workshop and residency for Roberta Milevoj at Uferstudios Berlin

After an open call by the partner (co-organizer Tala Dance) the artist Roberta Milevoj came to Uferstudios Berlin for a residency in the frame of Wild Card program. Part of the residency was the involvement in the workshop “Motion bank and other choreographic tools”, led by the associated partner HZT (Inter University Center for Dance Berlin)

Involved Artists and cultural workers:

Roberta Milevoj, the Wild Card invited artist, is a Croatian dancer, performer and choreographer from Pula

Nik Haffner, the artistic director of the HZT, is a German artist and professor.

Marlon Barrios Solano, workshop leader, is a Venezuelan, interdisciplinary artist, researcher and educator.

Inge Koks, creative advisor, is a Dutch curator and creative producer.

Nina Kurtela, Croatian dance and visual artist

Gisela Müller, artistic director of Tanzfabrik Berlin

Barbara Friedrich, Uferstudios, managing director

In the workshop several choreographic media tools were introduced and worked with. Among those were digital publications of recent years:


Steve Paxton: Material for the Spine (DVD-rom, 2008)


Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker/ Rosas: A Choreographer's Score (4 DVDs, 2012)

William Forsythe: Synchronous Objects (web-based, 2009)

Motion Bank -scores by Deborah Hay, Jonathan Burrows and Matteo Fargion

The Siobhan Davies Archive project (web-based, 2007)

The contents of these digital dance and choreography tools all have their origin in the choreographic and dance practice. How can these ideas/ contents be transferred back into the studio and how can individual questions and interests be formulated towards these propositions was the main area explored. After short introductions during the first days, the focus was on a practice lead exploration of these tools. The structure of the workshop was that about two hours per day was used to introduce and exchange some of the tools' ideas, working with them in a larger group. The other two hours per day were used for working within small groups on finding ways into the material of each tool and how this material can be integrated, adapted and further extended within ones' own choreographic and dance practice. The aim of the workshop was to find individual ways of using the tools and - resulting from this process - to formulate specific questions towards a tool and the ideas and concepts within it.

During the last week, Roberta used the facilities at Ufer Studios to individually explore and experiment with the concepts se was introduced to, and to re-think the relationship between a rational and experience based approach in choreography.

She also started to conceptualise a new piece together with the berlin based Croatian artist Nina Kurtela.

During her stay in Berlin, Roberta seized the opportunity to see several local preformaces, for example:

·       10 performances from Sacre100 at HAUThe festival magical at Sophiensaele

·       2 performances at ADA studio

·       2 performances from the HZT MA students at Ufer Studios

·       Isabelle Schad´s new piece ‘form und masse’

An outcome of Roberta Milevoj´ stay and work was the invitation from Tanzfabrik Berlin to present her work “Roberta Again” in the “Open Spaces” festival on February 22, 2014.

Download and read the experience report by Roberta in the right column.