“Dance is when a person moves honestly"
Arianna Di Francesco is a wonderful dancer who is currently in Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company since 2017.
-After your experiences in Italy, you moved to Israel. How have you changed? And how does your artistic vision change?
“It opened my mind. The first thing I noticed was honesty: the honesty of movement. Slowly I tried to put aside everything I had, not losing it, to leave space for so many new notions. Movement becomes dance when a person moves honestly. And I noticed honesty, in movement, freedom to do anything without worrying about what it looks like. Often we put so much importance in the image of movement, its shape. But the beautiful thing I discovered here is the freedom of every person to move how they want because, connecting with the present, the movement is beautiful to watch, it is true and honest. And this was the first change, not only as a dancer but also as a person: I learned to see life in every facet.”
-You talk about honesty. How are you able to recognize honesty in a dancer?
“It’s usually a feeling. If a person is honest or not, you immediately recognize it: it’s something bigger than us. It’s like when we show feelings through our body without realizing it. You can see the honesty of a person regardless of what the person is doing.”
-You joined Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company when you were really young. What did you feel when you got the contract?
“It was a very special process. While in the years before there was always a lot of insecurity, I wasn’t sure where I was, what I was doing, at that moment, I felt that was exactly what was supposed to happen for me.”
-How does the company work in the creation process for performances?
“The thing I really like about this company is that we have so much freedom to create. Of course, the director can give us music guidelines, his ideas, or the kind of force he wants. But dancers have the ability to share material, creating solo, duo or trio, and then the director chooses, unites, modifies what we create. It was a new and interesting process for me and it made me grow a lot.”
-How would you describe the company’s work? What makes it unique?
“It seems strange to say because it is not connected to the dance, but maybe the place. In Italy and in the world, we do not have something like this: it is a village on a hill, in nature, closed by a gate around and all families live in. It is special that here is the theater of the company. So the place makes the company unique and this also influences our work, because it influences the relationship with other dancers. We are always connected: it is very special.”
-What is the value of improvisation or movement research as a dancer?
“It’s the basis. I have always studied a lot, but the study should be balanced with research. Sometimes when we try to improvise, we try too hard. Sometimes, I think, we should work on letting it go, without thinking, like kids. I am a person who thinks too much, and in improvisation, I am trying to let my body think instead of my head. Surely it is very important to improvise, research, play by doing it, so not always being too serious sometimes in doing it. The game and the joke are the most honest thing: we should learn from kids, they play and joke in the most honest and naive way possible. We should move and search, free and honest.”
-How important do you think is technique?
“In Kibbutz we talk about freedom of movement but every day we start with a ballet lesson. I think the most important thing is always to find a balance: so, as much as we go to study ballet to be able to balance, we should also find time to research. The balance between everything. When you are younger it is much more important to have a solid base and then, growing, it is important also to try different styles.”
-What catches your attention in another dancer? What makes the difference in a body, besides honesty?
“I think accuracy in doing things. When the dancer gives you the chance to understand everything he’s doing even if he has to make very fast movements. But the quality of that person makes them capable of understanding everything you’re seeing.”
-As a teacher, what would you like to transmit about your experience to young dancers?
“One thing I really like to do is to let the dancers breathe, stretch and take 5 minutes before the class, because nobody ever gives us this time. When we push so much as dancers, sometimes we forget that we are also human beings: I like to give the opportunity to feel students in front of me as dancers, but also as human beings. Each student takes different notions when teaching an hour and a half lesson: so sometimes I prefer to teach a shorter piece but with as much information as possible about the type of movement I’m doing.”
-How important is it to have other passions besides the dance?
“Very important. Dancing for dancers is what moves us, it is our life, it is our passion, without that we would die. But in order not to “hate” it, we must always be in search, as we are constantly searching for the movement I believe we must always research in our lives. The quarantine period was perfect for this: I started to paint but the feeling I discovered in the sensation of color was a completely different kind of happiness and I think that these little things also help us in the work we do. I believe in falling in love with people, places, sounds...everything.”
-Describe yourself as a dancer with three words
“Hard worker, very curious, sensitive.”
-Can you give some advice to young dancers?
“Don’t be afraid of your body. Listen to what it tells you. Don’t be scared to step up and be yourselves, be honest and things will work out. Accept your body and let it speak for you. Don’t fall down, because when you receive ‘No’, it is not the time to lose parts of yourselves, but to be even more what you are, with honesty.”
Thank you for the chance Arianna. It was an honor for us to interview you!
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