Transformations Under the Aegis of Less is More, by escuela moderna/ateneo libertario

On 22nd, July 2022, Saburo Teshigawara y Rihoko Sato premiered Petrouchka at the Malibran Theater in Venice, a ballet distinguished both for the courage to revive a cornerstone of the Russian Ballet and for a choreography that combines dance with costume and masks, and for a breathtaking lighting design. We know the Maestro to be a complete and multifaceted artist, a sculptor, a draftsman, a painter, as well as a choreographer and a dancer. His works are immersive, hypnotic and iconic.

In the Russian tradition, Petrouchka is a puppet like Harlequin, Pulcinella, Coppelia, Pierrot or Pinocchio, however his melancholy and romantically-charged, sentimental character reveals the metamorphosis that an inanimate object undergoes as it becomes humanized through love. Humanization as like a liberating process.

Teshigawara discusses liberating dance from dance, analysing nuances and contradictions of contemporary dance, while also asking: what exactly does freedom mean? Getting a sense of freedom? How do you give freedom? Would you rather free yourself or others? The object relationship and the search for freedom - how does it work together? As we look at a common object, such as a chair, we become aware that it is still a part of our emotional connection, and that it can wait for us for a very very long time while still remaining available to our relationship with our bodies.

Thus the puppet, the mask, the love of Petrouchka / Saburo towards the Dancer / Rihoko, and the blows of the Moor that will lead to the death of the protagonist and the reappearance of the Dancer, do nothing but materialize the fulfilment of this love in losing life, and like a chrysalis, you come back to life in a dynamic process of liberation.

Rocío Molina and Saburo Teshigawara. Leone d'Argento and Leone d'Oro

The awarding of the prizes takes place the following morning at the theater Arsenale.

The event begins with the Leone d’Argento Rocío Molina, a figure of great importance in the Flamenco tradition, a dance that moves from the Andalusian gipsy culture, therefore from the Roma tradition. People without a homeland have always been present in the arts, just consider the Buenaventura or Caravaggio’s Bari.

"He is literally one of the most important flamenco artists. It brings something meaningful and precious to flamenco and puts it at its core. We consider Rocio Molina to be one of the most important artists in our country, and not only for flamenco.

I first heard about her from José Luis Ortiz Nuevo: "There's a girl in Malaga who does not just dance well, she's an artist." Rocío Molina's work soon entered the space that Israel Galván had opened to flamenco since Los Zapatos Rojos. The word revolution is too much a publicity stunt, too much a cry of alarm if you like. I prefer to talk about metamorphosis, I don't know, like the one that Enrique Morente or Camarón de la Isla produce in flamenco at a given moment.

It's not just about singing. They are groundbreaking and change the parameters, rules and even emotions in the art experience, in the experience of flamenco, once and for all. Rocío Molina, by instinct and intelligence, immediately accessed this territory and took it to new levels. Very early. The way in which he gave knowledge to his body and, from his body to flamenco, occurred from the very beginning. The appearance of Rocio Molina in this new territory is a sort of an epiphany..."

Pedro G Romero.

Rocío Molina in Fallen from Heaven (Caida del Cielo). Photograph by Foteini Christofilopoulou. Image courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.

Image courtesy of La Biennale di Venezia.

The awarding of the Leone d’Oro to Saburo Teshigawara on behalf of both the President and the Director follows.

The director, in motivating the award, says: "Brave, extraordinary, sensitive and electrifying, Saburo Teshigawara has inspired, challenged and galvanized many generations of artists. Teshigawara's sharp sculptural sensibility, his powerful sense of choreographic forms and his very personal language coalesce to create a world that peculiarly is his. His practice spans a wide range of disciplines, from theater to visual arts, from film/video to the set design, lighting and costumes for all of his shows.

It is his ability to build entire artistic ecosystems, alongside his inexhaustible courage to unlearn that makes him unique compared to other artists.

Teshigawara grasps the power of a body in constant transformation and is determined to expand the potential of choreography beyond traditional limits. His pioneering attitude, his incomparable technique and his mastery of means result in works that cross borders by sliding across genres."

Teshigawara, in greeting and thanking the participants, did not miss to dedicate the Leone d’Oro to Rihoko Sato; nor did he miss to recall the importance of supporting the younger generations, to which he recommended, in the face of something difficult, to feel isolated, to have the courage to experience, to be oneself in all circumstances, to go through fragility and fears, because this movement builds more powerful mood for the construction of a work of art. Teshigawara's messages are frank, direct, and sincere; they are authentic and always invite one to get involved, and this Leone d’Oro is a great gift for all of us and for all those who love the arts, of them.