I
n the soupy air of a Brisbane summer night, a small group of curious people gather in the Judith Wright Arts Centre of the bustling Fortitude Valley. We come together with a willingness to play, to experiment with sound and movement through the space, guided by our intuition, spontaneous impulses, and the directions of Eleonora Ginardi. We recite from Dante’s Divine Comedy, “Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita mi ritrovai per una selva oscura …”. We repeat the passage softly to ourselves, mindful of tone and intonation, we chant them louder like an incantation, and we shout them at the tops of our voices. The words ricochet off the walls and ceiling, they soar out the windows to the streets below, and for this moment Dante is alive in the room with us. Facilitated by Eleonora Ginardi, a trained actor and performer of over 20 years, these Viva Voce classes for non-actors, centre around the goal of complete vocal and physical freedom. Run in association with Danteatro, The Dante Alighieri Society of Brisbane’s own theatre company, the Italian influence in the classes is strong yet subtle enough that it’s inclusive of those with no knowledge of the Italian language. Eleonora guides us through movements large and small, fast and slow, uniform and varied, with an emphasis on playing with and exploring modes of expression, different ways of carrying oneself and different ways of being. Drawing on influences of the Suzuki method, Impulse Training, Meisner and Butoh, each class unfolds in an unexpected, and often very silly way; a powerful evocation of the inner child. I met with Eleonora to chat about her theatre work and the concept behind Viva Voce. What became evident through our conversation was Eleonora’s captivating skill as a storyteller, as she carried me through her migration story, her acting and theatre-making journey, and her
Segmento Issue XXIII • June-August 2021
Danteatro Finding Freedom Through Voice and Movement by Kristy Stanfield | Photography by Jacob Paint
ART & CULTURE
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