Performance / Duration variable / 150 minutes
A group of men each follow an individual pre-recorded script, that only they hear through an ear piece. The scripts are synchronised and interlinked. They prompt movements, facial expressions, body tensions and relational positioning, resulting in coordinated choreographed formations. The men calibrate their scripted sequences in relation to each other and the visitors present, occasionally absorbing them into the structure.
Cadence is in line with a longstanding exploration of how bodies relate to structures of authority and control. It examines masculinity as a shifting structure in search of place and shape: suggested and assumed through gestures, postures, movements and relational tensions; expressions that are often small, subtle and perceived as “natural” in everyday life. It aims to produce subtle shifts within clichés, modulating existing patterns of perception and subverting expectations.
Grip your teeth together, and extend the edges of your lips in opposite directions.
Make eye contact with a visitor.
On a count of 3, close your eyes. 1,2 3.
Keep shifting weight from side to side.
A fellow player will approach you.
He will bring his face close to your face.
EYE CONTACT
Take a small step to the right.
Approach the fellow player who is moving side to side.
Bring your face to 5 cm distance from his face.
EYE CONTACT
Take a small step to the right.
