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$villa\wigman – Raum für Darstellende Künste$

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residence plus residency

Germán Farías
The Body as a Vehicle of Cultural Symbolism and a Site of Transformation

8.–10.2026

Partner:
TanzArt Kirschau

In August and October, Germán Farías will be a #residenceplus resident at TanzArt in Kirschau. In his research, the Leipzig-based dancer and choreographer explores the suppression of Afro-Indigenous influences in Argentine dance culture. Drawing on traditional dances such as malambo, chacarera, cueca, zamba, and candombe, he explores—with mentoring from Charlie Fouchier—their hybrid cultural genealogies and translates movement material into a contemporary choreographic language through deconstruction and recontextualization. In doing so, he views the body as a repository of historical and cultural inscriptions—and, at the same time, as a site of their transformation.

During the first residency period in August, the focus was particularly on stomping and the “Cepillado” (a sweeping glide of the foot across the floor), as well as on playing with circles and spirals and their role in dance in relation to one’s partner. In October, the project will continue with a second residency period, a workshop, and an informal presentation of the research conducted so far.

“For me, approaching these movements within the framework of a choreographic residency rooted in the cultural context of European contemporary dance means viewing them outside their original cultural matrix. They no longer interact directly with their environment and can no longer draw on this context to find their meaning and legitimacy.

This shift leads to a change in meaning and a transformation of their performative dimension. In the context of this residency, this choreographic language can no longer be understood as part of an immediately shared cultural language. Its performative dimension changes: for me, it becomes a testament to a culture and an expression of my individual history.

This residency thus offers me the opportunity to explore the layers of meaning in the movements, forms of expression, and objects drawn from Argentine folk dances. By uprooting, de-formalizing, and reinterpreting them against the backdrop of my experience as a contemporary dancer and choreographer, I question my relationship to this gestural vocabulary as it was passed down to me. In doing so, I attempt to reappropriate it through my individual artistic journey and the forms of expression found in contemporary dance.”

Germán Farías

Artist

Website

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Germàn Farias

Germán Farías (b. 1987) is a dancer, choreographer, and dance educator. After training in ballet in Rosario, he studied contemporary dance at the Teatro San Martín in Buenos Aires. He has worked in South America, Europe, and the United States, including with the Leipzig Opera, Spectrum Dance Theater (U.S.), and the CNDC in Argentina. His interdisciplinary works have received numerous awards. He has lived in Leipzig since 2018, where he dances at the opera and teaches at institutions such as UNSAM in Buenos Aires and Baileo.

Förderer

Germàn Farias is an artist-in-residence at TanzART Kirschau as part of the “residence plus” residency program. “residence plus” is a project of Villa Wigman für Tanz e.V. and TanzNetzDresden e.V. in cooperation with the partners TanzART e.V. (Kirschau), Neisse Centre for Contemporary Arts e.V. (Görlitz), Kulturbaude und Landkunst e.V. (Heymannbaude Kleinhennersdorf), as well as TENZA and villa\wigman – Space for the Performing Arts (Dresden). “residence plus” is funded by the Saxon State Ministry of Science, Culture, and Tourism and the City of Dresden – Office for Culture and Historic Preservation. This initiative is co-financed by tax revenues based on the budget approved by the Saxon State Parliament.