People of dance

Zdjęcie: Anita Wach

Ja, Agaue/Me, Agaue. Photo: Jakub Wittchen.

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Anita Wach – dancer of contemporary dance, choreographer, dance teacher, instructor of ashtanga yoga. She completed a qualification course for contemporary dance instructors (1998, Kielce) and received a certificate of professional dancer from Polish Stage Artists Association (2001). She started her professional career at the Kielce Dance Theatre. For many years she worked with the Silesian Dance Theatre directed by Jacek Łumiński. She went on several tours to Europe and the USA with the theatre; she performed in New York (Hunter Collage, The Kitchen Theatre), Philadelphia (Swarthmore College), UK, France (Avignon), Russia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Germany. Towards the end of 2003, she joined Bretoncaffe Theatre, collaborating on the group’s second performance Ś-nić. She took part in most of the group’s performances, including Slam.in, Slam.out (2004/2005), Dances of a dreaming body (2006), Dancing Sarah Kane (2007), The Lizard’s Manifesto (2007), Topinambur (2008) and Me, Agaue (2010). Wach was involved in creating choreographies for Slam.in, Slam.out and Me, Agaue; she was the choreographer of The Lizard’s Manifesto.

She was granted a scholarship from Pro Helvetia (participation in improvisation project with Thomas Hauert, Prague 2003) and Mobile Academy (Warsaw 2006). She was also a resident of Zollwerein Choreographic Centre in Essen (2005). As a resident, she was invited to Ewa Jaros’ project Yi-Ya.

She participated in numerous international projects such as: Polish-German project Skarbek with Tomasz Wygoda’s choreography (German premiere at Volksbuhne Theater, 2005); Polish-Israeli improvisation project Blind-date in Tel-Aviv (2008, co-organized by Art Stations Foundation in Poznań), interdisciplinary project Israel – Poland Artists Exchange (2008 Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Art Stations Foundation and Vdance Festival in Tel-Aviv). She also took part in the international project Casablanca Therapy (2010, DNA, Development of New Art Project, directed by Bojan Jablonowec, Via Negativa Theatre, Ljubljana; premieres: Ljubljana, Budapest, Prague, Warsaw, Aarhus).

Wach created solo works. Her first solo was produced as part of Solo Project, a residence programme for young choreographers in Stary Browar, Poznań (2006, Arts Astations Foundation). Inch 1.5 defined high standards for the following participants of the programme and qualified for the Polish Dance Platform 2008. She also created V and weast.com (Warsaw Dance Night 2008, Body/Mind Foundation). The latter one was produced with Vayo group, founded by Wach and Ewa Jaros. She works and teaches dance and yoga in Warsaw.

Since 2011 Anita Wach has been collaborating with former actress of the Warsaw-based Studio Teatralne, Magdalena Tuka. The duo presented the work-in-progress W/RESTLESS directed by Marcin Cecko at the 10th International Contemporary Dance Festival Body/Mind in Warsaw in 2011. Inspired by female wrestling, the piece was premiered in the spring of 2012 at the Warsaw Dance Scene. In 2013 Studio Teatralne hosted the premiere of the pair’s another project – Cold Feet [Zimne stopy]. The piece draws inspiration on the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, as well as on a picture of a bride, Li Wan [attempting suicide], published in May 2011 in the Sun; it is also inspired by the script’s author’s personal experiences. The production combines movement and dance with visual art and text. Wach performs the role of a DJ. The production was presented in Wrocław at the 9th Mandala Performance Festival (2013).

The 2013 Warsaw Dance Scene opened with Anita Wach’s latest solo Oops, a collaboration with Slovenian director Bojan Jablanovec (Via Negativa Theatre). The piece is an outcome of Wach’s participation in the programme Modul Dance – Carte Blanche devised for young dance artists (produced by the Art Stations Foundation; co-producers: Dance House Ireland/Tanzhaus NRW and VIA NEGATIVA). Oops was premiered in Ljubljana, Düsseldorf (The Klopsztanga. Polska bez granic / Polen grenzenlos [Poland without Borders]Polish Cultural Programme in North Rhine-Westphalia) and Poznań (Old Brewery New Dance.) The piece was also shown at the KRoki Festival (Kraków 2013) and the Polish Dance Platform 2012 (Poznań). Editor-in-chief of the Teatr [Theatre] monthly, Jacek Kopciński named Oopsthe best dance piece of the 2011/2012 season. The production presents an unceasing “dialogue” between the actress and the stage, with the latter calling into question the significance of its own and the dancer’s existence.

In the autumn of 2013 Anita Wach premiered her Gloria! at Club Żak in Gdańsk as part of Trójmiejska Korporacja Tańca [Tricity Dance Corporation]. The piece features the director herself, along with Magdalena Jędra, Magdalena Tuka and Anna Steller, who had set up for the purpose of the project a quartet under the name of Kwartet patetyczny [The Pathos Quartet]. The piece was also shown at the 12th International Contemporary Dance Festival Body/Mind in Warsaw. Gloria! is a minimalistic performance and an exaggerated choreography at the same time. Feeling nostalgic about emotionality having gone missing from theatre and life, the artists surrender to the magical power of performance.

In May 2013 Wach was a resident of “maat festival – border line 2013” in Lublin, a platform for solo dancers. Throughout 2013 the Maat Studio of the Centre for Culture in Lublin hosted a string of eight artistic residencies. The work of the performers/dancers was recorded by Patrycja Płatnik, and the outcomes will be showcased in the form of performances and documentary films on 14-17 December during a festival concluding this year’s residency programme. Apart from Wach, the first edition of “maat festival – border line” featured: Magdalena Jędra, Anna Steller, Kaya Kołodziejczyk, Rafał Urbacki, Przemek Kamiński, Korina Kordova, Barbara Bujakowska and Mikołaj Mikołajczyk.

She was recognized by dance critics as the best dancer of 2008 (survey by NowyTaniec.PL). This award was no accident: Wach is known for her perfect and unique dance technique, but also for her very strong stage personality. Her presence and engagement is hard to miss: either when she takes part in group projects – such as improvisation cycle Randka w ciemno (Blind drag) in Stary Browar, Poznań – or she presents her solos. Her movement and body, constantly oscillating between fluidity, suppleness, relaxation and tension, breaking, curving and deformation are not easily to classify, what makes her dance mulit-dimentional for audience. In Inch 1.5 she struggles with her body which seems to fight for its subjectivity in a series of unpredictable movements and hunches. Unpredictability as well as combination of isolation and flow, make Wach one of the most interesting dance artists in Poland.

Oops. Fot. Marta Ankiersztejn.
Oops. Fot. Marta Ankiersztejn.
Oops. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Oops. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Oops. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Oops. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Cold Feet. Fot. Marta Ankiersztejn.
Anita Wach (z prawej) w Cold Feet. Fot.Marta Ankiersztejn.
Topinambur. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Topinambur.Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Ja, Agaue.Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Ja, Agaue. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Ja, Agaue. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.
Ja, Agaue. Fot. Jakub Wittchen.

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