The focal element of the show A gesture that is nothing but a threat is the word - not as a way of conveying meaning, but as a sound which can be plastically formed. The artists want to free it from semantic and syntactic rules, determine anew its relations with movement and gesture and, thus, illustrate the complexity of human experiences. As Paul Auster wrote in The Invention of Solitude: “Playing with words is merely to examine the way the mind functions, to mirror a particle of the world as the mind perceives it. In the same way, the world is just not the sum of the things that are in it. It is the infinitely complex network of connections among them.” The show was awarded the Prix Jardin d’Europe 2011 for “their thorough re-thinking and detailed investigation of the word, voice and sound in relation to embodiment”.
Sofia Dias & Vítor Roriz started to cooperate in 2006. Sofia Dias graduated from the National Conservatory Dance School in Lisbon. She received a grant in New York from the Portuguese Ministry of Culture. She continued her education in C.e.M. (Centro em Movimento) and during numerous workshops. She cooperated with such artists as Lilia Mestre/Random Scream, Corinne Rochet/Co. Utilité Publique, Tânia Carvalho, Clara Andermatt and Marc Martins. She also creates soundscapes for her own works and for projects with other artists.
Vítor Roriz studied Physical Education at the University in Porto. He worked as an actor in Oficina Theatre Company (1997-2000) and, afterwards, continued his dance education in Centro de Dança do Porto and Fórum Dança in Lisbon. He partook in multidisciplinary projects COLINA/Talino6 and in danceWeb Scholarship Programme as part of Impulse Tanz in Vienna. He cooperated, among others, with Paola Moreno, Bruno Dizien, Wim Vandekeybus/Ultima Vez, Guilherme Botelho/Alias Compagnie, Lilia Mestre and Davis Freeman/Random Scream, and Marc Martins.
Direction, performance, text: Sofia Dias & Vítor Roriz
Sound: Sofia Dias
Artistic cooperation: Catarina Dias (image on stage)
Costumes: Lara Torres
Technical coordination and lighting: Nuno Borda de Água
Coproductio:n Box Nova/CCB, O Espaço do Tempo, CDCE
Partners: alkantara, ACCCA, O Rumo do Fumo, Negócio/ZDB, Bains Connective
Financial administration: SUMO Associação de Difusão Cultural
Tour organization: Materiais Diversos
The project was financed by: Governo de Portugal/Secretário de Estado da Cultura – DG Artes
Thanks t:o Pietro Romani, Maria Ramos, Câmara Municipal de Montemor-o-Novo, André Pires Calvário, Cláudia Mateus