Claire Cunningham
Choreography of Care

  • Symposium

Claire Cunningham is a performer and creator of multi-disciplinary performance based in Glasgow, and was a Factory Artist at tanzhaus nrw from 2017 – 2019. One of the UK’s most acclaimed and internationally renowned disabled artists, Cunningham’s work is often rooted in the study and use/misuse of her crutches and the exploration of the potential of her own specific physicality with a conscious rejection of traditional dance techniques (developed for non-disabled bodies).  This runs alongside a deep interest in the lived experience of disability and its implications not only as a choreographer but in terms of societal notions of knowledge, value, connection and interdependence. She always views her art as activism.

The symposium is based on Cunningham‘s working practice which considers attention to time, design, communication and the act of performance itself as opportunities for care. The two day event will seek to shift away from formal methods of presentation and listening, to offer participatory provocations for engagement, creating multiple spaces and opportunities for conversation and reflection on the concept of care, particularly in relation to performance.

Offering provocations from their own practice, Claire’s accomplices include disabled scholar and rabbi Julia Watts-Belser, choreographers Jo Bannon, mayfield brooks, Zwoisy Mears-Clarke and Alessandro Schiattarella, duos Fevered Sleep, Liz Rosenfeld & Rodrigo Garcia Alves, and performance designer Bethany Wells.

Part of Factory Finale

Concept, curators: Claire Cunningham with Luke Pell; Conceptual support: Bethany Wells, Jo Bannon; With: Fevered Sleep, Julia Watts-Belser, Liz Rosenfeld & Rodrigo Garcia Alves, mayfield brooks, Zwoisy Mears-Clarke & Alessandro Schiattarella; Room and graphic design: Bethany Wells; Management and production: Nadja Dias, Vicky Wilson, Melissa Müller; Production: Shann Angelique Cruz.
A project within the framework of the Alliance of International Production Houses, funded by die Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien.