Interview on “10 Years LaborGras in Berlin”

laborgras.com

The LaborGras collective was founded by dancers Renate Graziadei (A) and Arthur Stäldi (CH) in Hamburg in 1994 and has been based in Berlin since 2000. Their work is anchored in contemporary dance, with a focus on collaboration with artists of different genres, movement research and interdisciplinary experimentation. LaborGras continuously investigates dance as an independent art form and language, developing their own signature all while remaining open to other artistic currents and aesthetics. This process is made available through an independent, artistic format designed to encourage an ongoing discourse with dance professionals and the public.

Studio LaborGras, located since 2002 in Berlin-Kreuzberg, operates as a research, production and performance venue for contemporary dance. The studio is used by Renate Graziadei and Arthur Stäldi as well as by guests to develop and present work. Daily Open classes on a professional-level, international workshops and the monthly “Impro on Stage” series (launched in 2006) create regular opportunities for encounters and exchanges. These exchanges are also accompanied by workshop presentations, open rehearsals and performances.

With the recent support for the Studio, LaborGras has added residencies to their roster of activities, opening the studio to LaborGras’ long-term artistic collaborators as well as to artists working in a similar vein. Artists are provided with the studio and its infrastructure, and residencies can last up to several weeks, ending with a public presentation. Beginning 2010, these residencies will also include exchanges with Luxemburg 3CL and Danscentrumjette in Brussels. Also in the planning stages are the further development of the workshop series and a research lab.

LaborGras is nationally and internationally recognized for their work. The production “temporary stories” was awarded “Innovative Dance Production 2000” by the ballet-tanz magazine annual critic’s survey. LaborGras was selected to be part of 250 European companies to participate in the “Resolution! Aerowaves Festival” in London in 2001. In 2002, LaborGras and David Hernandez were invited with “Quartett” from the production “temporary stories” to the German Dance Platform in Leipzig, and in 2004 they were awarded the Kurt-Jooss-Prize in Essen for the solo “Story – No Story”. The production “I, myself and me again”, created in 2006, has been presented at numerous international festivals since its premiere and is regarded as an outstanding interdisciplinary project in dance science and new media circles. LaborGras’ productions are supported by the Hauptstadtkulturfonds, the Fonds Darstellende Künste and the Kulturverwaltung des Landes Berlin. Studio LaborGras has, since its inception, received the appreciation and support of many international partners.