Eduardo Zúñiga (Chile), Edgar Zendejas (Mexico), Sebastián Arias (Uruguay) and Esdras Hernández (Spain), are the choreographers behind Restless, a montage that recounts the personal experience of the artists during the confinement. All in different places on the planet and with a common denominator: the Covid-19 pandemic.
Restless is composed of 4 audiovisual short films (Restless, Orilla, Sunset, Mauritius) that together add a 22-minute short film. The four pieces are performed by Chilean dancer Mauricio Vera and recorded from his phone from the privacy of an apartment in New York, the center of the pandemic and the anti-racist outburst.
In the words of the performer, the work was born “in a moment of anxiety, fears and uncertainty when I decided to write to choreographers and filmmakers whom I admire and with whom I also have a special connection. I came to them in my desperation to create and to be directed and to push something that would give me the strength to move forward with the confinement and my artistic needs. In April I thought that if it worked we could motivate more artists to do the same.”
The work is part of an international trend that has accelerated during the pandemic, using everyday locations to perform with the help of technology, such as smartphones, rrss and apps like Tik-Tok or Instragram. In this context, prominent dancers have been able to take advantage of these platforms to develop high quality cultural products that in turn can be replicated in different channels. Undoubtedly, a profitable and creative way to deal with the labor crisis for thousands of artists around the world who have been affected by the closure of theaters and entertainment spaces.
“I believe our generation is more tech-friendly and we must rely on this learning, especially with our directors and creators who are generally older. I hope that this digital process can be a contribution to so many artist companies facing today the unfortunate economic bankruptcy in the world,” added Mauricio Vera.
With Ludwig Van Beethoven’s Symphony No.9 in D Minor, Op. 125, as a tribute to the 250th birthday of the German composer’s birthplace, Restless premiered on August 19, 2020 as part of the theatre-to-mil Foundation’s (Dance Today) programming, then began its promotion period through various channels and festivals internationally.
1/4 Restless: Choreographer, audiovisual and musical edition: Eduardo Zúñiga, Chilean in Alicante Spain. Music: L.V. Beethoven
2/4 Orilla: Direction and Choreography: Edgar Zendejas, Mexican in Montreal Canada. Edition: Eduardo Zúñiga. Music: L.V. Beethoven & Sebastián Arias. Musical Edition: Esdras Hernández and Eduardo Zúñiga.
3/4 Sunset: Ezra Hernández, Spanish in Santiago de Chile. Choreography, musical composition (based on Ludwig Van Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9 in G minor, Op 125” and Ludwig Van Beethoven’s “Piano Sonata No. 14”) and audiovisual editing.
4/4 Mauritius: Address & Choreograph: Sebastián Arias, Uruguayan in Montevideo Uruguay. Musical composition (based on “Symphony No. 9 in G minor, Op 125” and Ludwig Van Beethoven’s “Piano Sonata No. 14” and audiovisual editing by Ezra Hernandez.
Interpreter and camera: Mauricio Vera
Dancer in window: Julia Bengtsson.
