On the date when World Dance Day is celebrated, April 29, Capital do Pantanal interviewed Aline Espírito Santo, a dancer trained at the Instituto Moinho Cultural Sul-Americano and a member of the Cia de Dança do Pantanal (Pantanal Dance Company). Aline is an example of how art transforms lives.

A native of Corumbá, daughter of traditional Pantanal parents, Aline says it was customary to dance and attend chamamé dances at the ranch. From a very young age, she watched her parents’ passion for dancing and followed their steps, but classical ballet technique only entered her life when she was between 7 and 8 years old, when she joined Moinho Cultural. Years later, the passion became a profession.

Between the ages of 7 and 8, when she started at Moinho Cultural, dance was a moment of fun. Photo: Personal Archive

For the dancer, it’s hard to put into words all the meaning that dance holds in her life. “When I started, dance was just my moment of freedom, my moment of leisure, my moment to be with my friends. Today dance is my profession, it’s my livelihood, it’s my discipline, it’s my responsibility and my respect for myself and for all the other people who share it with me,” she says.

Certain that her life was transformed by art, Aline explains that through dance she gained knowledge that goes beyond what basic education can offer. “I got a degree in the field, and that allowed me to access spaces, books and knowledge in general, giving me foundations and freeing me more and more to make my own choices,” she explains.

But if today Aline celebrates the achievements she has reached in the world of dance, there were also moments when her ability was questioned. In one of the most crucial moments described by the dancer, when she took part in an audition at a state school in Germany, she was not only rejected, but was told by the teacher from that country that she would never be a dancer. Aline remembers the moment with tension, yet emotionally, because at the same time she heard the harsh words of the German teacher, she received strength from a woman who is a reference in dance and culture in Corumbá. Márcia Rolon, founder of Moinho Cultural, looked at Aline and said: “you will be whatever you want to be.” “That gave me the strength to stay focused on my goal, which was to be a dancer,” she recalls.

Aline faced rejections, but overcame the difficulties and became what she wanted to be: a dancer. Photo: Press Release

For Aline, academic training in the field was also very important so that she could engage with research in dance, understanding in practice the ways in which the art of bodily movement is built. Another moment remembered by the dancer was when she took over the coordination of the Núcleo de Dança (Dance Center) at Moinho Cultural, “at that point I began to have to deal with the problems faced in the daily life of dance.”

Routinely, Aline teaches classical ballet classes, contemporary dance classes and holds rehearsals for the shows in the repertoire of the Cia de Dança do Pantanal; in addition to all that, she also keeps up muscle strengthening training with a physiotherapist, and stretching and flexibility classes with a circus artist. All the effort translates into beauty and expectations of more learning for the coming years. Aline, who already considers the experience of teaching enriching, wants to learn even more about the classroom, the stage and management.

“It’s enriching to be able to contribute and give knowledge within the institution that was a bridge to so many possibilities in my life. Giving back at least a little of what was given to me in childhood brings up a feeling of great gratitude within me,” says Aline, who, despite all her great achievements, keeps her parents as her great inspiration.