CHOREOGRAPHIC RESEARCH
potentiality of touch
and perceptual flexibility
Learning to Attend is a chapter in a larger study of bodily responses to psychological and/or emotional states of high urgency. The bodies we are trying to understand are bodies in distress in shared and communal spaces, bodies that are exposed but we do not know how to care for them. We are trying to understand the feelings, sensations, and states of helplessness that we may be experiencing, yet in such a fragile moment we may not know how to be there for each other. The research is inspired by the structure of a first aid manual, its clear procedural language, to develop a vocabulary of movement for moments of emotional overload. It asks whether we can imagine a manual for emotional and sensorimotor emergencies.
It stems from Mia Štark’s long-term research and main points of interest: relationships – interpersonal and structural – especially the relationships between individuals, society and the media, and the ways in which information, messages and meanings are transmitted, mediated and distorted.
Delving together into the topic of emotional care, community safety, the potential of touch and attention, and the concept of embodiment, Mia and Dorota develop a new choreographic work that will premiere in November 2026. Be prepared for physical and emotional engagement!
CREATIVE TEAM:
Concept Mia Štark
Research, choreography & performance Mia Štark, Dorota Michalak
Dramaturgy Lucija Klarić
Music Ivona Eterović
SUPPORT:
The project was carried out as part of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute’s ReSide program. Co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland.
iam.pl
culture.pl
PRESS & MEDIA