DDF News — 23 May 2023
Festival Blog - Meet the cast of ALIEN
Working with 9 dancers from the MA Contemporary Dance Performance programme at University of Limerick, Finnish choreographer Taneli Törma brings this project to Ireland for the first time to create a striking intervention at Dublin’s Wood Quay Amphitheatre. Meet the cast: Rima Baransi, Samica Mehta, Aphra Hartmann, Aoibhinn O’Dea, Kaini Zhao, Wuxun Duis, Jiating Li, Inez Berdychowska, & Laura Jane Allis.
Samica Mehta is a contemporary dancer and writer from India with a bachelor's in Dance Studies from the University of Surrey, Guildford, UK. Combining the language of poetics and movement in the body—her work focuses on empathy and inclusivity, further layered with spoken word, cinema, short films, poetry, and prose.
Aphra Hartmann is an Irish contemporary and experimental dance artist based in Dublin. She started dancing at Shawbrook School of Dancein CountyLongford and has recently been freelance performing and choreographing Dublin, before undertaking her Masters in Contemporary Dance Performance at the University of Limerick in 2022.
Aoibhinn O’Dea is a dance artist working across the contemporary dance and visual arts fields. She graduated with a BA in Fine Art Sculpture (NCAD, 2014). She trained in contemporary dance in Germany, Portugal, and Ireland, and co-founded Blush Collective (Berlin 2019).
Kaini Zhao is a dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Zhao graduated in modern dance from TianjinMedia College. Zhao has taught modern dance and Chinese dance inLinfen College of Shanxi Normal University. Currently, Zhao is pursuing an MA in dance at the University of Limerick.
Wuxun Duis a dancer from China, studying dance for 17 years, She first learned to dance because he liked to move his body to music. Later, he was exposed to professional dance training, which made him feel that dance is an indispensable part of his life. He is currently undertaking his MA in Dance Performance at UL.
Jiating Li is a dancer from China with a passion for traditional and contemporary Chinese dance which she studied for 15 years. Since graduating, she has been actively involved in numerous dance performances and has gained extensive experience in performing. She also works as a dance teacher, imparting her in-depth understanding of dance and technique.
Inez Berdychowska is a Polish movement artist and creator who graduated from ballet school in Poznan, Poland, and studied further in Madrid before entering the contemporary dance scene in Ireland. Inez works towards combining multiple visual art forms with the physical capabilities of the human body and its movement range.
Laura Jane Allis is a teacher, choreographer, and dance artist based in Ennis, Co Clare. She is the director and founder of BreakThroughDance Company, a dance and performing arts school, which was established in Ennis in 2007 and is currently in its 16th year of business.
A Big Pulse Dance Alliance Co-Production. Presented at Dublin Dance Festival with the support of the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick and Dublin City Council.