Opening Weekend RESOLUCIÓN x EUROPALIA ESPAÑA: The Spirit of Goya

Experience the raw energy of The Spirit of Goya: sixteen young dancers reimagine Goya’s legacy through a compelling dialogue of movement. Blending contemporary dance with flamenco, hip-hop and krump, the performance creates a vibrant encounter between art history and today’s urban expression.

The performance is part of the festive opening of EUROPALIA ESPAÑA and takes place in the context of the exhibition RESOLUCIÓN at MoMu. Directed by Alex Akuete, this twenty-minute performance invites audiences to experience Goya’s critical and visionary spirit in motion.

Francisco Goya lived in a time of crisis, transformation and profound change, perhaps not unlike our own. His works captured the uncertainties of his era and continue to hold up a mirror to society today. Rather than presenting idealised images, Goya embraced a critical, visionary perspective that still resonates.

His celebrated series Caprichos, Disparates and Desastres de la Guerra embody this spirit. They inspire not only EUROPALIA ESPAÑA as a whole, but also this performance. How would Goya’s caprices, disasters and absurdities manifest in our time? What are our follies, our disasters, our absurdities?

In this performance, the notion of ‘our’ seeks to transcend identity, just as Goya did, in order to speak to the broadest possible community. This leads to underlying themes that are alive in Spain today, but which, from a broader perspective, concern us all: representation, community, democracy and water.

By weaving Goya’s questions into today’s movements and rhythms, The Spirit of Goya connects past and present, local and global, and invites audiences to experience history as something living, urgent and collective.

Xiaotong Bing, Roos Leten, Veerle Joris, Arpy Flores Elisa, Briseïs Goris, Tijs De Wit, Stanatsjel Summerville, Daphne Lepla, Zelda Mithrandir Ils Donckers, Janais Sancho Caballero, Kiara Deleu, Kelly Stassyns, Leena Abu Taleb, Lenny-Mathew Bellers, Sara El Moutaouaj, Laura Ferretti, Christine Tshimanga, Ceyda Sen, Miftah Lina, Alma Dewulf