Dunk

2023

Dunk negotiates the idea of change that occurs in the community and the landscape of a town. It examines the topic from the perspective of young people (Gen Z) and specifically how their effort for personal growth affects their environment and by extension the town they live in. Dunk reflects a hopeful attempt at change and reshaping through a chaotic harmony of young - and tireless - bodies.

The piece draws inspiration from the city of Elefsina and the transformations it has undergone in the last 100 years. The research focuses on the city's society, which was mostly formed by people of different origins. The multiculturalism that described the community of Eleusis for decades resulted in a young generation of locals with an identity crisis. While the past is still evident in the city landscape, given over to the ravages of time, young people are redefining their identity and dreaming of a better future for their hometown. They recognize the inevitable change that accumulates over time and they continue to shape Elefsina both in its landscape and in the core of its society

Elefsina has undergone changes throughout the years, most of which had greatly impacted the environment and the community. However, young people today define their identity in relation to their hometown, they develop within it and embrace all the peculiarities it hides.

The research focuses on their experience and specifically how they continue to demand better living conditions, despite the countless difficulties and the baggage of the past. Therefore, kinesiology emerges from elements that make up the daily life of young people as well as from personal stories that they have experienced in the town. Performers create spatial and movement relationships with each other by performing material inspired by the routine of young people in the town, from daily walks and team sports to nightlife parties. The repetitiveness that characterises the work becomes a symbol of the continuous effort of young people for personal development that affects the relationship between them as well as their relationship with the town. The performers invite the audience to participate in their chaotic gathering, creating an ephemeral community very reminiscent of that of Eleusis: affected by the interaction of its people and always welcoming change.

Choreographer’s note

Firstly,

if we consider that change is a concept - or rather a reality - that lives very deep inside us, then we must admit that it is a reality that has not stopped deceiving us since the beginning of our lives. Perhaps that's why every time we look back in time - often unintentionally - we come face to face with a person we often fail to recognize.

In Eleusis, I met a community full of life in a ghost town. There, I was able to understand what transformation really is - buildings fall while people flourish. There, I found difficulties but also people who learned to overcome them.

The project came about almost automatically, with only a few interventions on my part. The choreographic process was so organic that the work took shape automatically, without any particular intervention from my side. I realised this when I couldn't fully recall how we got here.

The performers were willing to walk for months and get nowhere, which greatly aided the creative process.

Finally,

all I can really say is

that the work is as much ours as it is yours.

Credits

Choreography / Photos / Video: Diamanto Hadjizacharia

Music: Alexandros Christofidis

Performance: Eleftheria Agapaki, Sofia Anastasiou, Ioanna Karategou, Maritina Katsimpraki

With the generous participation of Eleusinian people from the Cultterra team.

The piece was created in the frame of U(R)TOPIAS Academy of Choreography program, an initiative of Aerites Dance Company.

A production of Eleusis 2023 European Captial of Culture.