We are delighted to announce that Alexandra Paal and Aurora Bonetti will join us for a two-week residency in Tipperary from 11th to 24th September 2023 after their proposal was selected by our partner Tanztendenz München e.V.

“My research interest is in exploring the relationship between ritual actions and sensory perception, and how this can be translated into a performance that creates a space of continuous transformation. As a participant in the Tipperary Dancer Residency Program, I am eager to delve deeper into my exploration of rituals and transformation to develop an immersive performance. My goal is to challenge the audience’s perceptions of time, space, and the body by delving into the question of how these elements can chance.

After the exciting opportunity to share a 15-minute version of our research at the Schwere Reiter Theatre during the Hier=Jetzt Festival in Munich, I am thrilled to continue developing and exploring this research in different spaces.

I am fascinated by the way that repetitive actions can transform the experience of time and space, and create a heightened state of sensory awareness. To this end, I have been working with the dancer Aurora Bonetti on a series of movements involving repetition and rotational motion, exploring how these movements and the experience of performing them change over time and in different contexts.

This initial movement research focused on repeating a set movement phrase daily over the past several months in various locations to explore how the changing environments influence our movement and experience. In addition, we have been working with spinning motions to investigate how this affects our perception as well as the perception of the observers. Our goal is to immerse ourselves and the audience in a meditative pull, challenged by the soundscape which is inspired by orbital resonances and centrifugal forces.

My inspiration draws from my surroundings as well as visual arts, and I am particularly influenced by the quote of Olafur Elisson, which emphasizes the need to unlearn our understanding of space and the body to fully embody and experience them.

It is necessary to unlearn space
In order to embody space
It is necessary to unlearn how
We see in order to see with
Our bodies.
It is necessary to unlearn
Knowledge of our body in three
Dimensions in order to recover
The real dimensionality of our body
Let’s Dance space
Lets re-space our bodies
Lets celebrate that felt feeling
Or presence

– Olafur Eliasson

I believe that the Tipperary Dancer Residency would provide an excellent opportunity to deepen and expand upon this initial research, and to develop a longer production. We want to develop a performance score for an extended version of the work exploring the potential of ritualized actions, repetitions, and subtle variations to create trance-like states of consciousness.

Moreover, I am excited to explore how being surrounded by nature will influence our work. I believe that the residency would provide a valuable space for reflection, experimentation, and growth, and I would be honored to have the opportunity to participate in this program.”