Alberto Poli of Notre Dame De Paris and Beatrice Zancanaro of Cirque Du Soleil, together, are Team Vertical Limit. Join us for a once-in-a-lifetime, 2-day intensive workshop on a completely new study on the fusion between dance and floor acrobatics, accessible to anyone:

Max. 30 participants, book your spot!

Early bird registration R850 until 23rd Feb.
General admission R1100 from 24th Feb.

Requirements:
only a basic movement background (at least a couple years of training in modern-contemporary or acrobatics/gymnastics or circus).

Please Email: info@livingarts.org.za to book your spot.

ACROMODERNLAB is an international project committed to sharing our experience and passion through one-of-a-kind workshops. The ultimate goal is showing performers and beginners of all levels and ages how to use their bodies and skills in a completely new way, thanks to a very specific and innovative approach to modern-contemporary dance and floor acrobatics.

This workshop is addressed either to dancers, acrobats and all kinds of movement performers and athletes willing to enlarge their physical horizons.
The main goals of this project are:
– deepening movement awareness and enriching personal creative potential;
-multidisciplinary physical preparation;
– mutual cultural exchange and exploration of the personal emotional baggage thanks to creative group activities from our own wealth of knowledge acquired from working with some of the largest show business companies of the world like Cirque du Soleil, Franco Dragone, “Notre Dame de Paris”.

Infact, some of the most useful tools that the students will acquire during this workshop are not only the new physical skills, but also:
– new mental approaches to training and work in a company;
– a better focus on their specific goals and dreams and new strategies to give their best at the auditions and stress situations;
– moreover, advanced dancers will have the chance to open their minds to the new frontier of the current dance scenario, costantly craving for more and more multitalented performers.
Workshop structure:

Workshop Schedule:

1) Warm-up:
“Insanity Coordination” is a very fast-paced and fun warm-up that blends rhythm with “brain and body awakening”, just what it takes to start off with full energy.
What follows is modern-contemporary dance stretching combined with movements from Pilates, and specific pre-acrobatics workout;

2) Floor Acrobatics Techniques and Dance Movement Research:

The way we always aim to mix these two disciplines is utterly different from the standard “acrobatic dance”, where one simply throws some random gymnastics moves into a choreography.
We want to treat each acrobatic movement, from basic to advanced, as a dance step with the idea that the audience must not be able to tell the difference between the two things.

That’s why we teach combinations of flips, that can be adjusted to anybody’s level, with a profound focus on take-offs and landings in order for them to look as smooth as possible and part of the dance.
Dance Movement Research involves study of body’s interactions with space on a deeper scale, starting from fundamental concepts like Laban’s cubes and spheres to their application on a upside down position;

3) Acro-Modern Choreography:

The core of the workshop is to put into practice all what’s been learned, so we recreate all the conditions of being on a stage ready to perform in front of an audience.
Special group activities aim to dig deep into everybody’s own emotional baggage and creativity in order to help triggering the mechanisms that allow each performer to give their best in stressful situations (e.g. working in a company or going for an audition).
The class is eventually split in smaller groups and taught a choreography, that each students can adapt to his or her level.

Beatrice Zancanaro:
From world-class rhythmic gymnast for the italian national team to top level dancer for the largest show business companies around the globe (Franco Dragone, Luc Petit, Notre Dame de Paris), Beatrice dedicated all her life to the study and research of the arts of movement and their nuances. She has worked world-wide for television and theatres, including live event with artists like Anastacia, Liza Minelli, Andrea Bocelli and more. Beatrice eventually reached the peak of her career by joining Cirque du Soleil for the first cruise ship live show tour ever created by the canadian company, in 2017, starting as a dancer and ending as artistic leader.

Alberto Poli:
Alberto found his calling when he was 12, the day he first admired the acrobats of the Guinness record winner musical show Notre Dame de Paris. Many years of solo training will pass, but after creating his own show company, Team Vertical Limit, and performing while training with inspiring performers around the world, Alberto developed his own style by mixing floor acrobatics with tricking, freerun and stunts. He eventually joined “Fondazione Arena di Verona” for the international performances of the opera “Turandot” and finally achieved his childhood dream joining the international show “Notre Dame de Paris” as acrobat in 2016 till present day