Open For Everything

My work draws from everywhere and everyone in the world, from my upbringing in Buenos Aires to Berlin, Hollywood, Mumbai, Johannesburg and beyond. But I’d wanted to do a project with Roma dancers and musicians for many years. 

I was thrilled when in 2009, the director of the Goethe Institute in Prague approached me about an initiative with Roma performers. The project was conceived as a joint collaboration between the Goethe Institutes in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. 

By 2010, I was traveling and visiting communities across various geographies and socioeconomic backgrounds. These include well-established musicians who tour the world, residents left to their own devices in social housing at the fringes of formerly-Soviet cities, and dancers steeped in Romani folklore and tradition studying contemporary and classical dance.

During this same time, there were also violent and lethal attacks against Roma communities in Hungary and elsewhere. Nicolas Sarkozy, the president of France at the time, declared that Romas were not European and fueled the anti-Roma sentiment across Europe. In all the countries where we developed the project, Romas were primary targets for rhetoric and violence from extreme right groups,

Our team conducted visits, workshops, and interviews in the project’s first stage. We learned about the traditions and social structures of the various Roma communities and spent time in their schools and theaters. The first and most important lesson was that we were always going to find ways to make it work.

I built the initial cast through a series of workshop auditions in 2011, and for over a year, we worked on some initial sessions to develop ideas and material. We finally met again two years later to build and create the full piece.

By this time, the work integrated five dancers from Dorky Park (with various technical backgrounds from Hip Hop to classical Ballet), a Czech stage actress, five musicians and ten dancers/performers ranging from 12 to 70 years old. We worked together every day for three months in Budapest, Berlin, and ultimately Vienna for the opening of the work.

During this period, the entire cast was traveling and living together, making every one of us hosts and visitors simultaneously. We learned to dance from each other, which built conflict and trust with fights, tears, frequent laughter, and a longstanding commitment to our collective outcomes. 

We now find ourselves in Brooklyn, 10 years later, with extensive tours behind us. Emil Bordas and Alexandra Bodi are now a permanent cast in the company. In that time, some of the show’s cast has changed, and the whole world has changed, but we are overjoyed to reunite post-pandemic and bring the show on our first overseas tour.

— Constanza Macras

CONSTANZA MACRAS (CHOREOGRAPHER/DIRECTOR)

Born in Buenos Aires, where she studied Dance and Fashion Design, Constanza Macras continued her Dance studies at the Merce Cunningham Studios in Amsterdam and New York. 2003 she founded the international dance and theatre company Constanza Macras | DorkyPark. Macras brings this company’s actors, dancers, musicians, and artists from various genres and countries. Combining dance, text, live music, and film, the interdisciplinary ensemble worked with state theatres like the Schaubühne Berlin and the Düsseldorfer Schauspielhaus, as well as with theatres of the free performing arts scene like Hebbel am Ufer (HAU) Berlin. Currently, the company is a resident of the Volksbühne Berlin under the artistic direction of René Pollesch.  

The company has produced over 25 pieces that have toured worldwide since 2003. Their work has been shown at the Festival d’Avignon, the Wiener Festwochen, the Seoul Performing Arts Festival, the Buenos Aires International Festival, the Attakalari-India Biennial, the Dance Umbrella Johannesburg, the Aarhus Festival, the Romaeuropa Festival, the LIFT London, the Santiago a Mil International Festival in Chile, the Bitef Festival, and many others. Macras has given lectures and Masterclasses around the globe.  

2018 Macras worked with film director Yorgos Lanthimos, for whose movie The Favourite she created the choreography. In addition, Constanza Macras received numerous commissioned work offers for national and international theatres, among others from The Goteborg Dance company of the Goteborg Opera House or The Ballet Estable del Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires.  

In 2008 Constanza Macras received the Goethe-Institut Award for her piece HELL ON EARTH. In 2010 she was awarded the Arts at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) William L. Abramowitz Residency. Since 1961, the series has brought renowned performing artists and writers to MIT to perform, present public lectures, and collaborate with students in free programs. Constanza Macras will return to MIT for research and project development together with MIT students in 2022. In 2010 Constanza Macras was awarded the national German theatre prize DER FAUST for best choreography for the piece MEGALOPOLIS. 2021 Constanza Macras and her company won the Tabori prize, Germany’s highest award for the free performing arts scene, for her work and artistic development.  

