The Danae & Dionysios duo of choreographers/dancers have a vision of building the conditions necessary so as to share their work in places with no easy access to art, thus fostering people’s trust and enthusiasm for it. Their creations suggest a harmonious coexistence between nature and its beings, while true events and legends about tibes and wild animals become the canvas for their stories.
The Pilgrims production aims to boost the extroversion of contemporary dance towards peripheral Greece and consists of three actions held in open-air public spaces: a contemporary dance show (Fάrιsa), a show for younger ages as well (“Napi, the girl and the bubble”) and a creative workshop for the people of the local comminities.
With support from the Foundation, the duo focused on designing the action for children, collaborating with visual artist Martha Foka in designing and building a mask for the show’s leading hero as the main dramaturgical tool of the play. Next they approached the “Folia Baletou” dance-costume studio to select the materials and make a large-scale costume. Once all these were ready, they embarked on the choreographic/creative side at the “Orsolina 28” residency centre of Moncalvo, Italy. Staying there for almost four weeks, they choreographed “Napi, the girl and the bubble”, a 22-minute project which they shared with the village’s local community at the end of their stay; having asked the centre’s management to spread the word about the play being also suitable for children, they were overjoyed to see over 30 kids aged 5 – 12 with their parents among the audience. The play was also shown at the Dance Waves Festival in Nicosia on 27 November 2022.
In Spring 2023 they start their tour with Pilgrims around Greece, beginning with Crete (Chania, Rethymnon, Agios Nikolaos and the village of Patsides), the Peloponnese (Nafplio, Vamvakou, Patra, Kalamata, Tripoli, Kastri), Messolongi, etc.
“The support of the J. F. Costopoulos Foundation has been decisive in shaping the overall production of Pilgrims. It afforded us the luxury of exploring for the first time the creative process behind a children’s show and collaborate with artists we have been admiring for years. As part of the research and development for “Napi, the girl and the bubble” we have already had feedback from a young audience which will be used for its further development. The actions will premiere in the spring of 2023, and we can’t wait for them to start fulfilling their aim—to become the interface between contemporary dance and the audience of regional Greece.”
Danae & Dionysios
Photos: © Tommy Pascal
