From October 15 to 17, the Contemporánea Condeduque in Madrid will host A Place To Dance, a dance piece born from the collaboration between Brazilian choreographer Poliana Lima and British flamenco artist Yinka Esi Graves.
The performance aims to transform the space by inviting the audience to participate, both as dancers and spectators. It features a four-sided stage where dancers, audience members, musicians, and technicians share the same environment.
At the heart of this collaboration is the desire to present the body in its collective dimension and to position dance as a powerful agent for creating and transforming spaces. Lima and Graves articulate their choreographic discourse through rhythmic dialogue and cultural heritage.
A Place To Dance proposes an opening in space and time, encouraging participation in the transformative potential of dance, making any location a place to dance and belong. The choreography is developed from rhythmic dialogue, with the sounds of their bodies captured live and edited to create an evolving soundtrack. DJ Oumoukala will handle the opening and closing of the event.
About Poliana Lima
Poliana Lima is a choreographer, dancer, and educator. Trained in sociology at UNICAMP (Brazil) and in dance at various schools, she grew up in a culture where dance is deeply ingrained. Lima synthesizes these paths in her body, making it the central object of her expression and research. Over the past 15 years, she has created eight long-duration works and six short pieces. She was an associate artist at Condeduque Madrid from 2018 to 2020 and has received support from Teatros del Canal, Centre national de la danse, Festival Dias da Dança in Porto, and Aerowaves, among others. In March 2026, Lima will have an expanded program at the Mercat de les Flors in Barcelona showcasing her latest works.
About Yinka Esi Graves
Yinka Esi Graves is a British creator and dancer based in Spain. Her work explores the connections between flamenco and other contemporary forms from a perspective rooted in the African diaspora, where the body serves as a discursive space. Her projects range from stage pieces to live composition works, both as a solo artist and collaborator. Graves' first solo work, The Disappearing Act, premiered at the Flamenco Festival in Nîmes in 2023 and has been featured in international festivals such as El Grec, Tanz Im August, and the Avignon Festival. This year, in addition to premiering A Place To Dance, she has begun developing her next stage project, which will focus on the concepts of subversion and catharsis, with a premiere scheduled for 2027.
