Soft Graft

Part of the Pōneke Festival of Contemporary Dance 2024

Soft Graft is a double-bill dance show, comprised of Nerve Endings, choreographed by Miriam Eskildsen, and Dual Helix, choreographed by Jacob Reynolds.

Through intricate, thoughtful and emotive movement, Soft Graft will explore the physicality of each performer as both self and other/personal and alien.

Each work will delve into a personal exploration of what it means to be human: from following an experiential journey to reawaken lost identity, to interrogating the relationship between body and selfhood. Rooted in speculative evolution and futurism, each piece will delve into the varied possibilities of the human body with warmth, curiosity and vigor.

Nerve Endings imagines a scenario wherein two people allow their brains to be scanned, downloaded, and implanted into new bodies. When these new bodies are awoken, a previously unknown glitch in their implants render the memories of their previous lives indistinct and incomplete. As they attempt to repair themselves, they must work together through a dual challenge: relearning the relationship between form and function, and constructing a relationship in the present whilst dogged by the incomplete context of their past selves.

Dual Helix invites audiences to ponder the intricate relationship between the human body and the essence of self. Rooted in speculative evolution and futurism, this evocative piece inhabits the intersection of the human body as both self and other/personal and alien, probing the varied possibilities of the human form, pushing at the boundaries of imagination and perception. As bodies morph and contort, exploring the malleability of identity amidst the expanse of existence, we are called to consider the many different forms “humanity” has inhabited or may yet inhabit. Where do “we” reside?