Hosted by Dance Gate Lefkosia, Cyprus in collaboration with Dance House Lefkosia, followed by On Bodies Dance and Performance Festival.
photo by Ioli Kaskani
The EDN Atelier ‘Processes of Healing: Becoming Well Again’, hosted by Dance Gate Lefkosia in collaboration with Dance House Lefkosia and leading up to the On Bodies Dance and Performance Festival took place from May 16 to 17, 2024 in Nicosia, Cyprus.
The Atelier offered theoretical and performative presentations, curated walks, physical practices, discussions and an invitation to a Hammam as pathways to feel into both the grief and healing processes circulating on an island that has lived through multiple colonial histories and 50 years of division between a Greek South and Turkish North. The two-day gathering provided philosophical and artistic approaches from local artists engaging art as a pathway for healing, both for society and artists themselves.
Participating and contributing to the reflective and immersive discourse were over 55 local and international attendees, including dance artists, architects, writers, researchers, artistic and executive directors, production managers, students, historians and curators.
Guest speakers included alternative therapist Dr. Klitos Tsiolis, urbanist and architect Socrates Stratis, performance artist and founder of Dance Gate Lefkosia and Echo Arts Arianna Economou, Zambian-Cypriot artist and researcher Gervaise Alexis Savvias, social anthropology researcher Nihal Soğancı, art historian Dr. Gabriel Koureas, artistic director of Dance House Lefkosia Petros Konnaris, interdisciplinary performance artist and co-founder of the inclusive theatre group Koullou|Makka Nayia T. Karakosta, performer and artistic director of the Center of Performing Arts MITOS Elena Agathokleous, researcher, artist and educator Dr. Erica Charalambous and curator and art theorist Evagoras Vanezis.
The curated walks and physical practices were led by performers and practitioners Belinda Papavasiliou, Anna Tzakou, Machi D. Lindahl and Melissa Garcia Carro, with a performance by Lia Haraki.
The design of the two-day program was inspired by the three stages of trauma recovery: 1) securing safety and selfcare, 2) processing: remembering and grieving, 3) reconnection and meaning.
The welcoming, attentive, yet expansive and thought-provoking space the Atelier proposed was an integral part of its curation process.
Report by Monica Gillette
Dance dramaturg and researcher Monica Gillette reports on the Atelier's programme interventions, situated in Nicosia, the last divided capital in Europe.
Podcast Series
The Atelier is documented in three podcast episodes, featuring interviews with participants, contributors and hosts.
Welcome
Performing artists, researchers, dramaturgs, curators, community organisers, and other dance professionals were invited to join us in Cyprus this May to explore various theoretical and performative discourses on the concept of healing and taking time to process trauma.
Together with a series of collaborators and researchers from the fields of art, science, and philosophy, we attempted to explore healing both as a theme and a methodology.
What can art practices borrow from healing processes? How do artists address trauma and healing in their work? How can we heal ourselves, our community, and the land that we live in?
Στις 16-17 Μαΐου, λαμβάνει χώρα και το Ατελιέ Healing: Becoming Well Again, το οποίο πραγματοποιείται σε συνεργασία με το EDN-European Dance Development Network και το Dance Gate Lefkosia-Cyprus. Τι περιλαμβάνει ακριβώς το πρόγραμμα;
Το πρόγραμμα περιλαμβάνει συζητήσεις και ομιλίες, εργαστήρια, περιπάτους και άλλες παραστατικές δράσεις που εξερευνούν τη θεματική της επούλωσης και τη σχέση με την τέχνη και τον χορό. Το πρόγραμμα επιμεληθήκαμε με την Αριάννα Οικονόμου και συμμετέχουν οι Κλίτος Τσιολής, NihalSoganci, δρ Σωκράτης Στρατής, Gervaise Savvias, δρ Γαβριήλ Κουρέας, Αριάννα Οικονόμου, δρ Έρικα Χαραλάμπους, Νάγια Τ. Καρακώστα, Έλενα Αγαθοκλέους, Ευαγόρας Βανέζης, Alexandra Waierstall, Λία Χαράκη, Ανδρομάχη Δ. Lindahl, Μπελίντα Παπαβασιλείου, Άννα Τζάκου και Melissa Garcia Carro.
Επίσης, χαιρόμαστε πάρα πολύ που στο Ατελιέ θα γίνει η πρώτη παρουσίαση του βιβλίου Poetics of Dance Encounters. Μια έκδοση η οποία είναι αποτέλεσμα του ερευνητικού προγράμματος της στέγης που απαντά στην ανάγκη της κοινότητας για ουσιαστική ανταλλαγή και συζήτηση γύρω από τις χορογραφικές πρακτικές στην Κύπρο. Το πρόγραμμα και το βιβλίο έγινε σε επιμέλεια της Έρικας Χαραλάμπους και του Ευαγόρα Βανέζη.
Programme
Thursday, 16 May 2024
Part 1: Securing Safety and Selfcare
09:30-10:00 Welcoming Coffee
10:00-11:00 Klitos Tsiolis: Introduction to healing - Stages, terms and perspectives
11:15-12:45 Healing Space: Discussion with Nihal Soganci, Gervaise Savvias, Socrates Stratis, Arianna Economou (How can we heal the/a city?)
12:45-14:15 Lunch
Part 2: Processing: Remembering and Grieving
14:15-15:00 Sensing and Performing Trauma in Wounded Cyprus through Contemporary Art Practices: Presentation/Talk by Dr Gavriel Koureas
15:10-16:30 Curated walk I: Belinda Papavasiliou
17:00-20:00 Encounters without division: Anna Tzakou (Workshop: open improvisational practice- open to the public)
17:00-22:00 Body Unmuted: Lia Haraki (Audible experience/performance)
Friday, 17 May 2024
Part 3: Reconnection
09:00-11:00 Hamam
10:00-11:00 Qigong morning practice: Machi D. Lindahl
11:15-12:35 Selfcare in the arts: Panel discussion with Petros Konnaris, Naya T. Karakosta, Alexandra Waierstall, Elena Agathokleous
12:45-14:00 Curated walk II: Melissa Garcia Carro
14:00-15:30 Lunch
Part 4: Closing
15:30-16:30 Poetics of Dance Encounters: Presentation by Evagoras Vanezis and Dr Erica Charalambous
16:45-18:00 Collective Memory: Documentation of Atelier, facilitated by Petros Konnaris
Opening of On Bodies Festival 2024
EDN could reimburse a fixed amount of travel contribution (calculated here), 3 per diems at 30€ per day, and book and cover three nights of accommodation for up to 7 participants. Priority was given to EDN members and their associates. A participation fee of 150€ was invoiced to the participant or their organisation.
EDN members were invited to respond to the Travel Bursaries Open Call on behalf of their associated artists and other freelance professionals.
Up to 9 further participants could join the Atelier without receiving travel support. These participants needed to book and cover travel and accommodation individually.
The deadline to apply for EDN travel support was 18 March 2024.
Registrations for participants who did not require EDN travel support were open until 2 May 2024.
If you have any questions, please get in touch with Christoph Bovermann at christoph@ednetwork.eu.
Each year, the EDNext project investigates important thematic topics relevant to the contemporary dance sector and disseminates the findings. In 2024, the project facilitates a platform to discuss and map the practices of care and wellbeing in the development of contemporary dance. EDNext is brought to you with the support of the Creative Europe funding.