CRAWL CRAWL CRAWL

CRAWL CRAWL CRAWL is a staged choir piece with 12 singers, experienced from the edge of a swimming pool. In a physical study of water resonance, the singers float in weightless sequences while pondering on the paradoxes of a welfare state. 

CRAWL CRAWL CRAWL is a sensitivity analysis in the nature of inequality. A choreographic portrayal of the welfarestate and its many flaws. The singers become a group searching for a common voice, insurgently longing for meaning. In their polyphonic strive, they uncover the imbalance that a class-based society creates.

The work is created by Convoi Exceptionnel and Jon R. Skulberg in close collaboration with composer Lil Lacy, dramaturge Astrid Hansen Holm, conductor Mathias Skaarup Sørensen, designer Kit Wan, and the vocal ensemble ENSEMBLE EDGE.

CONVOI EXCEPTIONNEL is a performing arts company led by scenographer and stage director JON R. SKULBERG. With his bold vision, Skulberg orchestrates immersive sceneries, using saturated images, bodies, sounds and lights, which he imprints onto the audience to mark them with impressions and memories. 

LIL LACY composes the choral work for the twelve singers from ENSEMBLE EDGE. Lil Lacy challenges the vertically standing classical singer we know from churches, stages and concert halls. Lacy is a recipient of the Léonie Sonning Talent Prize.

ENSEMBLE EDGE is an Aarhus-based vocal ensemble that challenges conventions. In this work, they explore the singing body immersed in water and the architectural acoustics of the swimming pool hall. The choir conductor is MATHIAS SKAARUP SØRENSEN.

KIT WAN is a fashion and costume designer from Hong Kong. With textiles, he creates distinct silhouettes in a fictional and holistic expression, bringing contrast to the functional architecture of the swimming pool hall. 

Photos: Louise Herrche Serup

Concept, stage direction: Jon R. Skulberg
Composer: Lil Lacy
Conductor: Mathias Skaarup Sørensen
Costume designer: Kit Wan
Vocal ensemble: ENSEMBLE EDGE
Singers: Nadja Marie Schmedes Enevoldsen, Susanne Cecilie Nielsen, Frieda Funk, Kirsten Voss, Malene Rohden, Andrea Krüger Holm, Erik Buchreitz, Oliver Runge Skovbo Hansen, Troels Geil Thalling, Malthe Hvidegård Hartz, Malte Øster, Gunnar Sigfússon
Dramaturge: Astrid Hansen Holm
Libretto: Astrid Hansen Holm, Jon R. Skulberg, Lil Lacy
Production producer: Sigrid Aakvik, Art and About
Producer ENSEMBLE EDGE: Andrea Krüger Holm
International relations: Nordberg Movement
Communication: Anne Basse
Movement coach: Kenzo Kusuda
Directors assistant: Louise Hulegaard Mikkelsen 
Costumeassistent: Koh Taniguchi 
Production: Convoi Exceptionnel
Co-production/presentation: Bora Bora, Passage Festival, Dansehallerne 

SOUND RECORDING
Sound producer: Preben Iwan
Sound technician support: Stefanus Iwan & Malthe Madsen

Supported by: Danish Arts Foundation, Augustinus Foundation, William Demant Foundation, The Obel Family Foundation, Wilhelm Hansen Foundation, Danish Actors` Association, City of Aarhus , Koda Kultur

Performances 2023

COPENHAGEN
MAY 28th - 29th - 22.00
DANSEHALLERNE
LOCATION: SANKT ANNÆ GYMNASIUM
TICKETS

Trilogy for Educational Spaces
CRAWL CRAWL CRAWL is the second piece in the trilogy: trilogy for educational spaces.
A site-specific trilogy meeting the audience at eye level. Rich atmospheric experiences in the setting of everyday life, away from the usual terrains of art.
Convoi Exceptionnel investigate three different spaces – The gymnasium, a swimming pool, and a classroom. The performances challenge the cultural codes of educational spaces.

Moving a memory

Photo: Louise Herrche Serup

Moving a memory is a performance and an exhibition created for a gymnasium. Convoi Exceptionnel explores experiences and memories connected to this space which most of us have a relationship with. The smell of lacquered floor, thick rope, and wooden rib walls. Scheduled exercise activating a wide range of emotions. The gymnasium is charged with fear and joy. A place in the past and present. Stage director and set designer Jon R. Skulberg says: ‘You walk into the gymnasium, sense your feet on the floor. The marked floor lines reveal a regime of movement. Now it’s your chance redefine the hierarchy and explore a new kind of poetry.’

The Nordic gymnasium is a symbol of the fit body, disciplined and trained to obtain a good health. An architectural manifestation of public health. We challenge the space’s authority and give it another language. It’s an invitation to move your memory. 

The arc of the work is drawn up Convoi Exceptionnel, visual artist Maiken Bent, choreographer and dancer Wayson Poon, and composer and musician Paul Yip. Dancers involved in the project are Linette Stamp Christensen, Kingsan Lo and Paul Pui Wo Lee.

Convoi Exceptionnel is a Nordic production platform made by Jon R. Skulberg in 2016. Jon is a Norwegian stage director and set designer living in Copenhagen. Convoi Exceptionnel creates evocative images with bodies, sound, and light as components. Immersive landscapes inducing impressions and demanding impact.

Wayson Poon’s choreographic practice is rooted in Qi and Taoism. He works from the mantra: “Reality is empty, emptiness is real,” which inspires a clear minimalism in his choreographic language. 

Maiken Bent’s sculptures and installations are characterized by composition of strong colours, craftsmanship and a rough mix of chains, ropes, and soft materials. Her work exists somewhere between Gucci and The Home Depot, creating an interesting play of hierarchies. Longing and remembering cross paths through her transformations of recognizable objects. 

Paul Yip’s Japanese and Tibetan inspired soundscapes has stable frequencies and vibrations inducing physical resonance in the bodies of everyone present. 

Photo: Louise Herrche Serup

Trilogy for Educational Spaces
Moving a memory is the first piece in a trilogy by Convoi Exceptionnel. A site-specific trilogy meeting the audience at eye level. Rich atmospheric experiences in the setting of everyday life, away from the usual terrains of art. Convoi Exceptionnel investigate three different spaces – The gymnasium, a swimming pool, and a classroom. The performances challenge the cultural codes of educational spaces.

Concept, space, stage direction: Jon R. Skulberg
Choreography: Wayson Poon
Installations: Maiken Bent
Composition and live music: Paul Yip
Dancers: Wayson Poon, Paul Pui Wo Lee, Linette Stamp Christensen
Additional dancer for Hong Kong Performances: Kingsan Lo
Dramaturg: Astrid Hansen Holm
International relations: Nordberg Movement
Creative producer: Lene Bang
Hongkong producer: Carrol Ho
Tour manager: Sigrid Aakvik
Scenography and production assistant: Olga Regitze Dyrløv Høegh
Production: Convoi Exceptionnel and Onthewayson

Co-production:

Supported by: