HEDERA - Volume I

This experimental project explores the potential of dance as a tool for investigating and rediscovering of the landscape and architectural heritage of Basilicata. The eight-part documentary film captures the improvisational performances of male and female dancers from the company of Balletto Lucano in some key places of their homeland; whether these are the alleys of a historic center, an abandoned town, the ruins of an ancient Greek temple or an uninhabited landscape.

Artistic direction: Loredana Calabrese, Angelo Chiacchio
Visual design and documentary direction: Angelo Chiacchio
Choreography: Loredana Calabrese in collaboration with the performers.
Performers and authors: Agnese Trippa, Luana Filardi, Maria Focaraccio, Teresa Morisano, Sara Pennella, Antonella Fittipaldi, Antonio Polito, Angelo Chiacchio.
Stage photos: Olga Adriana Colaiacovo
It’s something between a documentary and a dance film. It’s a sort of documentary because it’s rooted in reality, it shows real places and tells real personal stories. It is a dance movie because the stories are told through the movement of the body. Each chapter is the expression of a dancer and a filmmaker who let their artistic souls vibrate with the location. Each place is a main character as much as the dancer. Where the storytelling gets more cinematic compared to a typical documentary is that we decided to have the dancers writing and reading a poetic text expressing their feelings, instead of simply interviewing them. This allows for a deeper connection between the audience and the dancers, I think.
– Angelo Chiacchio