Walking Piece_Drawing by Matthias Sperling
Walking Piece (2012)
Walking Piece is an installation performance by Matthias Sperling, in which many performers come together to create a single-file loop that travels a circuitous route through a building, along which a series of performative tasks are mapped. Audience members are invited to view the work by moving along, around and among the performers' circular route in their own time, encountering the different tasks that make up the loop and each performer's unique way of traversing it.
Playfully combining moving, speaking and singing, the tasks engage the performers in an intricate negotiation with the space, the audience and with themselves, noticing their surroundings as they navigate the loop.
In its first iteration at Siobhan Davies Studios, the performers were a group of volunteers aged 20 to 64 with and without previous dance experience, who came together through an open call for participants with links to the local area. They worked closely with Sperling over 12 weekly meetings to develop the work.
Performers: Anastasia Papaeleftheriadou, Bruce Currie, Caroline Sears, Charmaine Mabitle, Denise Hill, Emma Perris, Evangelia Kolyra, Franck Bordese, Hanna Ann Mulholland , Jo Armes, Jo Bailey, Kate Cottam, Maddy Costa, Margaret Kerfoot, Philip Cowell, Rachel Attfield, Rachel Gildea, Rosie Okae, Shane Waltener, Stephen Stamper, Toyin Timeyin, Zokaya Kamara.
Performances: July 15, 2012, Siobhan Davies Studios (London, UK).
Commissioned by Siobhan Davies Dance for Big Dance 2012
With thanks to Robyn Cabaret, Rachel Attfield, Rachel Gildea.
'It has really opened up what I believe dance should be about.' Participant
'My initial expectations were that it would be hard work but fun, challenging and rewarding – I was not disappointed!' Participant
'It's a truly amazing experience you provided for us. I know we also provided our time and energy, but it's true to say we got an awful lot out of the project.' Participant
See more photos of Walking Piece here: www.siobhandavies.com/work/walking-piece/