In 2023 Cecilia will create her first big stage performance produced by Scapino Ballet Rotterdam and Maas Theater en Dans.
PINOCCHIO EFFECT=
When we lie, the tissue in our nose swells, causing it to itch. You can often catch people touching their nose after a lie.
A family performance for everyone between the ages of 10 to 110 full of humor and seriousness about something we all do: lie. Why do we actually lie, and about what? Most of the times these are white lies, but sometimes deceitful ones. And while some lie without reservation, others are left feeling guilty. Even online we often pretend to be different than we are. Where does this urge to lie come from anyway? With dance that cannot tell lies, theatre, live video and blunt performances, PINOCCHIO EFFECT is a performance that tackles serious subjects in a humorous way. The dancers all live together as one family in a house full of secret rooms. The family members try to manipulate each other or escape reality. Slowly their lies and truths come to light and reveal their true nature. Brace yourself for absolute worst show in the world!
“With Pinocchio Effect I want to show that we all think that we are not lying, but that this is actually human behavior that everyone exhibits. I want to discuss the effects of lying. How, for example, lies by parents can have a major impact on the social-emotional development of children. I also want to talk about the moral question: what is a good lie and what is a bad one? Why shouldn’t we lie? Can you lie too much, for example if your entire identity is made up? Social media influencers make money with the perfect image, everything looks nice and polished. But can a lie also be positive, something beautiful?”
– Cecilia Moisio
Credits PINOCCHIO EFFECT
Concept + direction + choreography: Cecilia Moisio
Performance: Katarzyna Sitarz, Yulia Kalinchenko, Gwen Langenberg, Serano Pinas, Daphne van Dooren, Dalma Doman, Lennart Huysentruyt a.o.
Text: Eva Maria de Wit
Decor: Marlies Schot
Light- and videodesign: Mark Thewessen
Music: Joni Vanhanen
Costume design: Petra Finke
Produced by Scapino Ballet Rotterdam and Maas Theater en Dans
In the spring of 2023 Cecilia will conduct research for PINOCCHIO EFFECT in the form of Laboratories: Interviews with families, parents and their children on trust, communication and how they tackle honesty within their family dynamic. These interviews will form the base for the scene’s and stories of the final theatre piece PINOCCHIO EFFECT.
Credits Labs
Video: Paul Sixta
Marketing + communication: Marjo van Lijssel, Daria Titova
In the spring of 2022, prior to the creation of PINK PORTAL, Cecilia Moisio conducted the research in the forms of laboratories and interviews with women of different ages and backgrounds. During the laboratories, the participants tried different theatrical exercises and talked about their experiences, stories and ideas about their bodies and sexuality. Together with playwright Eva Maria de Wit, Cecilia interviewed each woman individually in order to get a deeper insight into their experience. These conversations and real stories have become the inspiration and the the basis for the performance: a political statement about how the female body is viewed in 2022.
The special footage taken by Paul Sixta during these sessions, interviews and rehearsals of PINK PORTAL was used to create a documentary about the creation. On the 6th July – the day of the try out – the documentary was shown for the very first time. It was presented along with every performance during the tour of PINK PORTAL in 2022-2023 and now openly available online!
CREDITS:
Concept, direction and choreography: Cecilia Moisio
Filming and editing: Paul Sixta
With performance and participation of: Katarzyna Sitarz, Yulia Kalinchenko, Gwen Langenberg, Kadri Tegelmann, Daria Titova, Bianca Casaburi, Renee Hijl, Katya Vershinina, Laura Leino, Diana Roos, Daphne Agten, Vera Witleer, Kelly Hirina, Shelmith Oseth, Sophia Wuerz
Text: Eva Maria de Wit Music: Joni Vanhanen Costumes: Dorine van IJsseldijk PR and marketing: Marjo van Lijssel, Danielle van den Berg, Daria Titova Management: Hedi Legerstee Production manager: Lynn Meijer
Graphic design: Esther Noyons
Producer: Stichting Cecilia Moisio In collaboration with ccAmstel & ICK Amsterdam
Made possible by The Performing Arts Fund NL, Amsterdam Fund for the Arts, Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, VriendenLoterij Fonds, Stichting Imperium, Fonds 21
PINK PORTAL is the new evening length performance by Cecilia Moisio premiered at Julidans 2022.
