Residency - Land Before Time - Workshop 19.7.2025.
In July, the Mediterranean Dance Center hosts the artistic duo Land Before Time, formed by Joanna Holewa Chrona and Yared Tilahun Cederlund. During their residency, they will develop a new piece titled Yaltari and hold an open workshop on July 19. On July 18, they will also present their previous performance Waterkind at the main square in Svetvinčenat.
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Yaltari began when Joanna and Yared gave a name to the shared mental and emotional space they enter when dancing together. It became a way to pinpoint where they are during the process, and to communicate through it. In Yaltari, the body becomes a tool for non-verbal exchange – each part acting like an antenna. There is rarely any eye contact; instead, the focus is on a heightened form of communication that doesn’t rely on the gaze or physical touch, but listens with the whole body.
The work is conceived as a site-specific multiverse where dancers move between three parallel worlds. These shifts create a choreography of constant presence, where each “now” is new and different. The piece reacts to its surroundings and is intended to be shown outdoors, in public space, allowing for diverse audience reactions across different places and cultures. The residency in Svetvinčenat offers the artists a chance to continue this research in dialogue with the town and its atmosphere.
WORKSHOP: LAND BEFORE TIME
July 19, 2025
10:00 – 11:30
Mediterranean Dance Center
Fee: 15 EUR
The workshop focuses on duo-based improvisation without direct physical contact. Participants will explore how connection and mutual understanding can emerge through listening, awareness, and movement – without relying on touch or eye contact.
Water is the key inspiration: its flow, currents, and rhythm guide the practice. Techniques such as slow motion, popping, and isolations are used to support a state of bodily attentiveness. The workshop is open to dancers and movement enthusiasts. No prior experience in this method is required.
Spots limited - Registration: rezervacije@mediteranskiplesnicentar.hr
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Joanna Holewa Chrona is a dancer, choreographer, project manager, and DJ based in Sweden and South Africa. Her dance practice draws from several movement traditions – from politically charged popping styles in the US to isiPantsula, Sabar, and Afro-Cuban dance rooted in South Africa, Senegal, and Cuba. She creates stage performances, festivals, exchanges, and workshops, guided by improvisation, music, and the healing and revolutionary power of dance.
Yared Tilahun Cederlund is a dancer and freelance artist with strong roots in street dance and freestyle movement. He has performed with major companies and choreographers, including Cullberg, and works across disciplines as a composer and sound designer. His physical language is shaped by a strong personal drive and years of independent study, collaboration, and experimentation.
