Federica Cocom

Description

For me creating through dance is a visual trip between a daydream and reality correlated through moments of exaltation, darkness, and vivification. As an artist, I have struggled to express my vision of dance due to low self-confidence. For this reason, I held it back until this present time in which my scars are healed and I am ready to open my wings and show what is inside my mind.

I grew up being bullied for my smile which was my way to hide shyness and fear.

One day a teacher told me: “A smile is rich on the mouth of stupid people”. These words were a jack-knife into my heart and even though I knew I wasn’t stupid I couldn’t find another way to hide. So, I started to think that everything I did wasn’t good. However, I never lost sight of my passion for dance even in the darkest moments.

One day, death came close to me and I got so scared that it became my wake-up call. I started to research for the light in my life and heal my scars.

Years later, I became a professional dancer, moved to another country, got married, and became a Physical Therapist but something inside me was not courageous enough to say to the world: “I have awesome dances productions in my head and I will create them, I will make sure that they are more than affordable and all people can see, hear and feel them”.

I am here now as a courageous, creative, and intelligent woman taking the step to tell the world about my visions between a daydream and reality which will be the nutriment of my creations.

Work Sample

This project is entitled "Amuart" is the word Trauma but written backward because I wanted to give credit to my love for the Art which has been my life savior from traumatic experiences during my childhood and adolescent life. I believe that trauma it is experienced from every humans and living creature at a different level but not matter the severity, it influences our way of life from loving, relating and expressing.

In this production the subject trauma it is explored from the moment that we born to the moment of healing.

Last month I decided to bring to life a small sample of the full production and work with 4 fantastic professional dancers who have been genuinely open to my ideas bringing on stage the use of voice, props, costumes and dance in one whole amalgam. We met for 3 days of rehearsal and built the outline of this production.

The work sample represents each section of the full production but in a short version. The production includes 6 sections.
The first one is the opening in which the dancers represents three different emotional state, love, frustration and anger. This section will start while the audience take their seat such as an artwork is already on display went you go to a gallery.
The second section is the birth. In this section there are many emotions anxiety, fear, happiness, purity but it is also the first traumatic event for the baby.
The third section is the discovery of the world, the learning time for the baby.
The fourth section represents a traumatic even. A domestic violence. Confusion, fear sadness will be explored.
The fifth section represents the moment before the healing begins.
The sixth section represent the discovery of our own strength to overcome our traumas and heal our scars.

History

I am a choreographer/dancer passionate in exploring the combination of dance, acting, singing, and sounds. In the development of my productions I am inspired by real life event and correlated feeling to generate the most genuine and honest movements.

I was born and raised in Ferentino, Italy, and began my dance training in a Gym. At the age of 18, I was accepted into “Ateneo Della Danza” a Dance Academy located in Siena, Italy. Soon after I discovered the Modern Dance Theater World through a recording on youtube of "Cafe Muller" by Pina Bausch. I was enchanted by the use of dance, acting, and singing all interlaced in one amalgam. In 2010 I traveled to Germany to deepen my knowledge of this new approach to dance. On my return to Italy, I became a company member of "Aleph" a Modern Dance Theatre Company. In 2013 I moved to Chicago as a guest dance teacher and simultaneously enrolled in the professional dance program at Lou Conte Dance Studio (Hubbard Street Dance Chicago). A year later I became a company member of Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre. In 2017 I started to explore the combination of dance, acting, and gestures and presented two of my works at "Emergence". Since then I kept exploring and creating inspired by life events.

Artistic Vision

My vision is to bring on stage real life experience and stories through the art of dance and theater. My goal is to offer to the audience a moment of empathy or compassion whether they have experience the same situations or not.