Portuguese Dança Em Diálogos in one night only with Dance Now! Miami

Dança em Diálogos (DeD), a young and promising contemporary ballet company from Portugal, will debut in South Florida on Saturday, April 2, at the Miami Theater Center in Miami Shores. They are the main attraction of the season’s second program from Dance NOW! Miami (DNM), the renowned Miami group directed by Hannah Baumgarten and Diego Salterini.

The Artistic Directors of DeD are Solange Melo and Fernando Duarte. This will be Solange’s first visit to Miami and Fernando’s second, who said, “I had the opportunity to visit Miami Beach back in 2002 when I was invited to dance in that year’s edition of the Miami International Ballet Festival.”

According to Solange, DeD was created “as a choreographic platform where we can create our dance pieces and explore the relationship between dance, literature and other contemporary Portuguese artists and works of art. Dança em Diálogos means ‘dialoguing with dance,’ which we wanted to do. To deepen the relationship between dance and other forms of art, between the different dance techniques, and establish a closer dialogue with the public.”

Fernando added, “After having a long career as principal dancers in the Companhia Nacional de Bailado, we started DeD in 2018 with a modest format. The two of us, creating and dancing. But we felt a young generation of dancers were willing to go through this process with us, interested in the type of work we were developing, and now we are a small collective of dancers”.

What kind of dance does Dança em Diálogos do?

“We explore the narrative possibilities of dance,” Fernando explained. “But we can also be inspired by the work of other contemporary Portuguese artists, in music (we like to use Portuguese composers that are not usually used in dance) and literature and the visual arts. We are also interested in exploring a hybrid performance, where live music and dance are so connected that it is difficult to tell if it is a concert or a ballet. Many other things inspire our work, but above all, we like to make pieces that are attractive to the public”.

How different is the management of a dance company in Portugal in terms of government and public support?

For Solange, “there are many differences,” but she affirmed that she is sure that a lot of effort and work is needed both here and there. “In Portugal, it is not easy to have great stability in creating a full season; it is difficult to plan well in advance because many theaters have different realities in terms of their planning and because financing is difficult. To create new pieces, you must apply for grants, most of which are given by the government. I believe that in the United States, there is more a culture of patronage and sponsorship, both from individuals and from businesses.”

And she concludes, “As for the public in Portugal, it is very different depending on where we perform. As we are mainly a touring company, we can see that people are still more willing to see musical performances or theater, although we always feel that the public likes our work very much. I think it is quite different because, in the United States, many local companies allow a direct connection with communities, local businesses, and the public. In Portugal, that is not very common, so the direct connection, which I think is one of the most important things, is often lost between the dance companies and the place where they perform”.

This joint DNM/DeD performance results from a Sister City exchange between Miami Beach and Cascais. DNM visited Portugal in June last year to collaborate and perform with DeD, developing a new version of “Anusim, What is Hidden is Never Lost,” a work by Baumgarten and Salterini that the Miami public already knows and is inspired by the story of the 1497 decree in Portugal that forced all Jews to be baptized as “new Christians.” Now, Fernando shares the authorship of the piece with Hannah and Diego.

What works does DeD bring to Miami? What can you tell us about each of them?

“In addition to ‘Anusim,’ we are bringing two very different pieces representing what we are as choreographers and as a dance group,” Fernando replied. “The first piece is what we call the first book of the piece ‘Não Canteis a Valsa - três cadernos em dueto’ (Don’t Sing the Waltz). This piece was created in 2021 and originally lasted one hour and fifteen minutes. It is divided into three books with two pianists on stage. In Miami, we will present only one section. The other piece, ‘Preludio,’ is a duet created for a Gala in South Korea in 2014. It is a sample of my previous work, where classical ballet is very present. It uses the Bach Prelude from Cello Suite No. 1, and it will be exciting to do it in Miami with live music.”

The program includes the revival of Baumgarten’s “Grace,” inspired by the story of the biblical character Hannah, and the premiere of Salterini’s “E/Motio,” “a commentary on personal trauma and redemption,” according to the program notes. DeD’s duet “Prelude” will be accompanied live by the South Beach Chamber Ensemble.

Dance NOW! Miami and Dança Em Diálogos will perform on Saturday, April 2, at 8 p.m. at the Miami Theater Center (9806 NE Second Ave., Miami Shores. Tickets can be purchased at www.dancenowmiami.org/events/anusim and are $45, $25 for Miami Shores residents, and $15 for students with valid ID. Wearing a mask inside the theater is required if you do not have proof of complete vaccination. For more information, visit www.dancenowmiami.org or call 305-975-8489.

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This story was originally published March 29, 2022 at 12:50 PM.