VIAGRANDE STUDIOS AND THEATERS RIFLESSI JOIN FOR THE “HUMUS SALIENS” PROJECT – The eighth edition of the Short Theatre Festival will take place in Zafferana Etnea (CT) in July 2023.
Dancer and dramaturge, body, and narrative—that's what we're talking about today. "Dramaturg" is a German word that once referred to someone who wrote scripts. Over time, however, it evolved into a literary and theatrical consultant. It began moving between theater and dance, eventually expanding the list of meanings.
Il dramaturge, who sometimes coincides with the actor, the author, or the director himself, we can imagine him as a mediator between what happens on stage and the audience. He or she, in other words, is the one who ensures that the dramaturgy—entrusted to the body—is coherent. The performance must give something back to the audience. For this reason, this figure today appears increasingly indispensable for a work of substance and quality. The dramaturg is also elusive and multifaceted. In the European theater scene, he or she is a recognized professional figure. Yet, he or she is virtually ignored in Italy, especially in the field of dance.
Il dramaturge It is a figure that combines narration and dance, making art a spectacle
The impulse to promote the synergy between theatre and dance that comes from Viagrande StudiosViagrande Studios is the largest multidisciplinary center for high-level artistic training in Sicily. For over ten years, it has been committed to promoting and training Sicilian talent in dance, music, theater, and writing. Thus, merging these areas seemed like a logical consequence. It is here that a path was devised that establishes and consecrates the long-standing collaboration with Reflex Theaters, International Short Theatre Festival, now in its eighth year. The Festival will take place from July 13th to 15th, 2023, organized by the non-profit cultural association IterCulture. This summer event opens its doors to local, national, and international companies, and aims to promote the Etna region from a cultural, artistic, and social perspective.
It is precisely this sharing of interests that has, in fact, led to the birth of a project like this. A project, therefore, that places the figure of the dramaturgewhich involves and challenges writers and dancers in a stimulating, creative work with unprecedented results. "Humus Saliens" is the title of the project, which in fact connects to the theme: "otherness." Derived from that of the 2023 edition of the Festival. Six selected writers from the Two-Year School of Writing and Storytelling together with the dancers of the fourth year of Professional Training for Dancers.
Some students of the two-year School of Writing and Storytelling have studied the figure of the dramaturgeCombining their training at Viagrande Studios with that of the students at the dance academy
The main focus is a study of the female characters in opera, interpreted by the legendary Maria Callas on the centenary of her birth. Tormented, passionate, and enamored women, from Norma to Medea, from Madame Butterfly to Lucia di Lammermoor. These multifaceted figures will be explored by the writers and dancers through a narrative entrusted to the body, made up of suggestions and images. A site-specific performance will take place in the Municipal Park of Zafferana Etnea (CT), where the Festival will be hosted.
Edited by Gabriella Tomarchio, a graduate of the Viagrande Studios Biennial School of Writing and Storytelling
