Simon Mayer
Bones & Wires
‘Simon Mayer left the Upper Austrian village of Andorf to whirl around the world of contemporary dance. Today, he is one of the trendiest performers, touring Europe with his pieces’ (Wiener Zeitung). The choreographer, dancer and musician’s new project will be first presented at brut this winter. In Bones & Wires, Simon Mayer focuses on several layers of being connected: the connection between humans and humans, humans and nature, and humans and technology/robotics. The piece revolves around theories and practices on collective consciousness, telepathy and interdependencies, asking whether or not robots and new technologies can be part of this potential connectedness.
Together with light designer Jan Fedinger, sound designer Moritz Nahold and multimedia designer Dominik Strzelec, Simon Mayer breathes a soul into various objects on stage. Initiating dialogues with things like a piano stool or a drum set, he tries to become part of a shared connection and collective consciousness. Simon Mayer reveals the various layers of visible and invisible connections, once again shedding light on a perspective that contrasts connectedness with inner and outer divide. Not only Self-Induced Cognitive Trance inspired the process of developing Bones & Wires, also Charlie Chaplin's Modern Times were a great influence on the work.
Simon Mayer is a performer, choreographer, and musician. He studied at the Vienna State Opera’s ballet school and the Performing Arts, Research and Training Studios (P.A.R.T.S.) in Brussels and he was a member of the Vienna State Opera Ballet. After participating in productions by the likes of Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker/ROSAS, Wim Vandekeybus and Zita Swoon as a dancer, choreographer and musician, he has been a recurring guest in the brut programme with his internationally touring productions SunBengSitting, Sons of Sissy, Being Moved, and Oh Magic. In addition to his artistic work, Simon Mayer is a curator, workshop, and seminar teacher for contemporary, community, and traditional dance and a guest lecturer at the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna and the HFMDK in Frankfurt.
There will be an artist talk following the performance on Friday, December 16th.
Pressestimmen
"Choreographer Simon Mayer is the shaman of the local dance scene, his wild, ecstatic evenings show which strength lies in the body, but also in the collective experience of a visit to the theater." (Der Standard)
"The Upper Austrian musician, dancer and choreographer Simon Mayer is currently one of the most exciting stage artists the country has. [...] What Mayer is looking for is the dialogue between cultures, the productive confrontation of tradition and modernity." (Furche)
"Mayer, a classically trained dancer and performance artist, commutes in his work between the genres as well as between the cultural worlds that shaped him: from rural folk culture to his time in the Vienna State Ballet to Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, with whom he did several productions before he made a name for himself as a solo artist in the international dance scene." (Ö1)
"The regional as well as the global access to his performances has made Mayer the darling of the local scene." (Falter)
Credits
Idea, choreography, performance, music Simon Mayer Concept Simon Mayer, Jan Fedinger, Moritz Nahold, Dominik Strzelec Light design Jan Fedinger Sound design Moritz Nahold Robotics, multimedia design Dominik Strzelec Costume and set design Lise Lendais Technical direction Jeroen Smith Consultants Karoline Maria Wibmer, Corine Sombrun Production Art in Motion/Katrin Pröll
A co-production by Tanz Ist and brut Wien. With the kind support of the City of Vienna’s Department of Cultural Affairs and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Arts and Culture, Civil Service and Sport. Special thanks to Guy Cools for dramaturgical support.
Dates & Tickets
December 2022
€ 18 / € 14 / € 9
€ 18 / € 14 / € 9 / *There will be an artist talk following the performance on Friday, December 16th
€ 18 / € 14 / € 9
€ 18 / € 14 / € 9
brut nordwest
Nordwestbahnstraße 8-10, 1200 Vienna