Call me by my name. Why don’t you call me by my name? Cherry Cookie Candy Lady flower Cupcake power Cute little thingy Love button Wingy
PINK PORTAL is a tribute to where we all came from. An informative, funny but evenly emotional performance about the female body. From her first menstruation to her menopause. An all-female cast of women of different ages reflects on the control, criticism, worship and censorship that she has had to endure for centuries.
PINK PORTAL is the next step in the line of activistic performances by choreographer and theater maker Cecilia Moisio. The performance is designed to break taboos surrounding the female body and sexuality and is a statement about where women find themselves in society anno 2022.
“A powerful ode to the vulva (…) The multidisciplinary style is ingenious and varied, ranging from informative to humorous. (…) The dance (…) is strong and expressive. At the end, the soft extended cry of a newborn baby, is beautiful and moving” – Theaterkrant
PINK PORTAL ON TOUR 2022/2023
Even if you missed Julidans this year, you still have a chance to see PINK PORTAL on tour through the Netherlands during the upcoming season! Find us in your city:
November 25 – Parktheater, Pand P | Eindhoven
December 1 – De Nieuwe Vorst | Tilburg
December 8 – Theater aan de Rijn | Arnhem
January 11 – Theater Kikker | Utrecht
January 17 – Chassé Theater | Breda
January 18 – Maas Podium | Rotterdam
January 20 – Schouwburg de Lawei | Drachten
January 21 – Korzo | Den Haag
January 26 – Schouwburg Hengelo | Hengelo
January 28 – INS BLAU | Leiden
March 3 – Machinefabriek Theater, SPOT | Groningen
Made possible by: The Performing Arts Fund NL, Amsterdam Fund for the Arts, Fonds 21, Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, VriendenLoterij Fonds, Stichting Imperium
Special thanks to: Arnica Elsendoorn
Photography by Bart Grietens
The scenes and texts of PINK PORTAL are informed by the research process that happened not only through the laboratories with women of different ages and backgrounds and conversations about their experiences, but also through a wide and thorough theoretical and historical research. Even though some things you see on stage are ironic or exaggerated for the sake of theatricality, they are based on the true facts. We have collected all the things we learned from PINK PORTAL and now we would like to pass them on to you!
Yulia Kalinchenko (Russia, 1996) completed her professional training as a dancer and performer at the Modern Theater Dance department at Amsterdam University of Arts in 2018. She started collaborating with Cecilia Moisio in Mum’s The Word (2015), during her internship. Since then Yulia has been continually working with Cecilia on different projects, including Victory (2018), Juffenballet (2019-2020) and REVOLT (2021).
“While working on PINK PORTAL I learned a lot of new things about how the female body was mistreated throughout history and how it affected our psychological and physical confidence as women. That was pretty shocking, but very liberating to finally understand. I wish that we all would have conversations about our body differences more often, to understand that we are all OK and it is not shameful to share your experiences. This process gave me more energy and confidence to be involved in the difficult conversation about womanhood.”
Gwen Langenberg (1976, Netherlands) graduated as a dancer from the Amsterdam University of Arts (AHK) in 1998. Since then she worked in many dance projects, theatre, opera, musicals and films. In 2011 Gwen became one of the cast members of Jakop Ahlbom Company. In 2015 she worked with Cecilia Moisio for the first time in ‘This Is The End’ and, finally, after 7 years they meet again for PINK PORTAL. Next to being a performer, Gwen is a mother and a yogi (and a yoga teacher). After many years of side study she opened her own practice as a therapist and coach.
