Luís Guerra [Lisbon, 1985] studied dance at the National Conservatory (1995-2003), with Margarida Bettencourt as his teacher of improvisation and composition; choreography at the Gulbenkian Foundation (2005), with Thierry Bae, Mathilde Monnier, Anne Collod, Lisa Nelson, Loïc Touzé and Lia Rodrigues; relaxation massage at the Institute of Traditional Medicine (2020); painting and drawing at ArCo (2019-2022) and also completed the advanced course and individual project in visual arts at the same school (2022-2025) where he received the Vera Futscher scholarship, with Francisca Carvalho as his tutor and teacher.
He regularly exhibits his visual work and has been working for over two decades as a performer, dancer, improviser, model for drawing classes, teacher and choreographer.
As a performer, he has been part of several pieces by Tânia Carvalho since 2006, receiving two mentions for his performance in her pieces [Dance Europe Magazine and SPAutores], and has also developed collaborations in the field of dance with several creators, namely Vera Mantero, Meg Stuart, Sofia Dias & Vitor Roriz, Simon Vincenzi, Emio Greco|PC, Claudia Castelucci, Christophe Haleb, Alexandre Roccoli, Mariana Tengner Barros, David Marques, Elizabete Francisca, Carlos Oliveira, Rui Horta, Marie Chouinard (Ballet Gulbenkian), Pedro Barateiro, Marlene Monteiro Freitas, Paulo Ribeiro, Clara Andermatt, Miguel Moreira, João Garcia Miguel, among others.
He has presented several pieces as a choreographer and improviser, the most recent being: ‘Aparição’ (Apparition), a show invoking states of trance in the context of art galleries; ‘Peregrinação de um pássaro colorido’ (Pilgrimage of a Colourful Bird) and ‘Mais à tardinha ao cair da noite’ (Later in the Evening at Nightfall), improvisational shows in public spaces; “Almada Negreiros, o bailarino” (Almada Negreiros, the dancer), commissioned by the Gulbenkian Foundation for a tribute show; “corpo com Lisboa ao fundo” (body with Lisbon in the background), commissioned by Casa da Cerca in Almada; and “Pintura transparente sobre tela invisível” (transparent painting on invisible canvas), an improvisation show with Vera Mantero. As a creator, he was part of the Bomba Suicida collective between 2008 and 2014, participated in the DanceWeb 2022 project with a grant from the Gulbenkian Foundation and in the CoLABoratório, SiWiC and Colina 2003 projects, among others.
In an educational context, he taught movement at the Escola Professional de Teatro de Cascais and has developed various activities, namely dance and drawing workshops for primary schools [Lagos, Casa Branca], secondary and vocational schools [Pedra Dura and ArCo festivals, Víctor Cordon studios] and dance companies [Companhia Paulo Ribeiro].
She currently resides in Brussels, where she conducts a series of occasional training courses, mainly in the area of improvisation in the context of performing arts, namely at the TicTac Art Centre, where she has been mentored by Jennifer Monson, Milan Tomášik, Paola di Bella, Meg Stuart, Vera Mantero, Florian Vuille, Julyen Hamilton and Davis Freeman.
Image
© Manuel Guerra