Lectures and Talks, HAU 3: April 15, 5.30 pm – 7.30 pm

Belém do Pará, Fortaleza, Porto Alegre: a Different Way of Dancing?

presentation: Susanne Foellmer

Every region in Brazil has its own characteristics. They are derived from particular cultural, political, social and economic contexts, which must be taken into consideration when regarding contemporary dance. The differences and similarities in dance in these three Brazilian cities will be the subject of discussion.

Dance at the Universidade Federal do Pará: A Unique Path:

Waldete Brito (Belém) – MA in Scenic Arts at the UFBA, lecturer at the Escola de Teatro e Dança (School for Theater and Dance) at the UFPA, coordinator of the courses for dance technicians, theater and choreography. Ballerina, choreographer, artistic director of the company Experimental de Dança. Former teacher and choreographer of the Grupo Coreográfico da UFPA. Initiator of the project Estudo e Criação em Dança Contemporânea (Studies and Creation in Contemporary Dance).

The city of Belém in the state of Pará to the North of Brazil experienced in 1964 – just like the other states – the effects of the miltary coup. In spite of censorship, artists and cultural activists found paths of resistance. In cooperation with the Ministry for Ediucation and Culture, the UFPA offered the first course on modern dance for the citizens of Pará on initiative of Eni Corrêa. In 1968, the first dance group in an academic context was founded: Grupo Coreográfico da UFPA (UFPA Choreographic Group) - Center for Training and Research in Contemporary Dance. With its innovative and avant-gardistic work, it contributed to the introduction of the first course on dance technique in northern Brazil at the UFPA. From 2008, the university will also be offering a certified diploma course for dance. This talk takes a look at how dance historically and aesthetically found its way into the university with an eye on its relationship to knowledge and skill in the artistic-academic field.

Alpendre from Within and Without:

Andrea Bardawil (Fortaleza) – Choreographer, since 1991 director of the Compagnie Arte Andanças, contributor to the project Rumos Itaú Cultural Dança, scholarship from the Bolsa Vitae Art Program in 2000. In 2003 she was artistic director at the Dance College of Ceará. She is currently coordinator of the Núcleo de Dança do ALPENDRE (Art House for Research and Publication), of dance technique courses (Senac, Secult e Centro Cultural Dragão do Mar) and the Ceará International Dance Biennale.

The experiences of the past seven years of working in Alpendre have opened up room for a very special dialogue between dance and other artistic languages and have encouraged an intense and fruitful exchange of contemporary research. In addition to artistic production, this has produced a knowledge base that in itself opens up fresh frontiers for new developments. The study and practice of dance in Alpendre, initiated by the Compagnie Cia. da Arte Andanças, reflects the diversity and vitality of scenic dance in Ceará over the last ten years. This development has much to do with the support of the Bienal Internacional de Dança (International Dance Biennale), the Instituto Dragão do Mar (Ceará Dance College) and other initiatives. I would like to will speak about some of the particularities of this process, focusing thereby on this space as a new field of possibility in the city, an in-between place, always open for experimentation.

Dance in Southern Brazil: The Clash of Tradition and the Contemporary, of the Sublime and the Popular:

Airton Tomazzoni (Porto Alegre) - Journalist, choreographer and scholar. MA in Communication Studies at the Unisinos. Professor for Dance at the UFRGS. Director of the municipal dance center in Porto Alegre’s Department for Culture.

Dance production in Porto Alegre has a long-standing tradition. On the one hand there is the strong cultural influence of the folklore of the south-Brazilian cowboys – the gaúcho – affected by rural life and the fighting and butchering of cattle. On the other hand lies the pioneer spirit of artistic creation in dance, which emerged with the Instituto de Cultura Física (Institute for Physical Culture). The Instituto trained the first professional dancers in Dalcroze gymnastics and soon after, beginning of the 20th century, brought classical ballet to Rio Grande do Sul. Throughout the sublime and the popular always existed side-by-side and often clashed. The contemporary scene changed this and introduced a new approach by which these previously independent directions in dance were given the chance to present themselves, began to intermingle and foster unique relationships – a development that today reveals its unique quality in current productions.