“It is still quite shocking to learn about the female position in society. Our female body, our sexuality, strength and beauty, ability to create life has such a minor place. Still, in 2022! Working on PINK PORTAL with a group women of different ages, with different backgrounds and strong personalities makes me feel proud of being a woman. I love our little sisterhood.”
Katarzyna Sitarz (Poland, 1985) is a freelance dancer, performer, improviser, choreographer and voice and movement researcher. She studied Dance and Choreography at the Rotterdam Dance Academy, Slavic Philology at the University of Wrocław, Experimental Performing Arts at SMASH Berlin and voice at the Lichtenberger Institute for Applied Voice Physiology in Germany. Since 2014 she works with Cecilia Moisio staging strong female characters in “Juxtapose” (2013), “Mum’s the Word” (2015), “Victory” (2018), REVOLT (2021) and now in PINK PORTAL.
“Tracing the history of the female body and how the myth of the goddess has been lost in the western culture made me look deeper at the implications of this process in our present society. What generally surprised me is how much there is still to investigate and explore about female nature. I have tapped into the ancestral sources, traces and ingredients from which my womanhood derives from. I have reconnected with the feminine power that lives in me and manifests herself in multiple ways.”
Daria Titova (Russia, 1999) is graduating from the Dancer/Maker department of ArtEZ University of Arts this summer. Before moving to the Netherlands, she has completed the training program with Vertigo Dance Company in Israel. Daria has already performed in a few recent pieces by Cecilia Moisio: ‘REVOLT – The Manifest’ (2020), ‘My Arms are Tired’ (2021) and REVOLT (2021).
“PINK PORTAL showed me how many facets of femininity I had no idea about or used to hide in myself. In addition to many physiological and historical facts about the female body, it was very important for me to explore the ancient, mystical and mythical female energy. It allowed me to discover the new depth and immense power, new joy of being a woman.”
Renee Hijl (2002, The Netherlands) is an 18-year old performer living in Amsterdam. She was a part of Korzo’s young dancers program Crosstown in The Hague for 5 years. In 2021 she came all the way to the final of ‘Kunstbende’ with her own solo piece. This is Renee’s first time working with Cecilia Moisio. Next to being a performer, she has just finished her first year of Criminology studies at the VU Amsterdam.
“During the PINK PORTAL journey all involved women – from a plethora of different ages and backgrounds – openly shared their personal stories and experiences. This gave me an insight in what the female body has to cope with and how women overcome what is being thrown at them. PINK PORTAL challenged me and my comfort zone. In the past months this work has enabled me to see my body as an actual human rather than a social framework.”
Bianca Casaburi (Italy, 1997) is a freelance contemporary dancer and performer based in Rotterdam. She is graduating from the Dancer/Maker department of ArtEZ University of Arts in Arnhem this summer. From 2016 until 2018 she trained and performed in Rome, working with choreographers from the Dutch professional field as well. Since 2021 she has began working with Cecilia Moisio and performed in “My Arms are Tired” and REVOLT.
“While working on PINK PORTAL, I learned that female sexual organs are more complex than it seems. I realized that the studies conducted to discover more about them are incredibly fresh, which shows how little importance this subject had until recently. I learned that us – women – are still a huge land to fully discover and understand. I wish for such topics to be properly included into our culture, education and social life. PINK PORTAL made me embrace my femininity for what it is, without shame. It made me realise that there’s still a lot of prejudice towards women, and that I have to and want to stand up for myself as one of them.”
Kadri Tegelman (Estonia, 1983) grew up in the Estonian countryside – a place of folklore, nature and abandonment. Being a classically trained mezzo-soprano, she has worked alongside musicians in the field of baroque, romantic, contemporary and folk music and is praised for her versatility and expression. 2021 saw the release of her CD “LAULA!”: a fusion of Estonian folk music, baroque and jazz. This is the first time Kadri is working with Cecilia Moisio.
