In this GPS Chats, Yanira Castro will share a “Report from the Field” with reflections on her participation in the GPS project “Scores for belonging with Yanira Castro in Kraków” from May 7-20, 2026 hosted by and in partnership with Krakow Choreographic Centre in Poland. Yanira will also provide an overview of the arts and culture scene in Poland. A description of the GPS project is below.
“Scores for belonging with Yanira Castro in Kraków”
Observing the current situation in Poland and the large number of refugees and immigrants who have arrived to Poland in recent years (mainly from Ukraine), Krakow Choreographic Centre aims to initiate a conversation and artistic exchange on these topics through the GPS project, “Scores for belonging with Yanira Castro in Kraków”.
Yanira Castro, who has never been to Poland, will spend two weeks in Kraków. Over the course of the GPS project, she will share her practice with a diverse range of participants — including immigrant artists currently living in Poland, individuals from immigrant backgrounds without formal artistic training, as well as Polish choreographers and dancers and the broader public.
A variety of formats will facilitate these interactions, such as:
– A communal meal in a public space of Nowa Huta district (eg. st The Central Square) co-hosted with immigrant community organizations that work locally for social and cultural integration, building dialogue between Polish and Ukrainian cultures. Participants will collaborate on creating a meal as a meaningful way to understand how culture and land is woven into food.
– Community workshops leading to a performative event – Through a series of meetings with members of the immigrant community, dance practitioners, and other community members, Yanira with the participants will collectively research on embodiment of ideas such as belonging, citizenship and resistance, gathering stories, text, gestures, leading to a performative actions eg. choreographed marches.
– Workshops for dance practitioners and young choreographers on scoring freedom – What might be a practice of scoring collective freedom? Inspired by Toni Cade Bambara, “Freedom is the process by which you develop a practice for being unavailable for servitude,” what does that look like in the practice of making a dance? We grapple with freedom and how each of us imagines it in the body, in the community, in our partnerships and the conflicts and discrepancies that immediately arise. Freedom is responsibility, myth, risk, pleasure, impetus, the toppling of monuments/structures/governments, a contradiction.
*This event is part of a yearlong celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the GPS program at Movement Research! Please join us for more events TBA in the upcoming year!
For event-related questions, please email programs@movementresearch.org.
Accessibility Notes
- This event includes auditive guidance.
- This event may include text/images/video shared via a large screen tv.
To request ASL interpretation or Audio Description, please email accessibility@movementresearch.org, subject line “ASL/Audio Description Request, “GPS Chats” at least three (3) weeks prior to the event date.
For access-related questions and requests, please contact accessibility@movementresearch.org, subject line “GPS Chats.”
