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CANI LUNARI

Körper | Centro Nazionale di Produzione della Danza

CANI LUNARI

choreography Francesco Marilungo 
performers Erica Bravini, Alice Raffaelli, Barbara Novati, Roberta Racis, Francesca Linnea Ugolini, Vera Di Lecce (rotating cast)  
costumes Lessico Familiare 
music and vocal coaching Vera Di Lecce 
lighting and space design Gianni Staropoli 
photos and video Luca Del Pia 
production Körper | Centro Nazionale di Produzione della Danza 
co-production SNAPORAZVEREIN, IRA – Institute 
winning project of the CollaborAction Award – Anticorpi XL Network 
The project was supported by ResiDance – a residency support by the Anticorpi XL Network: Centro di Residenza della Toscana (Fondazione Armunia Castiglioncello – CapoTrave/Kilowatt Sansepolcro), AMAT – Associazione Marchigiana per le Attività Teatrali, Consorzio PUGLIA CULTURE – Consorzio Regionale per le Arti e la Cultura 
in collaboration with Associazione Menhir / festival LE DANZATRICI en plein air (Ruvo di Puglia) and Associazione Culturale TEATRO MENZATÌ/ TEX – Il Teatro dell’ExFadda (San Vito dei Normanni, Apulia Region) 
with the support of Cross Festival, Primavera dei Teatri Castrovillari 
with the contribution of Marosi Festival, Fondazione Egri – Centro di Rilevante Interesse per la Danza, Teatro delle Moire, Centro Coreografico Nazionale Aterballetto   

duration 55 min  

During the winter months, when the moon is full or nearly full, light can be refracted by ice crystals in high-altitude clouds, creating a circular halo around the lunar disk with two symmetrical flares on either side: moon dogs. Historically, these atmospheric phenomena were read as omens of approaching storms, yet they were also signals of transition, visual gateways to the invisible. CANI LUNARI [moon dogs] is a choreographic project that steps through these gateways, immersing itself in imagery rooted in the archaic feminine, magical knowledge, and the ecstatic body. It is an investigation into the figure of the witch and the healer: not as a folkloric remnant or a demonised stereotype, but as an emblem of marginal and powerful knowledge that resists the logic of utility and visibility. The research process combines archival materials, oral testimonies, folkloric iconography, and bodily practices. At the heart of the project lies a reflection on the hysterical body: a feminine state of crisis and enigma, historically associated with witchcraft and states of possession. Nineteenth-century photographs from the Salpêtrière hospital become symbolic material to be embodied: bodies out of control, channelled by the invisible, performing an alternative form of knowledge. The soundscape by Vera Di Lecce weaves electronics with natural sounds, chants, and incantations, in a score suspended between the earthly and the divine. CANI LUNARI is a crossing, a ‘white sabbat’, a collective ritual to re-enchant the world.  

Francesco Marilungo

Francesco Marilungo is a choreographer and performer. Following his studies in Thermal-Mechanical Engineering and a research period at the Von Karman Institute in Brussels, he trained at the Civica Scuola d’Arte Drammatica Paolo Grassi in Milan. His artistic research investigates the relationships between bodies, rituals, collective memories, and the symbolic construction of communities, developing choreographic devices that span dance and performance. His most recent creations include Party Girl (2020), winner of the Prospettiva Danza Award and selected for the NID Platform 2021; Stuporosa (2023), winner of the 2024 Ubu Award for Best Dance Performance; and Cani Lunari, winner of the CollaborAction Award (Anticorpi XL Network) and selected for the NID Platform 2026. His works have been presented at numerous national and international festivals and venues.

Körper | Centro Nazionale di Produzione della Danza

Founded in 2003 by Gennaro Cimmino, Körper is a Production Centre that explores all expressive languages spanning dance, theatre, music, and contemporary art. The Centre’s activity focuses on the production and promotion of dance as an art of the body and as a primary, universal language of communication, fostering exchange and dialogue with other European and international artistic organisations. Its recognition in June 2022 by the Italian Ministry of Culture as a National Dance Production Centre came after 20 years of activity, inspiring the Centre to expand its support for young choreographers across the country. Following the premature passing of its founder and artistic director Gennaro Cimmino, the Centre has carried his legacy forward by forming a collective of key figures who shaped the organisation’s growth. This team pairs four senior professionals with two emerging under-35 artists: Franco Silvestro, Susanna Sastro, Vito Pizzo, Andrea Baker, Rebecca Curti, and Claudia Cimmino. Over the years, Körper has built a solid network with local institutional bodies, expanding its programming.