tanz:digital I // 14 projects // 2021

Of Curious Nature

The company Of Curious Nature under the artistic direction of Helge Letonja brings together professional dancers from all over the world in the northwest of Germany. Dedicated to contemporary dance, they condense their diverse backgrounds into a multifaceted artistic identity. The movement language of the company is always intense, emotionally multifaceted between subtle inwardness and stirring energy. Drawing on the current impulses of life, the pieces by the artistic director and international guest choreographers offer a heterogeneous audience surprising, always credible points of contact with today's world in their artistic accuracy.
In the context of Tanz Digital, OCN cooperated as a pilot project with the CyberRäubern (experts in the synthesis of virtual reality and theater). The "Digital Motions Laborartory" is a VR experience that offers insights into the dancers' imaginary world and invites users to interact with dancing avatars. Based on this, the second project "Symbiosis - a vital dance tale" will be developed.

 


Ballett Theater Pforzheim

The Ballett Theater Pforzheim is one of the top contemporary ensembles in Baden-Württemberg and has been directed by Guido Markowitz since 2015. Born in Villach, he and his team - Damian Gmür as his deputy, rehearsal director and house choreographer, and Alexandra Karabelas as his dramaturg - expanded the ensemble to 14 dancers today and gave it a striking contemporary profile of its own. Markowitz set distinctive accents with full-length new productions at dance-unusual locations in the city, the founding of the URBAN THEATER PFORZHEIM LAB as an interface between contemporary stage dance and urban dance in Baden-Württemberg, the Digital Dance Lab for the aesthetic transfer of his own dance pieces into the medium of film, and as an experienced TANZLAND cooperation partner of several cities in southern Germany.  The in-house new productions aim at a new and stylistically diverse narration of existential themes of man in conflict with himself and the world to significant works of the musical canon. The dance film "Eremiten" by dancer and dance film director Mirko Ingrao experimented with the possibilities of translating emotional artistic substance of the ballet "Brahms - Glaube, Liebe, Hoffnung" (Brahms - Faith, Love, Hope) into partly monumental film images, which in turn explore dance beyond its boundaries in a new way.

 

 

 

Company Christoph Winkler

Christoph Winkler is considered as one of Germany's most distinguished and versatile choreographers. Starting from a close local connection to the Berlin dance and theater scene, he develops a variety of different formats and productions for very different venues, companies and institutions. Under the roof of the "Company Christoph Winkler" he brings dancers from all over the world together to work as temporary collectives on a broad spectrum of content. 

 


cie.toula limnaios

The cie.toula limnaios is an ensemble for contemporary dance founded in 1996 by Toula Limnaios and Ralf R. Ollertz. With about 60-70 performances per year and a continuous ensemble work of high quality is it today one of the most successful ensembles for contemporary dance and has been acting as cultural ambassador for the Goethe-Institut and the German Foreign Office since 2005. The cie. toula limnaios shows dance that is awake, critical and courageous, made by and for people.

 


deufert & plischke

The works and projects of the artist twins deufert&plischke extend beyond the framework of dance and theater by employing individual participation and everyday social life in artistic events. For example, the "Spinnerei Schwelm", conceived as an open studio, invites local people, colleagues and international guests to experience and shape artistic practice as a collaborative process. With "Anarchiv Tanz", a participatory art space and living archive will soon be created, which will actively deal with the physicality and complexity of living archives. Over the next three years, the integrative project "A Worn World" will explore the symbolic, personal and social significance of clothing together with local communities and continue deufert&plischke's local-specific work in various places around the world. 

 


dock11

DOCK 11 EDEN***** combines spatially and structurally the areas of production, pedagogy and presentation in contemporary dance at two locations in Berlin and offers courses for children, young people and adults, for beginners and professional dancers. In the theater, a high-quality international stage program with a focus on dance takes place on a weekly basis. More than 600 film artists submit their works to the international dance film festival POOL every year. Other festivals include MASH Dance Jerusalem, B12, SoundDance, PLATAFORMA and SpeeDance.  To date, more than 350 national and international artists* and companies have produced at DOCK 11 EDEN*****. From 2020-23, DOCK 11 will receive concept funding from the Berlin Senate.   

