RICARDO DAVID ACOSTA DUARTE
Zacapu, Michoacán, MÉXICO
Photo: Luis Fuentes
"The path may seem long and tired, but when you’ve hit rock bottom, there is so much light, that it reveals and illuminates the path that must lead to glory."
Photo: Olivia Eng
A corazón abierto
(Open heart)
Música (music): “Agua- Lagartijeando Remix” por Novalima
“He tricked me into going to his room, saying that we would play with toys- but instead he would scare me with threats, saying he would tell my brothers and neighbors what we were doing…as if I were the one looking for him. It was all very confusing, gross and painful. I remember his smell, the way he touched me and the things he said to me. If I said a single word, they would not believe me and the consequences terrified me. I don’t know at what point I accepted that this was normal and stopped crying. I started to feel dirty and guilty about the situation, as if I were responsible, as if I had caused it… ”
Ricardo David Acosta Duarte S.C.A.R.S. Story (Zacapu, Michoacán, México)
"...but it was totally off and weak
Since it was plucked carelessly from his chest
Beating still and spilling liters of innocence to pervert ugly demons desires, the best.
I started a trip to the past days
To the most silenced of the past
With a candle lit in one hand
To the blurriest, to the darkest
My right arm is free to hold you
While you scream and cry in those winter days
locked up behind a restroom door
That looked just like the doors from hell."
Ricardo Acosta was born in February 1989 to a very humble family of working parents who always based their education on values such as respect, perseverance, and progress as one of life's missions. He graduated from the Latin University of America with a degree in Gastronomy. Ricardo has always demonstrated and shared this passion for dance with his community.
When he was 11, he joined the Erandini Folkloric ensemble from his native town Zacapu Michoacán, where he danced for more than four years. During his middle and high school years, he was also a member of many extracurricular groups and constantly participated in cultural gatherings.
At the age of 19, Ricardo immigrated to the United States. He has lived for almost 9 years in San Francisco, where he has nurtured his love and knowledge for dance, taking classes in different private and local studios such as San Francisco Community College, Mission Dance Theater, ODC Dance Commons and City Ballet. He has studied Jazz, Afro Brazilian, Afro Haitian, Contemporary and Hip-hop. Ricardo has also danced with Aguas da Bahía in San Francisco, and El Ballet Folklorico del Gobierno del Estado de Michoacán, Mexico.
Ricardo found dance to be a refuge where he can, not only meet and connect with himself, but also express and at the same time heal wounds and trauma of his childhood. At an early age he suffered from various sexual abuses and violence. Dance has been the catalyst that started the process of purging fear, intimidation and insecurity.
*Click here to witness Ricardo's artistry in the first S.C.A.R.S. dance & multi-media film: S.C.A.R.S.: STRENGTH, COURAGE, AND RESILIENCE OF THE SOUL
