Alice Ripoll & Hiltinho Fantástico – PUFF
PUFF is a magnetic solo that explores the idea of disguise as a way to transmit silenced cultures, traditions, and ancestral knowledge from the African diaspora. Alone on stage, the extraordinary Hiltinho Fantástico embodies the rich legacy of Afro-Brazilian dance.
He draws on movements rooted in Passinho - an urban dance style that emerged in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro - alongside samba and capoeira. Through illusionary effects, his body appears both familiar and otherworldly, shifting from confidence to softness, and from mastery to surrender.
Under the direction of choreographer Alice Ripoll, PUFF evokes the idea of a fleeting breath - something that appears and disappears as if by magic. It is a tribute to heritage and powerfully reminds us how culture adapts and endures, even when it seems to vanish.
Gurshad Shaheman – Cabaret Téhéran
Cabaret Téhéran commemorates cabaret as a space of resistance, memory, and cultural expression. By weaving together personal stories and collective histories of forgotten female cabaret stars, the piece explores universal themes such as exile, identity, and political restriction. Performance is positioned as a space to reclaim agency and reshape shared narratives. In the face of censorship and displacement, freedom, connection, and the power of artistic expression take center stage.
"Using archival footage, Gurshad Shaheman reflects on the history of cabarets that shaped Tehran’s notorious nightlife before the 1979 revolution. These venues were not only places of celebration and nocturnal wandering, but also springboards for young artists, singers, and actresses who made headlines at the time. By tracing the lives of several of these former stars, Cabaret Téhéran maps the history of feminist struggle in Iran since the 1950s, culminating in the 2023 Woman, Life, Freedom movement. The life paths of these stars often led them into exile in Europe or the United States, creating bridges with the West and drawing parallels between feminist struggles across different contexts. The performance takes the form of a cabaret in which Gurshad Shaheman, alone on stage, comments on the archival images and embodies various figures from pop culture, performing live songs that mark key moments in history."
