Following a proposal by Ca.DA / Quinzena de Dança de Almada, the project “Quebranto”, by the choreographer Bruno Duarte, has been selected for the cross-border residency program of the European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists (EFFEA), an initiative of the European Festivals Association (EFA).

This program is designed to strengthen European cultural cooperation, connecting emerging artists to festival networks beyond their countries of origin, while prioritizing long-term professional development and audience engagement.

“Quebranto” is a solo choreography that awakens gestures, rituals, and superstitions inherited from a rural Portuguese childhood, translating them into a contemporary language through movement and sound. It explores how belief, memory, and energy inhabit the body and can be transformed into vibration. In dialogue with a vinyl record player and a theremin, the performer creates a living field where gesture becomes sound and sound becomes gesture. Positioned between ritual and abstraction, “Quebranto” is both invocation and investigation - a poetic attempt to re-enchant perception and allow the invisible to become visible through resonance and transformation.

The cross-border residency unfolds through interconnected stages across Europe, forming a continuous process of creation, community engagement, and artistic refinement. It begins at the Quinzena de Dança de Almada festival in Portugal, where its foundations are developed through a community component that invites participants to share personal stories and superstitions, creating a living archive that directly feeds the creative process.

The next stage takes place at Abril en Danza in Spain, focusing on the project's first public performance and further exploration of community participation through workshops and site-specific activities.

The residency continues in Šibenik, where the performance will be completed in its initial form and premiered at the end of the Šibenik Dance Festival, in Croatia. A series of workshops will invite local participants to experience the project.

Next, it travels to Dance Festival Malta, in Malta, for a residency dedicated to refining and expanding the performance, with a four-day community engagement project culminating in a specific presentation at Barakka Gardens.

In September, “Quebranto” will be presented at the Fagagna Dance Festival, in Italy, accompanied by a workshop, before returning to Portugal for performances at the Quinzena de Dança de Almada - International Dance Festival.

A final residency at the Derida Dance Fest, in Bulgaria, at the end of November, will focus on artistic refinement, community workshops, and a final presentation reflecting on the evolution of the work.

The innovative character of “Quebranto” emerges from a porous and adaptable methodology: mobility, shared resources, and a commitment to co-creation and community dialogue.

Led by Ca.DA - Companhia de Dança de Almada / Quinzena de Dança de Almada, this project brings together partners such as Abril en Danza (Spain), Šibenik Dance Festival (Croatia), Dance Festival Malta (Malta), Fagagna Dance Festival (Italy) and Derida Dance Fest (Bulgaria) which will host local residencies, promoting the project and ensuring all logistical and technical requirements.

The “Quebranto” residency is supported by the European Festivals Fund for Emerging Artists - EFFEA, an initiative of the European Festivals Association (EFA), co-funded by the European Union.

Photo credits to Daniel Faro.