Gioele Coccia: Never So Close, Never So Far

One body. Many faces. Alone in plain sight. Fragmented into thousands of versions, we search in vain for our essence. We are more visible than ever, yet behind our masks we hunger for connection. And each futile attempt digs deeper into our core.

The production presents a cross-section of the work of Italian choreographer, dancer, and dance filmmaker Gioele Coccia. The work dissolves the boundaries between image and performance. Projections of expressive dance films merge with Gioele Coccia's movements and live music performed by Berardo Di Mattia.

Gioele Coccia is an Italian artist whose work combines contemporary dance, physical theatre, video art, and audiovisual experiments. He works as a dancer, performer, choreographer, and teacher. In recent years he has focused on the intersection of art and social engagement, with a particular emphasis on identity and gender equality. Key works of his in this area include maskiA! and Maschile Ausiliare, a choreographic work exploring the fragility of male identity and the social pressures surrounding it (in collaboration with philosopher Lorenzo Gasparrini). Coccia’s dance films have been screened at international festivals and, won a number of awards, and he has also created music videos for bands such as Brandt Brauer Frick.

He has collaborated extensively with the Italian ensemble Ritmi Sotterranei and other renowned artists. He is the founder and artistic director of the Mapigo Project, a social innovation initiative based in Tanzania. The project is dedicated to preserving and promoting traditional dance as a powerful means of intercultural dialogue and social transformation. Coccia lives between Rome and Prague, where he performs with the international ensemble Farm in the Cave. He also collaborated with the ensemble’s artistic director Viliam Dočolomanský on the film Ephemera (2021) and the shows Commander (2022), Oscillations (2023), and All Is Good in Heaven (2025).