HINGE ON WORKSHOP

11-12 April 2023
 Polo Cultural Gaivotas, Lisboa

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This 2-day movement workshop, inspired by the dating app “Hinge”, was created and led by choreographer and dancer Elena Vertegel.

According to the dictionary, a “hinge” is a mechanical bearing that connects two solid objects. During this workshop the participants sought, via movement and grounding exercises, to identify the mental and physical connective tissues that help our bones fight gravity and move around on purpose. As the app’s catchphrase goes, it is all about the perfect match.

The workshop started off with an exploration of anonymity as a state of being, helping the participants delve into aspects of their own physicality and how familiar emotions could become unfamiliar sensations with the turn of a forearm.

Participants were invited to explore connections and how they endured between bodies and the meaning of presence without contact. The workshop finished off with bonding exercises where people worked in groups, building up a sense of common identity and acknowledging the importance of each person to that identity.