with Rafaële Giovanola (CocoonDance)
During the Tanzfestival Winterthur Rafaële Giovanola will give a 3-day intense workshop for professional dancers/dancemakers/dance pedagogues.
When
WED 25.11.2026 10:00-14:00
THU 26.11.2026 10:00-16:00
FRI 27.11.2026 10:00-16:00 with a SHOWING at 19:30 in the Theater am Gleis, at the Tanzfestival Winterthur
Where
TOaG / Tanzort am Gleis
Untere Vogelsangstrasse 2
8400 Winterthur
2nd Floor
About the Movement LAB
In Search of the Unthought Body
This intensive LAB invites participants to explore the body beyond technique, style, or expectation. Rooted in Rafaële Giovanola’s long-term research – the search for the unthought body- the workshop opens a space where perception, instinct, and physical memory become engines for movement. Through precise yet simple tasks, a body emerges that is not choreographed in advance but discovered in real time: a body that thinks through sensation rather than intention.
Participants are encouraged to access their own narrative, emotional, and physical potential, allowing movement to arise directly from the moment and from the shared studio environment.
Across the three days, we will enter different universes from CocoonDance’s repertoire, with particular attention to Momentum #2, curated for the Winterthur Festival. This work investigates extreme spinal articulation, bounce, exhaustion, heightened reactivity, and body-to-body communication. These states push the body toward unfamiliar territories, opening new modes of presence, attention, and relationality.
The LAB culminates in a shared public rehearsal, offering an insight into the research process and the emergent physicalities developed collectively.
About Rafaële Giovanola
Swiss, born in the USA, Rafaële Giovanola is a choreographer and the artistic director of CocoonDance, the company she founded in 2000 with dramaturg Rainald Endraß. Before establishing CocoonDance, she was a celebrated soloist with several international companies, most notably William Forsythe’s Frankfurt Ballet.
Since 2004, Giovanola has created more than forty productions and co-curates the dance program at Theater im Ballsaal (Bonn). Under her direction, CocoonDance has become a prominent voice in contemporary dance, recognized for its rigorous physical research, distinctive dramaturgical approach, and strong commitment to cultural education. The company tours internationally across five continents and appears regularly at major festivals including German Dance Platform, STEPS, Rencontres Chorégraphiques Internationales de Saint-Denis, Les Hivernales, Antigel, CODA Festival, and MILANoLTRE.
Her commissioned work SPHYNX for TanzMainz received the FAUST Prize in 2022, and in 2024 she was honored with the D&D Award for Choreography (Italy). Giovanola’s artistic practice is driven by improvisation, heightened bodily perception, and a collaborative process that continually expands the possibilities of contemporary movement.
Participants of the workshop are invited to visit the performances that take place on the days of the workshop (Thursday and Friday) for free, as long as there are tickets left.
Rafaële Giovanola (CocoonDance) will show her piece MOMENTUM on Saturday. The participants of the workshop need to buy a ticket for this evening.
Participation:
Regular Participation
Open to international applicants. Living or working in Switzerland is not required.
Fee: CHF 180.- (Includes workshop, festival dinner and free entry to the festival during the workshop)
Please note that accommodation and travel costs are not covered.
How to apply:
Email info@tanzinwinterthur.ch with proof of your professional background (links or documents showing you are a dancer, dancemaker or dance pedagogue), along with your phone number and place of residence.
Deadline: November 9, 2026