TAL SHACHAM (STAGE DESIGN)

Tal Shacham, born in Tel Aviv, studied design at the Vital University of Applied Sciences Tel Aviv and worked for several years as a Production Designer in film and television in Israel. After graduating, she assisted for two years in the opera productions of Nigel Lowery before starting as a freelance set and costume designer (2004). During her studies, she collaborated with the director and choreographer Constanza Macras, for which she regularly designed the set (Open for Everything, Here / After, Hell on Earth, Scratch Neukölln). 

GILVAN COÊLHO DE OLIVEIRA (COSTUME DESIGN)

Gilvan Coêlho de Oliveira was born in Recife, Brazil. After studying architecture in Brazil, he completed a master’s degree in stage design and scenic space at the Technical University of Berlin. Since 2004 he has been a freelancer for dance and theater productions with, among others, Canan Erek, Constanza Macras | Dorkypark, Fernanda Guimaraes and the directors Tilmann Köhler, Nico Dietrich and René Braun.

SERGIO DE CARVALHO PESSANHA (LIGHTING)

Born in Brasil, Sergio de Carvalho Pessanha studied urban architecture at the University of Brasilia. He worked as a set and lighting designer but also as a stage manager for international companies, directors, and choreographers, among others, Rui Horta (Portugal), Les Ballets C. de la B. (Belgium), Constanza Macras (Germany), Cristina Moura (Brasil), Àlvaro Restrepo (Columbia) and Saburo Teshigawara (Japan). He received the New York Times award for best light design in 1991 and was part of over 200 international dance and theatre productions in America, Europe, and Asia. 

STEPHAN WÖHRMANN (SOUND)

Born in Woodland, CA, and raised in Tübingen (GER), Stephan Wöhrmann studied Psychology at the University of Hamburg. In the 90s, he came to Berlin to study at the School of Audio Engineering. Since graduating, he has been a freelance musician and sound designer. 2002 he formed the band SWOD with Oliver Doerell, which published two albums between 2004 and 2007. He’s been working, among others, with Robert Wilson, Salvatore Sciarrino, Lanonima Imperial, Helena Waldmann, and Constanza Macras. 

MAREK BALOG (VIOLIN)

After graduating from the Conservatory of Music in Brno, Marek Balog continued studying at the Academy of Performing Arts Banská Bystrice and Bratislava and the Janácek Academy of Performing Arts. He was also the first violinist of the Trávnícek Quartett. Later he studied in France and Moscow, where he was mentored by the famous violinist Arkadij Vinokurov (a student of David Oistrach). Balog has performed in numerous prestige venues all over Europe. Besides playing the violin, he also composes original work and creates transcriptions of famous compositions. 

MARKETA RICHTEROVA (PERFORMER)

Marketa Richterova was born in former Czechoslovakia but grew up as a child of political emigrants in Vienna, Austria. Ten years after the Czech Velvet Revolution, she moved to the Czech Republic to study acting at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. She became a distinctive actress in Prague’s theater scene. After graduation, Marketa moved to Berlin and started working as an actress in the Freie Szene Berlin. She met Constanza Macras and became part of the show “Open For Everything” in 2012. Marketa is currently living with her family in Prague and is performing in stage productions and films between Vienna, Prague and Berlin. She is always open for everything regarding traveling and performing.

JOSEF FECO (BASS)

Josef Fečo was born in Prague. He comes from a Roma musical family and has played music since childhood. His father was a bassist, his mother was a singer, and his great grandfather was a violinist and composer. Josef played guitar since age 4 and violin like his grandfather since age 11. He was a member of his grandfather’s band, Romale Aven Jivas Imar, and toured several prestigious European festivals with the band. Josef became fascinated with cimbalom (dulcimer), but with limited opportunities to play, Josef learned the bass. In 1994, he became a student of the Jaroslav Ježek Conservatory, graduating in 2000, majoring in double bass and bass guitar. During his studies at the Conservatory, he met with numerous artists, including Karel Ruzicka, whose trio he joined in 1999. Joseph is now the most sought-after bassist in the Czech Republic; his musical interests include jazz, funk, pop, soul, and folk. He composes, arranges, and is a permanent member of multiple music groups and projects across Europe, the UK, and the USA. Josef is accompanied by his son Martin (percussion) for DorkyPark’s “Open for Everything.” 

