Present develops as a stage poem negotiating human existence in relation to time and action. It is a game in between the two meanings of the word “present”; a dance dialogue evolving as an encounter with thyself, with the two performers on stage often functioning as one.
The performance artistically imprints the outcomes of the reasearch implemented by SMouTh in the period 2021-2022 on the combination of contemporary dance and sign language to create a new stage language for inclusion and accesibility in the arts.
The show premiered on January 2023 at the Mill of Pappas in Larissa, with the support of the Mayoralty of Culture and Sciences of the Municipality of Larissa.
Direction-choreography: Despoina Bounitsi
Text: Costas Lamproulis
Music: Filippos Zoukas
2nd choreographer: Athena Manoli
Performers: Georgia Kollyra, Konstantina Papageorgiou
Sign language instructor: Evi Orfanidou
Images-light design: Giannis Chatziantoniou
Research team: Despoina Bounitsi, Costas Lamproulis, Filippos Zoukas, Athena Manoli, Evi Orfanidou, Maria Kaprini, Maria Chandrinou
*The research has been co-funded by the Greek Ministry of Culture & Sports in 2021.