“The most surprising information PINK PORTAL gave me was from the historical timeline: all true facts, some really jaw dropping moments. What I also never knew was that our magical body part – clitoris – never ages and has 8000 nerve endings. Being a part of PINK PORTAL has been a wonderful experience; working among these women who are so open about themselves, their bodies and experiences is truly inspiring. Also because am currently pregnant with my 2nd child, it is a journey that I will carry with me forever.”
A dazzling performance for teenagers and anyone who has ever been one. Produced by NNT and Maas theater en dans.
You have a bad hair day, a pimple, or you feel invisible. Meanwhile, you see all your perfect friends with their more-than-perfect jaw lines living their extremely happy lives. You think: I’m out, I’m off to sit in the ugly corner. Zinderella is about feeling different, and about all the demands you and the rest of the world place upon you.
In this physical fairy-tale show, with fourteen young and not-so-young bodies, we free ourselves from our grey worlds. We kick off the ball with wild dancing and give you a glimpse backstage, where insecurity, acne, and fear of your naked body aren’t hidden under a gorgeous gown. But know this: happiness always comes, sometimes from unexpected places and not always in the form of a prince or princess.
Concept, direction: Moniek Merkx | choreography: Cecilia Moisio | performers: Ada Daniele, Arno Verbruggen, Art Srisayam, Bodine Sutorius, Olympia Kotopoulos, Sam Corver, Sara Giampaolo and a group of teenage co-players | composition: Joop van Brakel | scenography: Sanne Danz | costumes: MAISON the FAUX | light design: Ge Wegman | direction co-players: Dorien Folkers | dramaturgy: Robbert van Heuven | photo’s: Andreas Etter | trailer: Oostblokmedia
Dance theater performance REVOLT speaks about peer pressure, protesting and questioning the status quo. About thinking critically versus hiding yourself behind the group and the collective denial of the truth. Do you want to have an impact on the world and influence on your own future? Do you dare to say what others do not dare? REVOLT is a wake-up call, an invitation for people to make their voices heard, to stay authentic and to make a difference in society.
REVOLT is made in the characteristic multidisciplinary style of choreographer and theater maker Cecilia Moisio, mixing personal stories with real-time social experiments, performance, theater, video and dance. A politically and socially engaged performance for ages 13 to 113 that rattles you. REVOLT reflects on our society with a critical eye, vulnerability, humor and sincerity. Cecilia did extensive research with young people between the ages of 12 and 25 and processed their personal as well as socio-political issues in REVOLT.
With the concept for REVOLT, Moisio won the Prize of the Dutch Dance Days Young Audience 2019.
Choreography, direction & idea: Cecilia Moisio
Performance: Serano Pinas, Yulia Kalinchenko, Frankly Joe Maulany, Katarzyna Sitarz, Bianca Casaburi, Daria Titova
At the beginning of 2021 Cecilia did a text and movement research into motherhood and the taboos around it. This research is a preparation for Cecilia’s upcoming work on female body-taboos and is part of a research grant she received from the AFK (Amsterdam Fund for the Arts). Together with pregnant performer Jorijn Vriesendorp and writer Eva Maria de Wit, they delved into birth stories, postpartum psychology and how becoming a mother changes you in general. Through extensive interviews they found material that is personal yet universal.
Idea, choreography and direction Cecilia Moisio
Texts Eva Maria de Wit
Performance Jorijn Vriesendorp
Dramaturg Cecile Brommer
Music Joni Vanhanen
Video Paul Sixta
Special appearance by Alma
This research is made possible by Amsterdam Fund for the Arts. In collaboration with Theatre Bellevue.
REVOLT – The Manifest is an ongoing research that will result in the theatre performance REVOLT (14+) in 2021. Through workshops with young people, Cecilia will research activism, collective lies, social conformity and the psychological repercussions of these themes. How can they make they voice heard? What are the topics close to these young people’s hearts? How to stay critical in times of ongoing insecurity and political distress? The research takes place in different cities in the Netherlands: Maastricht, Groningen, Rotterdam, Tilburg and Amsterdam.
