Teresa Trujillo is a

Uruguayan Uruguayans () are people identified with the country of Uruguay, through citizenship or descent. Uruguay is home to people of different ethnic origins. As a result, many Uruguayans do not equate their nationality with ethnicity, but with citizen ...

dancer, actor, choreographer, performing arts specialist and political activist. She has created dance and other performances in South America, Europe, and the United States.

Biography

Trujillo was born on April 4, 1937, in the

Pocitos :''Pocitos is also the colloquial name for the city of Salvador Mazza, Salta, Salvador Mazza, Salta Province, Argentina'' Pocitos is an upscale seaside Barrios of Montevideo, ''barrio'' of Montevideo, Uruguay. It borders Buceo to the east, Parque B ...

barrio of

Montevideo, Uruguay Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital and largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . Montevideo is situated on the southern coa ...

7. Trujillo began dancing at an early age. She studied ballet under Tamara Grigorieva until joining the Elsa Vallarino dance group. Trujillo also studied music at the Kolischer Conservatory. In 1962, Trujillo moved to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

to study

modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert dance, concert or theatrical dance which includes dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th ...

from

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer, teacher and choreographer, whose style, the Graham technique, reshaped the dance world and is still taught in academies worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over s ...

and

Jose Limon Jose is the English transliteration of the Hebrew and Aramaic name ''Yose'', which is etymologically linked to ''Yosef'' or Joseph. Given name Mishnaic and Talmudic periods *Jose ben Abin *Jose ben Akabya *Jose the Galilean *Jose ben Halafta *J ...

. In 1964, she completed her academic training at the

Schola Cantorum The Schola Cantorum de Paris ( being ) is a private conservatory in Paris. It was founded in 1894 by Charles Bordes, Alexandre Guilmant and Vincent d'Indy as a counterbalance to the Paris Conservatoire's emphasis on opera. History The Schol ...

in Paris. Trujillo then joined the Karin Waehner company, and began choreographing dances. she began experimenting with music, dance, and painting to create a multidisciplinary act. By 1966, Trujillo was back in Uruguay. During this period, he found her work censored by the government of

Jorge Pacheco Areco Jorge Pacheco Areco (; April 9, 1920 – July 29, 1998) was a Uruguayan politician and journalist and the 33rd president of Uruguay, serving from 1967 to 1972. Formerly the Vice President of Uruguay Pacheco became President after the sudden deat ...

, which did not appreciate modern dance. In 1972, Trujillo left the country, spending time in

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...

and

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. In 1985, after the end of the

military dictatorship A military dictatorship, or a military regime, is a type of dictatorship in which Power (social and political), power is held by one or more military officers. Military dictatorships are led by either a single military dictator, known as a Polit ...

, she returned to Uruguay. In the 1990s, Trujillo switched from dance to theatre work, teaching at University of Music . She received up a degree from the Eutonia of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, where she would later teach.

Activism

In the 1960s Trujillo, Graciela Figueroa, Isabel Gilbert and curator Angela Lopez Ruiz created a piece titled ''Gender and Dance Studies in Pioneers of Action Art I.'' It aimed to show the experiences of Uruguayan women by using their testimonies and archives. Moreover, Trujillo's activism extends to the

evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...

of dance and freedom of expression, something that was heavily

censored Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governmen ...

in Uruguay due to the dictatorship. In an

interview An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other provides answers.Merriam Webster DictionaryInterview Dictionary definition, Retrieved February 16, 2016 In common parlance, the word "interview" re ...

with Laura Sand of ''Voyart'', Trujillo explains that

freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...

was the biggest motivator of dance, and that her body is dance, indicating the liberating nature she achieves from dance.

Artwork

Dance

Escalada, 1969

A 35-minute dance piece regarding the construction of a new building, ''Alliance Francaise De Montevideo'', in Uruguay. The set was a structure of metallic tubes in the center of the future theatre. .

Choreography

Danztrio

Dance group who performed on '' Caleidoscopio.'' This group was created as a result of the dynamic lifestyle found in Spain, which made it very difficult for dancers like Trujillo to struggled to situate themselves.

Kaspar

In 1986, Trujillo worked on the national comedy of Kaspar.

''Waiting for Godot''

Trujillo participated in this version of ''

Waiting for Godot ''Waiting for Godot'' ( or ) is a 1953 play by Irish writer and playwright Samuel Beckett, in which the two main characters, Vladimir (Waiting for Godot), Vladimir (Didi) and Estragon (Gogo), engage in a variety of discussions and encounters w ...

,'' in which the actors are women. She starred with Susana Castro, Nelly Goitino, and Norma Salvo and given one of her first

monologue In theatre, a monologue (also known as monolog in North American English) (in , from μόνος ''mónos'', "alone, solitary" and λόγος ''lógos'', "speech") is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts ...

s. Trujillo was short listed for the Revelation Prize.

Select works

Uruguay 1954-1961

*Autumn is in the Air * Dalica

Paris 1964-1965

*The Beginning * Kinesis * Improvisation II * Ephemeral Panic * Eryximaque

Uruguay 1966-1967

* Happening * Balance * Embryo

Uruguay 1969-1970

*6-breakup-9 * Climbing * What to do with dance in these moving times

Exile 1972-1984

Cuba 1972-1978

*Uruguay today *Venezuela 1974-1978 *Spain 1978-1986 **''DanzTri'' **''Caleidoscopio''

Uruguay 1984-1989

*Round and round * Get out if you can * Body to body * Waiting for Godot * Kaspar * Body stories

Uruguay 1994-2016

*Broth to the Queen * The Volatinero * Sanchez, the splendor 900 * Art ≠ Life * Pioneers of Art in Action * Body, place of memory * Radical Women Latin American Art

Los Angeles 2017-2018

*Radical Women Catalog Page 207-299 to 300-352

Exhibits

*1960–1985, Radical Women: Latin American Art ( Los Angeles, New York, San Pablo)

Awards

*2013 - Morosoli Award in the Performing Arts category - Dance and Ballet.

Publications

In September 2012, Trujillo and artist Carina Gobbi published ''Cuerpo a Cuerpo'' (''Body to Bod''y), a biographical book.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Trujillo, Teresa 1937 births Uruguayan dancers Living people