BIO

António M Cabrita was born on October 22, 1982, in Lisbon, with his birth registration in Barreiro. He began his dance studies at the Escola de Dança do Conservatório Nacional in 1992. After finishing his course in 2000, he moved to New York City, where he received a scholarship to study at the Joffrey Ballet School. There, he also trained in cinema at the New York Film Academy. Back in Portugal, he attended the first year of the Sociology course at ISCTE and studied Creative Advertising at Restart in Lisbon. After some time away from dance, he enrolled in the Escola Superior de Dança, graduating in 2008.

 

As a performer, he worked with Rui Horta, Né Barros, Silke Z., António Tavares, Tânia Carvalho, Ana Rita Barata, Pedro Ramos, Felix Lozano, Paulo Ribeiro, and Luís Marrafa, among others. He was the lead actor in the short film "Dido e Eneias" by Filipe Martins, produced by Balleteatro. From 2007 to 2015, he was a resident artist at the German company SilkeZ./Resistdance, notably in "Private Spaces," which won the Dance Prize of Cologne in 2008. António M Cabrita began choreographing in 2009 with the project "To Fail."

 

Between 2011 and 2016, he developed the |acsc| project in collaboration with choreographer and dancer São Castro. In 2015, they were awarded the Prémio Autores for best choreography by the Sociedade Portuguesa de Autores for "Play False." Several of his works were nominated in subsequent years and regarded as some of the best of the year by the media.

 

He was awarded the Silver Medal of Value and Distinction by the Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa in 2016.

 

In 2017, after co-creating and performing as a guest dancer in "Tábua Rasa" and "Turbulência," António M Cabrita was invited to co-author the opera "Dido e Eneias" for the Companhia Nacional de Bailado. From January 2017 to December 2021, he was the Artistic Director of the Companhia Paulo Ribeiro, alongside São Castro.

 

Together with São Castro, he created pieces such as "Wasteland," "Play False," "Rule of Thirds," "Um Solo para a Sociedade," "Box 2.0 – Instalação Holográfica," "LAST," "5580 Pés," and others. He was invited by Théâtre de la Mezzanine in France to co-direct the opera "Orphée et Eurydice" with São Castro, directed by Dennis Chabroullet.

 

Additionally, he works as a director, sound designer, photographer, and lighting designer, leveraging his diverse training.

 

In March 2019, he founded the cultural association PLAY FALSE, of which he is the current president.

 

He is pursuing a Master's degree in Choreographic Creation and Professional Practices at the Escola Superior de Dança, Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa. He is also an artistic researcher, notably for his article “Esboço para uma investigação artística a partir da memória do corpo” in RIACT.

 

His latest creations include "Sinais de Pausa," co-created and performed with São Castro, and "TAKE" for the Companhia Instável.