REVOLT – The Manifest is a coproduction between Stichting Cecilia Moisio, Maas theater en dans and the Dutch Dance Days.
Made possible by BankGiro Loterij Fonds, Fonds 21, Cultuurmakersfonds
Concept, direction, choreography: Cecilia Moisio
Texts: Elfie Tromp
Music: Marlon PennD.O.P.: Paul Sixta
Producer: Hedi Legerstee
The first edition in Maastricht was made in lockdown style and resulted in a manifest-dance-movie that premiered on 5th of October 2020 at the Dutch Dance Festival Digital. In 2019 Cecilia won the Dutch Dance Days Young Audience Award for her concept of REVOLT.
Performers movie: Katarzyna Sitarz, Kiyan Khoshoie, Yulia Kalinchenko, Serano Pinas, Marlon Penn, Irene de Kok, Rowan Kievits, Yun-Yu Chang, Zora Westbroek, Malinda Wolfs, Daria Titova
Editor: Joey van Noortwijk
Audio post production: Nezar Tarik
The second edition in Groningen consisted of workshops and interviews with local young people. In collaboration with Jonge Harten Festival and VRIJDAG.
Participants Groningen: Carmen Mireille Tonkens, Chanel Jugwels, Evy Kleen, Isa Janse, Lis Wolfkamp, Niels van Rijswijk, Noor van Tuijl, Ronja Krüger, Silke Stelwagen
Assistants Cecilia: Katarzyna Sitarz, Yulia Kalinchenko
De schooljuf. Een vertrouwd figuur die dagelijks voor de klas staat, dingen op het bord schrijft en geduldig schriften controleert. Maar wat doet ze als je het klaslokaal verlaat? Is de juffrouw dan nog wel een juf? En waar gaat ze dan naar toe? Wat is het geheime leven achter het schoolbord?
In Juffenballet blijkt de koffiekamer een portal naar een andere wereld. In de maneschijn ontmoet een stel juffen elkaar op een open plek in het bos. Ze gebruiken het huiswerk om een fikkie te stoken, dansen wild en uit de maat en brouwen mengselsen geniepige plannetjes. Plannetjes om de schooldirectrice, een oude hippie met flowerpoweridealen, van de troon te stoten. Ze willen de school vernieuwen met strakke regels en prestatiedruk. Een strijd tussen vrijheid en orde barst los. Maar dan komt er een nieuwe juf. Kan zij de boel redden?
Gooi Harry Potter, de heksen van Roald Dahl, Superjuffie en De Luizenmoeder op een hoop en je hebt Juffenballet. Een bokkig avonturenverhaal voor 6+ waarin het klaslokaal net zo makkelijk een wild bos kan zijn. Waarin juffen overdag het goede voorbeeld geven, maar na het luiden van de schoolbel hun haren losgooien. Een voorstelling voor de hele familie met veel dans, vette decorwisselingen, humor en af en toe een spannend liedje.
TOUR 25 Jan 2018 – 29 April 2020 & Sept – Dec 2022
Produced by Maas theater en dans i.c.w. Hit Me Productions
An ode to failure.
You miss a deadline. You’re abandoned. You forget something important. Your life is full of small and bigger defeats. The world around us praises winners and doesn’t look lightly upon losers. We learn to shine and score, yet it’s utterly hard for us to fail. We lie about it, we try to hide it in our shame. When things go wrong our perfect exterior crumbles, we can not share it with others, Facebook or the world.
Victory is a physical theatre performance on failure and our fear of it. Can we be honest about what we feel? Can something seemingly negative be turned into something which promotes change and growth within us? We love to laugh at other peoples failures, but can we also laugh at ourselves?
