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This review was published in the 93rd edition of Continente magazine, from Pernambuco. The text is part of a series of reviews Idança started to published in the end of 2008, on the occasion of the good editorial phase in the dance area. The first review was written by dancer and researcher Nirvana Marinho about the book Dança Cênica – pesquisas em dança volume 1′, organized by Jussara Xavier, Sandra Meyer e Vera Torres. Want to read it? Click here.

Those who circulate in the dance universe, must have already heard about Zdenek Hampl, dancer and choreographer who, in the 70’s, left Czechoslovakia, his homeland, for Brazil. From 1982 until his death, last March, he lived in Recife, for the benefit of local artists, who learned a great deal from him. Possessing an ironic humor and master in the art of surprising, Zdenek now presents himself in words, for he left some of his reflections and unrests about dance registered in a manuscript, which became the book Constante Movimento, released by publisher Associação Reviva.

According to information provided by researcher and critic Roberto Pereira, in 2007 the list of publications about dance by Brazilian authors already counted over 170 titles. One specificity of this growing segment is the diversity of styles: biographies and autobiographies, artistic and academic research records, history, didactic material about a given technique; among others, each year add to the Brazilian dance bibliography. But Zdenek lets us know in the first pages that his book does not fit into any of these categories, because he states that he “doesn´t have a style until now and it´s good that way”, in a clear attempt to preserve his freedom of expression. If, on one hand, the categories established by the literary market do not accommodate him, on the other hand, we can be sure this is a book about dance. In an informal writing, Zdenek builds many paths and even the apparently disconnected ones deal with dance and exude the overwhelming passion he felt about this art and his many occupations. Written in first person, Constante Movimento shows us many aspects of Zdenek and also many aspects of dance in the development of something we could regard as a good-humored and productive chat with a friend. Exactly because we tend to believe, as he does, that “there is no other activity that offers such favorable conditions and atmosphere for friendships to emerge, as dance does”.

Without worrying about chronology, the dancer-writer reveals significant episodes of the history of dance, like the time when, leading a group of friends, he staged the daring show Festa da Pedra (1989), enacted at plastic artist Francisco Brennand’s atelier, an unprecedented feat, which inaugurated a different way to think about and make contemporary dance in Recife, opening new possibilities of creation and also dialogue among art forms. Zdenek was a pioneer who believed, above all, in the transforming power of dance, in the communicative force of gesture. For him, movement is always more powerful and effective than words and this statement conducts all the narratives of the book. Although he does not intend to talk about history, the author’s memories work as windows that open and we can thus see, for example, how was the dance panorama and the reality in Brazil in the 70’s, through the eyes of a “gringo” who, enchanted by the natural beauties (specifically the female human beauty) of the Copacabana beach, decided not to return to his homeland after the South American tour of the company in which he acted as soloist. If the “historian deals with a drained temporality, with what is not seen or lived, that is only accessible through signs of the past that reach him, as Pesavento defined, Zdenek Hampl’s book follows exactly the opposite direction, since it is essentially made of words of what was experienced. And, in this case, it seems he could not and did not want to separate the professional from the personal. The dance and the life experiences mingle in every line of Constante Movimento, and from this mixture many lessons emerge. And even if the author didn´t consider his book to be didactic, he does has a lot to teach.

The critical tone that punctuates the whole conversation does not hide the pedagogical worry of zealous and dedicated teacher Zdenek, as is revealed is some parts: “For dance to be as rich and efficient as we wish, it´s not enough to learn only one, or even many techniques. We must learn everything within our reach, study or at least observe everything possible. I assert with confidence: even what apparently doesn´t have anything in common with dance now, one day will”. Having said that, and with such vehemence , it is hard not to believe. Aligned with contemporary thought, Zdenek brings pertinent reflections for those who work with dance and that also helps to demystify some issues and brings people closer to the universe of dance. “To begin with, ‘beautiful’ is a word with dubious meaning. How many times have I heard, when someone does something stupid, destroying something: Beautiful, eh? Now you have to clean everything! Some time ago, smoking was beautiful, now it´s disgusting. Values are relative, they change. So, the show was beautiful… It pleased the audience? Good for those who think so. However, I made the show to communicate something that will not necessarily please everyone. A cell phone bought a year ago is already outdated and that´s what happens in every imaginable area. Why is it that only in dance the audience almost demands to see what it´s used to seeing?” – Zdenek provokes. This is only one of many instigating discussions Constante Movimento offers. At the same time it cannot be considered an autobiography, didactic manual or historical dance narrative, Zdenek’s book manages to be a little of each. Therefore, it is appropriate to cite here Roberto Pereira’s explanation about the nature of this kind of writing, fortunately frequent in the Brazilian bibliography about dance: it is a “little instrumentalized narrative, bathed by a lived, passionate immensity, built upon the every day work of the dancer, choreographer and dance teacher”.

Why read Zdenek Hampl? Maybe to understand what made him the choreographer that changed the concept of contemporary dance in Pernambuco; or to deepen the knowledge and reflections about such subjects. For those who study, work or simply appreciate dance, Constante Movimento can be a good starting point. And the better part is that the reader is previously authorized (by the author) to choose any of the paths offered in the varied menu of possibilities in this reading. And for those who feel alien to the dance universe, to be carried away by the emotion that conducted that work and life of Zdenek Hampl may be a good suggestion, if not to become a professional dancer, at least to experiment dance, in some way. Constante Movimento is an opening of the heart, a letter that describes the challenges, the strategies, the difficulties and benefits of this art, but it is, above all, an open invitation to dance, for all the people of all ages and with no side effects.

“Everything that deals with the body is positive, with so excesses, of course. I just want to point out the fact that dance demands a lot more than just sweat. The compensation during and after is also infinitely larger, superior. No choreography is like the other, no show will be the same as the next one and thus we keep learning, always recycling ourselves. Not even if made an effort to make the shows exactly the same, the audience would always be different. It’s the magical relationship stage-audience that brings so much emotion. (…) I personally don´t believe the person could go through life without having ever danced. (…) This feeling of happiness, of plenitude, those who haven´t experienced dance don´t know it.” (ZDENEK HAMPL)

Christianne Galdino is a journalist