Alice Ripoll and Hiltinho Fantástico PUFF
Freesheet
PUFF explores the concept of “disguise” as a device for transmitting silenced cultures by concealing techniques, messages, traditions, or ancestral knowledge.
The research evokes illusions and suggests that something is being deliberately hidden from view. The word ‘puff’ – a light breath – also carries the idea of something that disappears as if by magic.
This solo performance marks a continuation of the long-standing collaboration between Alice Ripoll and Hiltinho Fantástico, who have been working together for the past seven years within the SUAVE and REC dance companies. Both collectives develop a hybrid language that merges contemporary dance with Brazilian urban forms. The two artists have collaborated in acclaimed works such as Cria, Lavagem, aCORdo, and Zona Franca, which have toured major festivals and theaters around the world.
About Alice Ripoll
Alice Ripoll was born in Rio de Janeiro. She was studying to be a psychoanalyst at age 21, and took a devian path to start study dance, once she felt very curious about possibilities of the bodies and movement research. Alice graduated at Angel Vianna’s school, which is a very important center for dance and motor rehabilitation and started to work as a choreographer.
She directed many pieces, performed a few pieces – mostly of herself, and also worked with actors and circus artists. Currently her work embraces contemporary dance and urban dance styles from Brazil, through a research that opens space for the dancers to transform into images the experiences and memories that still live in each one.
About Hiltinho Fantástico
Hiltinho Fantástico is a dancer, performer, and teacher from Rio de Janeiro, recognized as one of the leading figures of “passinho” in Brazil. He gained national visibility after winning the Batalha do Passinho in 2013 and later joined the Dream Team do Passinho, helping to bring the style to wider audiences. In recent years, he has expanded his artistic research through a close collaboration with choreographer Alice Ripoll, bringing urban dance into the realm of contemporary performance and appearing in works presented in Brazil and abroad. He is part of the cast of the pieces CRIA and Zona Franca by Cia. Suave, as well as aCORdo and Lavagem by Cia. REC. In 2025, he premieres his first solo, Puff, created by Alice Ripoll, debuting at the Festival Actoral in Marseille. With a striking stage presence and a singular movement vocabulary, Hiltinho stands out as one of the most expressive artists to emerge from the cultural landscape of Rio’s favelas.
Artistic Team & Credits
Direction Alice Ripoll
Creation and Performance Hiltinho Fantástico
Assistant Direction Alan Ferreira and Thais Peixoto
Light Designer Tomás Ribas
Costume and Scenography Alice Ripoll and Thais Peixoto
Tour Manager Joana D’Aguiar
Production Assistants Isabela Peixoto and Thais Peixoto
Original Soundtrack Alice Ripoll e Mimosa
Coproduction Rotterdam Theater
Support Festival Actoral and Câmbio
Diffusion ART HAPPENS
Additional travel support for the presentation of PUFF at Sadler’s Wells was generously provided by the British Council, the Guimarães Rosa Institute, and CÂMBIO, in celebration of the Brazil/UK Season of Culture 2025-2026.
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