With a mix of dance, theatre and slapstick the four performers and one musician fall in high tempo from one failure to the next. Typical characteristics of failure are transformed into movement: comical or even desperately painful. Mistakes are celebrated as the failures become bigger, better or even virtuosic.
Director and choreographer Cecilia Moisio and vocal improviser Ineke Vandoorn explore systems of power and gaze in their duet I Can See Myself Through Your Eyes. In today’s society, uncensored speech has become a norm and easy digital access has given each individual a voice. These parallels create a challenge, especially as an artist: how do we deal with constant critique? And do we change our behaviour when we know we are being watched?
Typical for Moisio’s work, the performance zooms in on the human psyche from a sociological standpoint, and transfers this to a theatrical form and choreographic space. Vandoorn translates this to music that gives voice to the inner world of both performers. As they exchange practices, they create a new language that incorporates both voice and movement. The result is an original, multidisciplinary experience, dance performance and concert in one, posing the existential question: Are we autonomous people or just a mirrored image of the opinions others have of us?
concept & performance Cecilia Moisio and Ineke Vandoorn dramaturgy Vincent Wijlhuizen music Ineke Vandoorn choreography Cecilia Moisio soundscapes Joni Vanhanen video Mark Thewessen light design Reynoud van der Molen technique Reynoud van der Molen, Bauke Moerman & Jaap Schledorn marketing Marjo van Lijssel & Bora Sirin production & acquisition Hedi Legerstee business management Diana Roos photography Sofie Knijff & Bart Grietens campaign design Esther Noyons registration & trailers Paul Sixta with support of Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunsten, Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, BNG cultuurfonds and Dansmakers Amsterdam special thanks Hofplein Rotterdam
I Can See Myself Through Your Eyes is a production by Stichting Cecilia Moisio.
DATES & VENUES
Premiere: 26 January 2018, Theater Kikker, Utrecht, The Netherlands TICKETS
27 January 2018, Theater Kikker, Utrecht, The Netherlands TICKETS
6 February 2018, Theater Bellevue, Amsterdam, The Netherlands TICKETS
8 February 2018, Schouwburg de Lawei, Drachten, The Netherlands TICKETS
15 February 2018, Rotterdamse Schouwburg, Rotterdam, The Netherlands TICKETS
15 June 2018, Theater Korzo, The Hague, The Netherlands TICKETS
21-23 June 2018, Theater Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands TICKETS
6 July 2018, Theater Bellevue, Amsterdam, The Netherlands TICKETS
“You can feel how deeply critique touches a human being in I Can See Myself Through Your Eyes.” **** (Volkskrant)
ERROR HUMANUM by Cecilia Moisio Premiere 14 June 2017, Kuopio, Finland
Error Humanum speaks of how failure doesn’t want to be admitted or displayed. Society teaches us to be survivors and winners, that only succeeding is a positive thing. We learn to hide our feelings, become individualists who never needs others. The survival techniques to cope with failure are unfamiliar to us. Can a seeming failure become a success by approaching it in a different way? Three strong performers manoeuvre at a speeding pace from one failure to the next: they are frustrated, desperate but also amusing. Error Humanum is an ode to our fear of failure and endless incompetence. Error Humanum is a contradiction between our actions and speech, hilarious determination and a fall into disgrace.
Concept, direction and choreography: Cecilia Moisio Performers: Sannamaria Kuula, Antti Lahti and Lasse Forsgren Texts: Cecilia Moisio, Sannamaria Kuula, Antti Lahti and Lasse Forsgren Music: Joni Vanhanen Light and video: Ainu Palmu Costumes and props: Ella Suuronen Decor: Jari Hautamäki Photography: Petra Tiihonen Trailer: Kim Saarinen Production: team and Itä-Suomen Tanssin Aluekeskus Funded by: Taiteen Edistämiskeskus, Suomen Kulttuurirahasto and Pohjois-Savon Rahasto
Cecilia Moisio 