 


Freak de L’Afrique

The majority Black artist collective Freak de L'Afrique, which has been growing since 2012, is known for its hip and innovative contributions to the music and art scene in Berlin and beyond. As a result, the team celebrated great successes nationally as well as internationally through various event series, workshops and concerts. Since 2016, they have been setting new standards in the field of Afro Sounds and African dance culture, especially with the hip event series Cirque de L'Afrique, Bantus Diary and The Afro House Xperience. In addition to the successful implementation of projects, the collective's focus is on promoting diversity, creativity, tolerance and the dismantling of outdated images of Africa in our society. By combining culture and technology, Freak de L'Afrique continuously spreads a forward-thinking, unexpected, sometimes provocative, but above all positive lifestyle. As part of tanz digital, Freak de L'Afrique is collaborating with Selim Harbi, INVR and One Vibe Dance Studio to create a virtual version of the dance show Wena! JAME, Wena JAME VR.   

 


Hessisches Staatsballett

The Hessisches Staatsballett (HSB) is the dance company of the Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden and Staatstheater Darmstadt. Together with ballet director Bruno Heynderickx, house choreographer Tim Plegge and renowned guest choreographers, the 28-member ensemble creates a variety of pieces each season - from story ballet to more experimental forms. In addition to high-profile guest performances and a diverse residency program, the HSB is a cooperation partner of the Tanzplattform Rhein-Main and co-organizer of the annual Tanzfestival Rhein-Main. As part of tanz digital, the HSB is collaborating on the project "Memory Lapse" with Frankfurt-based choreographer, dance educator and project innovator Jason Jacobs, who works at the intersection of analog and digital dance mediation.  

 


Katja Erfurth

The Albert Theater Dresden, where Wigman and Hoyer, among others, danced, no longer exists in the real world. Together with composer and director Helmut Oehring, video artist and producer Torsten Ottersberg (GOGH smp STUDIO) and violinist Florian Mayer, dancer and choreographer Katja Erfurth designs three-dimensional spaces and connections that virtually imagine the no longer existing theater space and its immaterial past. The archaeological search for traces aims to visualize the multiform stratifications in their complexity and to overlay historical materials with contemporary dance-artistic engagement. The German Dance Archive Cologne is a cooperation partner for zwischenORT. 

 


LOT-Theater

The LOT Theater in Braunschweig is a guest theater for independent theater in Lower Saxony and a venue for the regional cultural scene. As a venue for contemporary theater forms, it offers production and presentation opportunities to independent groups and talented newcomers. The LOT Theater sees itself as a platform for new developments in the fields of theater, dance, music and performance


Max Levy Choreographic Works

Born in Tokyo, Max Levy completed his training at the prestigious San Francisco Ballet, performing with American Repertory Ballet, Charlotte Ballet, and Ballett Staatstheater Nürnerg before beginning an independent career in 2017 with Max Levy Choreographic Works. Levy's creations focus on the obscure, fantastic, and indescribable, attempting to emulate the questions of life through movement and performance. His meditative yet athletic approach to choreography instills a mixture of focus and sensitivity, bridging physical research to human needs and human emotion. Levy bases out of Frankfurt am Main, collaborating with other regional and international artists, musicians, and performers.  

 


MichaelDouglas Kollektiv

Collaboration and collective creative process are key concepts in the work of the MD Collective. The artists collaborate with experts in the fields of architecture, urban dance, digital media and conflict mediation to create artistic works. Their "signature" is a collaborative process that has produced a diverse repertoire of performances that embody the collective's shared passion for dance and dialogue. In addition to their stage performances, they offer choreographed dialogues with diverse groups and communities and creative workshop programs.   

 


Saša Asentić & Collaborators

Saša Asentić is a choreographer and cultural worker. Since 1999, Saša Asentić & Collaborators have been creating conditions in which artists* with disabilities take artistic leadership and embrace their own artistic vision and positioning. In doing so, accessible and low-barrier cultural programs are developed for diverse audiences. Equality and access are the principles of artistic-activist work. Thus, numerous "disability-led" performances, exhibitions, films and books have been created and presented in relevant contexts and festivals.  

 


Tanzcompagnie Süderelbe

The dance company Süderelbe was founded by the dancer Wiebke Heinrich in 2013. In cooperation with associations and initiatives, this makes a cultural contribution in the south of Hamburg. Children and young people learn dance, as a performing art and create an annual theater performance together with various artists. The Tanzcompagnie Süderelbe successfully managed to bring together refugees and non-refugees and was able to break down some prejudices and fears of contact. Since March 2020, the projects have focused on the medium of film.