The Company

ÇAK

A Dreamland: Çıplak Ayaklar Kumpanyası

Founded in 2003 in Beyoğlu, Istanbul, the company initially consisted mostly of contemporary
dance-based performers. They began their independent productions with early works such as
Why, İnçu, Çima, Neden… and have since carried their artistic journey forward with pieces like
Mehmet Loves Barış, Davet, Engin-ar, Şehirde, Mavi, Ters Okyanus, Kontrol, Sen Balık Değilsin
Ki, Kız Doğdu, Tüh!, Hayat Ağacı, Gomidas’la Yolculuk, Hiçbir Şey Yerinde Değil, Sar,
Taşıdıklarımız, Gölge Veri and İstanbul’da Herkes Nasıl?

The company has maintained complete independence in its production, performance, and
collaboration processes. Until settling into its own studio in Tophane in 2007, it rehearsed in
various dance spaces such as Mekân, Dans Buluşma İstanbul, ÇATI, and Aksanat. Its
international collaborations include working with French choreographer Charles Cré-Ange,
Dutch choreographer duo Diane Elshot & Frank Handeler, French dance collective CdansC,
Viola Hasselberg, Freiburg State Theater, and Portuguese choreographer Francisco Camacho.
Through festivals it organized—such as Istanbuldans, Performans Hareket Dans Günleri, Düş
Ortaklığı Günleri, and Arazi Buluşmaları—the company has repeatedly brought together
performers and choreographers in the dance field.
Since its inception, the company has prioritized the sustainability of collaborative production
and the development of its own artistic language. This approach, expanding across the axes of
body, movement, performance, and workshops, has allowed the company to cultivate its own
audience and contribute both amateur and professional dancers to the field.

Today, the ensemble continues to keep dance at its core, operating from çakSTÜDYO (Beyoğlu)
and çakARAZİ (İznik). Still chasing a dreamland, they keep dancing as they run.