MARTIN FECO (PERCUSSION)

Martin Fečo is the son of renowned bass player Josef Fečo and great-grandson of violin virtuoso Jožka Fečo. Martin grew up with music, inherited his family’s musical talent, and learned to play piano as a young child. At age five, Martin’s parents noticed his sense of rhythm, and he learned to play the drums which have been his great love ever since. He played in his grandfather Jožka’s band and trained in jazz styles. Martin successfully studied drums at the Prague International Conservatory. Among his successes, Martin played with Lady Gaga and her band, worked on a project with Chuck Wansley, and played with the jazz legend Emil Viklický. Music and culture are essential to Martin, and in addition to being a professional musician, he works at the Ministry of Culture. Martin’s most significant role model is his father, Josef, who he performs with in DorkyPark’s “Open for Everything.” 

ELIK NIV (PERFORMER)

Elik Niv is a dancer and choreographer from Israel. He studied at the Kibbutz Performing Arts School Israel and was part of the Constanza Macras | DorkyPark ensemble from 2010 to 2013. Niv is based in Tel Aviv and worked as a choreographer at, among others, the Avignon Festival, Vance Theatre Brussels, and Deutsche Oper Berlin. Currently, he is a member of the Needcompany in Brussels and leads the choreography department at the University of South Israel. 

JAN CINA (PERFORMER)

Jan Cina is a freelance performer born in Prague. After graduating from Prague Conservatory, he continued his studies at the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, focusing on alternative and puppets theatre. As a child, he started his acting career in the Czech film “Brats” (Smradi). Since then, Jan has often worked for Czech Television as an actor and presenter and for HBO Europe (“In Treatment” (Terapie), “Wasteland” (Pustina). At the Czech Lion awards, he was nominated for the best supporting role for “The National Street” (Národní třída) and for the best leading role in miniseries for “The Actor” (Herec). He was also nominated for the Czech Theatre Award “Thalie” for the leading role in a solo music project, “The Little Prince,” at Theatre Studio Dva. Jan is also a winner of the TV talent competition “Your Face Sounds Familiar - 2nd season” and “Dancing with the Stars 2021.”

DAISY PHILLIPS (PERFORMER)

Daisy Phillips was born in Oakland, California and grew up in the Bay Area. She completed her dance training with the Ballet Junior de Genève in 2005 and has been fortunate to create and perform with directors such as Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Alain Platel, Serge Aimé Coulibaly, Lisi Estarás, Quan Bui Ngoc, and Gaia Saitta. Daisy has been a choreographer and movement director for theater, film, music videos, and concerts, and regularly choreographs for opera with director Cecilia Ligorio (e.g., La Fenice, Oper Köln). She has had the privilege of working with Constanza Macras/DorkyPark since 2014, participating in the creations of The Ghosts, The Pose, The West, and The Future.

MARCO CONTRERAS MATELUNA (PERFORMER)

Marco Contreras Mateluna is a Chilean-Italian born and raised in Italy. Since childhood, he has felt a great passion for dancing. He began his professional career in 1995, at age six, thanks to the tremendous support of his family. Marco appeared on National TV and has performed in theatres since the early 2000s. In 2010, he started narrowing down his movement styles and devoted himself entirely to Hip-hop dance, studying with outstanding dancers from around the globe. Marco became a recognized professional Hip-hop dancer in 2015, performing for world-famous choreographers in many TV shows and theatres across Europe. In 2022, He joined Costanza Macras’ company DorkyPark for the show “Open For Everything,” of which he is still part.

ALES RICHTER (PERFORMER)

Aleš Richter was born on July 4, 1947, in Bohemia. He lived and studied Psychology in Brno. In 1971, Aleš was arrested and sentenced to 20 months in prison, suspended for 5 years and expelled from the university just before the end of his studies for participating in a leaflet campaign protesting against false propaganda before the first parliamentary elections after the Russian occupation. He then worked as a mason, floor craftsman, and plumber. As a signatory of Charter 77, he took part in various “underground” activities, including copying texts by banned authors, attending lectures by professors who were not allowed to teach, and making an apartment available for dissident meetings. In 1981, he emigrated with his wife and two young daughters (including Open for Everything performer Marketa Richter) to Vienna, Austria. He is now retired and lives alternately in the Czech Republic and Austria.

