les Twins go through during the workshops. Les Twins talk about the time Laurent had broken his leg and was competing at the World of Dance finals. Do you realize how much brainpower it took to be able to ignore that he was in a wheelchair and use every other single part of his body to perform? To perform anywhere in the world, on any stage, you have to be mentally prepared. It’s all in the mindset.”

“We say it all the time, no one escapes challenges,” she continued. “Social media has hurt so many people’s belief in themselves. What we are doing with our RISE for mental health tour is giving students the understanding that we are real. No matter what stages we’ve been on, who we know, or how high we climb, we keep it real. Today, there is always a person or group of people who will say things to distract you by being mean or pulling you down. That’s why we are so focused on this tour. It’s time that we move together to build a stronger foundation for our children, who will use what we built to be the leaders we need tomorrow. The RISE tour is so people can get up, wake up, and speak up!”

BRINGING KWN AND LES TWINS TO YOUR COMMUNITY

Les Twins visit schools, hospitals, and accessible community venues to reach youth to demonstrate how they use dance and body movement to cope with their mental health and their struggles. They share their techniques, global education, experiences, while speaking to students about self-love and acceptance.

Once enrollment has been secured, the KWN provides exclusive training for educators who use the platform to assist students in regulating emotions, increasing coping skills, and focusing on a positive mindset before their participation with Les twins. This approach helps students understand what to expect and how their work ties in with the workshop.

The RISE For Mental Health U.S. Tour kicks off in Atlanta at PACE Academy in October. For more information on how you can receive the KWN training and to book the workshop, please email KWN at info@kidswritenetwork.com. Workshops are open to students, athlete, dancers, and adults. The KWN is multi-generational and workshops have included adults as old as 78.

This is the first installment in a series of “Dance & Mental Health” stories to highlight and elevate mental health discussions, particularly with dancers and within dance communities.