Our first residence artist arrives in Art in Lov Residence.
Artist Talk, April Veselko and Winter Dances project
Tue 15.3 at 10:30 – 12:30 Beni will provide some light food for guests
Mannerheiminkatu 2 (on top of restaurant Locale, entrance from inner yard)
Acro Dance
Tue 22.3 at 18:30 – 20:30
for professional and advanced dancers
Fusion Dance workshops
Wed 23.3 at 14:30 – 16:45 at Loviisan Tanssiopisto
youth and adults for 7th graders up (14:30-15:45)
beginners, youth and adults 5th graders up (15:45-16:45)
Press are welcome to follow classes
“Talvitanssit – Vinterdanser – Winterdances”
Sat 26.3 at 19:00 – 20:00 Performance at Kino Marilyn
About the Project:
April Veselko, dance artist from Slovenia, is coming to Loviisa as the first resident artist in Art in Lov Residence 12.3 to stay for two weeks.
Thanks to the residency program “Art in Lov” we are able to start a new project with April Veselko, active dance member of Tovarish Dance Company. April brings in March and in Loviisa her skills in contemporary dance and her ability to integrate it with acrobatic and Street dance, appealing for a wider audience and youth.
Marttaleena Nikkari, Finnish dance artist based in Helsinki, has collaborated with her former Slovenian colleague Marko Urbanek already since 2018 creating dance projects and a partnership between Tanssiartesaani ry. (dance group based in Loviisa) and Tovarish Dance Company Maribor (Slovenia).
Our collaboration is also possible thanks to the support of Loviisanseudun Tanssiopisto who gives us the opportunity to use their space in Vanha Meijeri for rehearsals. In return April will guide a workshop of Fusion Dance for youth (Wednesday 23.3 at 14:30 – 15:45 for 7th graders up and at 15:45-16:45 for 5th graders up + beginners) and a workshop of Acro Dance for professional and advanced movers (dance, circus or yoga instructors) (Tuesday 22.3 at 18:30 – 20:30).
The collaboration will be carried on thanks to the local dance artist Beniamino Borghi and the team of Tanssiartesaani with the aim of showing a demo performance on Saturday 26.3 in Kino Marilyn at 19:00. Tanssiartesaani through this occasion wants to start organizing a small dance festival renewable every winter in Loviisa (Talvitanssit – Vinterdanser – Winterdances).
April and Beniamino, under the direction of Marttaleena and remotely Marko from Slovenia (who is composing also the music for this demo) will start the choreographic research based on Improvisations sessions using their own native languages (italian and Slovenian) as initiations for creating movements.
We are interested to see the juxtaposition of different styles, languages, backgrounds, ages, cultures that well match with the nature of the bilingual community of Loviisa.
The project will then continue expanding this choreographic research on a bigger scale involving more dancers from both sides (Tanssiartesaani in Finland and Tovarish Dance Company in Slovenia) and creating a long length dance piece for theatre stage to be premiered in 2023 in Maribor and also in Finland (venue and dates to be confirmed).
SHORT BIO:
April Veselko is a dancer, choreographer and dance teacher. She started with contemporary dance but later got familiar also with other dance styles (modern, balet, jazz, hip hop/street styles, cabaret). In 2016 she finished Dance’s Start Up – Leggere Strutture Art Factory in Bologna, Italy. In 2018 she continued her dance education with MoDem PRO, Zappalà Danza Company in Catania, Sicily. She created several of her own projects under production of Zavod Federacija (Dvomine – 2010, Ostro in Slano – 2012, Fleš – 2017), KD Center Plesa Maribor (Breze – 2018), Scenario Pubblico (Dream Room – 2018) and Plesna iZba Maribor (Padati v ljubezen – 2021). She worked with international choreographers such as Matjaž Farič, Seiffedine Manai, Daniel Conant, Magdalena Reiter, Mattia Gandini, Gioa Maria Morisco, Gregor Luštek, Eduardo Torroja, Barbara Kanc… As performer and/or choreographer April was 6 times awarded with the Price for the best choreographic idea in OPUS1, contest for young dance performers in Slovenia. ln 2017 her miniature What does the body dream (Bodi Telo) also received Second Prize on 3…2…1… DANCE! choreographic competition in Krakow, Poland and was in 2019 chosen to be performed in final round of Choreographic contest FKM in Belgrade. April is a member of Tovarishia Dance Company and one of the organizers, teachers and choreographers for ŠIK Dance Collective.
