Aiming to foster the artistic development of contemporary dance creators, in 2026 the Companhia de Dança de Almada’s Direction selected to be included in the Emerging Choreographers Programme, three of the various spontaneous proposals received from young dancers/choreographers.
“CONCIERGE”, by Inês Barros, “too much?”, by Rita Carpinteiro and “Culpa”, by Vitor Afonso, are the original pieces that make up the program presented on Dance Day, on April 29th, in Almada.
Inês Barros is a dancer on the Companhia de Dança de Almada. Previously, she was a member of Quorum Project and InTranzYt Cia. As a creator, she has choreographed for the Academia de Dança de Alcobaça, FORMA - Estúdio de Dança de Chaves and Ca.DA Escola. In 2025, she participated in the ECO Project – ECO Project - Emerging in Creation and Orientation, by Play False Associação Cultural. In “CONCIERGE,” the author explores the tension between the facade of control and the internal anxieties of those who govern, showing the constant struggle of a leader to maintain action and identity in the face of the persistent uncertainty of power.
Rita Carpinteiro is a performer, creator, and researcher in performing arts. In 2013, she was recognized as a Young Revelation by the city of Setúbal, where she completed her professional dance training. She was a member of the Companhia Portuguesa de Bailado Contemporâneo (CPBC) and collaborated with choreographers such as Clara Andermatt, Amélia Bentes, Diana Niepce, among others. In “too much?”, the author proposes to work with laughter as a mechanism of exposure: the laughter that attacks and the laughter that adapts – between the excess that threatens to break the form, and the restraint that recomposes the posture.
Vítor Afonso was a member of the Madeira Ballet Theatre - MBT collective, Sublime Dance Company, and Quorum Ballet. He also participated in projects by Margarida Belo Costa, Allan Fallieri, Victor Hugo Pontes, and Diana Niepce. He has been a dancer with the Companhia de Dança de Almada since 2021, for which he created the solo “a silent echo,” presented at the SOLO Çağdaş Dans Festivali in Turkey. In “Culpa” the author addresses the feeling of guilt: “Between the weight of what cannot be controlled, the impotence of the caregiver, and the emptiness of the self-loathing, guilt rises as a silent character (...)”
The Emerging Choreographers Programme is an ongoing initiative of Ca.DA - Companhia de Dança de Almada, which aims to provide space for artistic creation and promotion of contemporary dance authors less known to the audience, but whose work deserves the attention of its Artistic Direction, due to the technical and conceptual quality, originality and depth.
Apr. 9, 2026
