New dance and circus performance takes shape in Norrbotten

Choreographer Mireia Piñol has been granted a Regional Production Residency to work on the upcoming performance INVIS. Together with dancers Catrin Jonasson and Jamila Ouahid, Mireia will further develop the work in the fall of 2025. 

INVIS is a dance and circus performance with elements of physical theatre, magic, clowning, acrobatics, mathematics and sign language. The performance is aimed at both hearing and hearing-impaired children aged 4–10, as well as students in adapted primary schools. The work is created through meetings with deaf, hearing-impaired and hearing children and highlights themes such as imagination, curiosity and friendship. 

Choreographer Mireia Piñol, originally from Barcelona, ​​is looking forward to creating new cultural encounters and collaborations in Norrbotten. The residency includes periods in both Älvsbyn and Luleå. 

– I am especially looking forward to meeting children, teachers and parents to share our process and learn from their perspectives. Engaging schools, especially those with deaf students or children with disabilities, is invaluable in shaping the inclusive spirit of the performance. We are also curious to experience the culture and artistic context in Älvsbyn and Luleå. 

Choreographer Mireia Piñol.

The regional production residency is an initiative of the dance consultant at Region Norrbotten and the Dance Initiative. It is taking place in close collaboration with municipalities in Norrbotten. Älvsbyn is the host municipality this year. There, it is the municipality's culture and leisure department and Älvsby Folkhögskola that made the venture possible.   

– We see the collaboration as a fantastic opportunity for the municipality to welcome professional dancers for two weeks. It will be an exciting element of our cultural guarantee for school students in the fall of 2025. This is the first time we have arranged a residency, and it feels safe to do it together with Region Norrbotten and Dansinitiativet, says Linda Öhlin, cultural coordinator in Älvsbyn. 

The residency period includes two weeks in Älvsbyn and two weeks at Dansinitiativet in Luleå. During this time, the team will complete the performance. They will also test parts of it on a test audience to adapt the work based on the needs of the target group. 

– It feels great that we can implement this initiative in close collaboration with the municipalities – both to strengthen the presence of dance in Norrbotten and to highlight the role of the municipalities as dance organizers and enablers, says Rebecka Strand, dance consultant for Region Norrbotten. 

– For us at Dansinitiativet, the collaboration is important. It improves the conditions for producing dance in Norrbotten and anchors the artistic process in more places in the county, says Erika Pekula Pettersson, producer Dansinitiativet.