Fil Rouge, choreographed and performed by Rossella Canciello, Paolo Cingolani, Ivaylo Dimitrov, Susanna Grob, Annukka Hirvonen, Anni Lattunen, and Jonas Marx during artist residency periods in Berlin and Italy between 2023 and 2024, was presented at DOCK 11 on 20 June 2025, as part of the soundance festival berlin.
TherianthropesThere are seven of them, human bodies with animal heads: a black bird, tiger, turtle, panda, giraffe, brown horse, and white rabbit. Without making any sounds, they move slowly, softly, almost carefully as they stand, sit, walk, and do simple gestures with their arms and hands. They mostly observe the others from the edges of the stage. Their quiet, yet intentional presence resonates. Sometimes they touch each other and their mysterious tenderness seems to moisten the air around them.
Humans
After the opening scene, all the therianthropes leave the stage except for the bird creature. It takes its mask off. Underneath the mask is a human face. Why break the magic so fast? I am disappointed to see the underlying face so early on in the piece. Following this scene, the other performers soon appear on stage one after another without their masks. As humans, they seem to have the opposite traits from the creatures. They make a lot of sound by talking, stomping, and breathing loudly. They dance in complex yet unengaging movements. They try to fill the space with their voices and motion, but without success. Whenever they put their masks back on—which happens throughout the piece at their own pace, allowing the audience to see a mix of creatures and humans onstage—they embody a calm presence that absorbs attention.
Dance
Turn. Reach. Sweep. Carve. Pivot. Stomp. Touch.
Gestures. Small jumps. Short sprints.
Flowy. Ambiguous.
I’m watching a modern dance.Sounds
Are the distant sounds of birds chirping coming from the outside or is it part of the soundscore? Rain and thunder arrive and leave. A couple of musical soundtracks pass by. The performers chatter in different languages (Italian, English, German, and another language that I can’t identify), very fast, about various topics—memories, losing a husband, tequila, teeth, and so on. I enjoy not understanding some languages, as words then just become sounds without meanings.
Washing Machines
From many words uttered by the human that is behind the giraffe mask, I remember: The “washing machine of life” that goes on “in circles.” And that “It’s not that holy. It’s a washing machine.” Someone being “the God of fridge,” and how it’s “useful in summer.” A “her” going away to find herself in Tibet, because she wanted to become someone important, she was not born for this small town. As they accumulate, these scraps get me thinking about machines, motors, and life. If our lives are washing machines, they are valued mainly in relation to its functionality. The motor carries out the same motions over and over again to complete its task, which is useful, but boring. Naturally, as humans, we long to be special, and we often strive to find a way to stand out. But… could those efforts sometimes be comparable to motors that run ceaselessly in circles? Do we want to be useful or special or both? Are our lives not so holy after all? Animal headed creatures, could you show me how to turn off my mental motors?
Fil Rouge by Rossella Canciello, Paolo Cingolani, Ivaylo Dimitrov, Susanna Grob, Annukka Hirvonen, Anni Lattunen, and Jonas Marx was presented at DOCK 11 on 20 June 2025, as part of the soundance festival berlin.
