Migrare – Work in Progress
Tuesday, October 29, 2019
5:00 pm
Duderstadt Center Gallery
“Migrare” is a dance and videography research project conducted by School of Music, Theater and Dance MFA student Mario Vircha in France, Jordan, Greece and Costa Rica; four countries that have welcomed refugee dance artists whose work he wished to investigate. He studied how the process of cultural extension from native countries to host countries is being nourished by the artistic communities in these new locations. He explored the ways refugee and displaced artists are creating work in response to the political situations in the countries they have fled and the challenges of the new environment. Mario’s research leads directly to his MFA thesis project, which is based on themes of migration, and which will combine live dance performance with recorded video projection. His time abroad is contributing to the production of a short film and live dance choreography to be titled “Migrare”. It will chronicle the personal and creative journeys of these immigrant dance artists.
One of the aims of this project is to show how immigrant artists are making a significant contribution to the expansion of global culture. In some ways migration is blurring the borders of the art activity. “Migrare” can also be used as a platform for those artists that do not have an opportunity to expose or elevate their voice to the international community, such is the case with a large group of Middle Easterners that found refuge in Jordan and are now looking for space or collaborators.