"Repertório N.2" is the second installment of a choreographic trilogy by Brazilian artists Davi Pontes and Wallace Ferreira, exploring dance as a form of self-defense. This work employs unconventional and informal techniques, drawing from an alternative lineage of self-defense practices. Through their choreography, Pontes and Ferreira critically examine the world by combining imagination and intuition, seeking to break free from both implicit and explicit constraints and challenge the colonial, racial, and cisheteropatriarchal frameworks embedded in Western ideology.
Their inquiry begins with the question, "How can dance be used as a form of self-defense?" Pontes and Ferreira experiment with symbolic departures from state-perpetuated violence and institutional repression. Their choreography utilizes mimesis and rhythmic patterns to expand perceptions of time and space, influenced by martial arts, capoeira, and a critical interpretation of dance history. This approach culminates in movement vocabularies deeply rooted in Black aesthetics.
CREDITS
Concept and performance
Davi Pontes
Wallace Ferreira
Work commissioned by
Frestas - Trienal de Artes 2020/21 - O rio é uma serpente, curated by Beatriz Lemos, Diane Lima and Thiago de Paula Souza
Management and Distribution
Something Great
Premiere
Les Urbaines, Switzerland, 2021
BIOGRAPHIES
Davi Pontes is an artist, choreographer, and researcher working at the intersection of visual arts and choreography. He studied art at the Universidade Federal Fluminense in Rio de Janeiro and at the Escola Superior de Música e Artes do Espectáculo in Porto, Portugal. Since 2016, Pontes has showcased his work internationally in art galleries and festivals. In 2022, alongside Wallace Ferreira, he received the Young Choreographers’ Award [8:tension] at the ImPulsTanz Festival in Vienna. His practice examines the connections between choreography, racial identity, and self-defense, engaging audiences to reflect on historical narratives.
Wallace Ferreira is a multidisciplinary artist with a background in dance and visual arts. They studied at the Escola Livre de Artes da Maré and Artes Visuais do Parque Lage in Brazil. In 2022, alongside Davi Pontes, Ferreira received the Young Choreographers’ Award [8:tension] at the ImPulsTanz Festival in Vienna. Their work has been shown internationally in art galleries and festivals. Ferreira's creations defy conventions and explore the intersections of movement, performance, voguing, and visual imagery.