MILAN DEMETER (GUITAR)

Milan studied in Prague at secondary school. His musical career began when he worked at a taxi service and drove the famous moderator Ester Kocickova to the Lemonade Joe Club. Ester Kocickova invited Milan to her performance. The after-party was peaceful until Milan was invited to play gypsy music on the piano. The fun continued, and the club manager immediately gave him an opportunity with great enthusiasm. Due to the demand for Latin rhythms, Milan came up with the idea to start a band with Bengas. They chose the repertoire to suit the audience’s tastes which included Latin rhythms and Gypsy Kings at the same time. The Bengas toured the United States and met members of the world-famous band Gypsy Kings.

SHANNON LEYPOLDT (PERFORMER)

Shannon Leypoldt (she/her), originally from the United States, received her BFA from the University of California, Irvine and studied at the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance. Currently based in Berlin, she has performed choreography by Shlomi Bitton, Hillel Cogen, Maxine Doyle, Lisi Estarás, Kiani Del Valle, and Sommer Ulrickson. She has worked for wee dance company, Staatsoper Unter Den Linden, burnsWORK, Itinerant Dance Ensemble, and the KDV Dance Ensemble. Shannon has worked with Constanza Macras | DorkyPark as a guest since 2017 on “Something,” “Bibliomaniacs,” “Open for Everything,” and “The Future.”

LOUIS BECKER (PERFORMER)

Louis Becker is a choreographer and dancer born and raised in Berlin. With over 15 years of experience, he started out with a determined focus and passion for his craft. Louis has garnered the title of World Champion with his Breaking Crew “Flying Steps” three times. He performs as well as manages tours for the award-winning show “Flying Bach” (Echo Klassik Winner). Louis choreographed the successful crossover project “Flying Dreams” at Wintergarten Varieté in Berlin. He has worked with renowned dance companies, including Akhram Khan and Wang Ramirez. Louis has toured with Dorky Park for over 10 years, performing pieces such as “On Fire,” “The Past,” and “Monte Verita.” He constantly learns new movement methods and loves to help with teaching others. Time outside of work is spent with family and his adorable pet rabbit.

ALEXANDRA BODÌ (PERFORMER)

Alexandra was born in Miskolc, Hungary. Her parents signed her up for ballroom classes when she was a child because they thought she had too much energy. At age 17, Alexandra took contemporary dance classes and realized she wanted to become a dancer. She trained professionally at the Budapest Contemporary Dance Academy. After that, Alexandra worked for a production that toured Germany, where she learned other dance styles like Salsa, Hip-Hop, and Irish dance. Alexandra Bodí worked with DorkyPark as a guest performer in “Der Palast” before becoming part of the ensemble in 2021.

JOSZEF BODÌ (PERFORMER)

Jozsef Bodi, born in Miskolc, Hungary, started Latin dancing when he was nine and danced in competitions until age 18. After graduating, he began to work as a software developer. Through his sister Alexandra, he could dive into the artist’s life again, share the stage with her, and present their cultural background to the world.

IVETA MILLEROVÀ (PERFORMER)

Iveta Millerova graduated from two universities specializing in Pedagogy and Andragogy degrees. She has devoted her life to social work as an educator, field worker, and lecturer. She focuses on helping people in the Roma communities in unfavorable situations (direct client care) through training for job positions, pedagogy, social work, fieldwork, working with the state administration and local governments, and assisting in criminal proceedings. Iveta advises how best to work with the Roma community through her social work and administration of project plans within the European and Norwegian funding framework. Her performance works with DorkyPark, and “Open for Everything” is an extension of her private life and hobbies, which she feels provide great relaxation and enjoyment.

Support/Funding credits:

A production by CONSTANZA MACRAS | DorkyPark and the GOETHE-INSTITUT. In co-production with Wiener Festwochen, New Stage of National Theatre Prague, Trafó House of Contemporary Arts Budapest, Divadelná Nitra, Hebbel am Ufer Berlin, Kampnagel Hamburg, HELLERAU – European Center for the Arts and Dansens Hus Stockholm and Zürcher Theater Spektakel. 

Supported by the Capital Cultural Fund and the Governing Mayor of Berlin – Department for Cultural Affairs and Open Society Foundations - with a contribution of the Arts and Culture Program of Budapest.