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For a gesture to be a threat it has to be a force, more than a weapon. Sofia Dias and Vítor Roriz created A gesture that is nothing but a threat in 2011, and shortly after received the Prix Jardin d’Europe, a recognition which granted the work high visibility and a consequent tour throughout Europe. In this piece, gestures and words have the same value and both operate from a place of immanence. In the same way that words take on meaning through the recognition of their sound and of a corresponding representation, here gestures also cause unease in their concreteness, even if abstracted from sense and meaning. It is a work of cognition for the spectator who, more than seeing, recognises and forms free associations, though not free from what language captures in terms of an emotional experience.

CREDITS

Sofia Dias & Vítor Roriz Direction, performance and text
Sofia Dias Sound
Catarina Dias Artistic Collaboration
Lara Torres Costumes
Nuno Borda de Água Technical Direction & Lighting
S&V + Vítor Alves Brotas (Agência 25) Executive producer
Box Nova/CCB, O Espaço do Tempo, CDCE Coproduction
Alkantara, ACCCA, O Rumo do Fumo, Negócio/ZDB, Bains Connective Partners
Governo de Portugal/Secretaria Geral da Cultura — DGArtes Project funded in 2011
Pietro Romani, Maria Ramos, Câmara Municipal de Montemor-o-Novo, André Pires Calvário, Cláudia Mateus Acknowledgements

A gesture that is nothing but a threat received the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation grant for internationalization in 2014.
Premiere: 2 July 2011, Centro Cultural de Belém, Lisbon.

Sofia Dias (London, 1983) & Vítor Roriz (Porto, 1980) are a duo of choreographers and dancers who have collaborated since 2006 in researching and creating several shows and performances, having collaborated closely with Bomba Suicida, O Espaço do Tempo, and Materiais Diversos, among other companies. The duo has collaborated with several artists, including Catarina Dias, Lara Torres, Marco Martins, Clara Andermatt, Mark Tompkins and Tiago Rodrigues. They teach regularly and organise residencies and meetings for reflection among artists and in diverse contexts, and were the curators of the second edition of Forum Dança’s Advanced Programme for Creation in the Performing Arts in 2018/2019.

P DE DANÇA

Throughout two long weekends, dance returns to the auditoriums of the Foundation with the performance of two dozen works created over recent years with support from the Gulbenkian and with some making their very first appearance in Portugal. Program selection under the curatorship of João dos Santos Martins.

PROGRAMME

The Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation reserves the right to collect and keep records of images, sounds and voice for the diffusion and collective preservation of the memory of its cultural and artistic activity. For further information, please contact us at [email protected].