Start of the 2026/27 season
«SYNTHETIC / Artefact»
Tiran Willemse
A choreographic work that creates an imaginary world, taking the doll as its starting point – both as a figure in European ballet and theatre and as a spiritual object. By and with Davide-Christelle Sanvee, Élie Autin, Ophelia Young and Elisabeth Mulenga.
Thu 10/0920:00
Opening night reception
Halle
Few remaining tickets at the box office
Fri 11/0920:00
Halle
Mon 14/0920:00
Halle
Tue 15/0920:00
Halle
- Not language-based
At the heart of ‘SYNTHETIC / Artefact’ lies the figure of the doll. Across cultures and through the centuries, dolls have been created to be looked at – motionless and exposed to the gaze. At the same time, in various cultures they form part of birth and rites of passage, fulfilling spiritual and communal functions. With the advent of industrial mass production, this relationship becomes unsettled. Are these objects, which surround us in vast numbers, living beings in their own right? Are we becoming them – or are they becoming us? Since then, these fears have not only intensified but also become the norm: we encounter our avatars on social media, express our feelings through GIFs and memes, and find our ‘voice’ through AI chatbots.
Drawing on numerous references – from stories such as ‘Pinocchio’ to Oskar Schlemmer’s ‘Triadic Ballet’ – ‘SYNTHETIC / Artefact’ dances through the stories of our relationship with puppets.
Tiran Willemse is regarded as one of the rising stars of the contemporary dance scene; his works tour internationally. To mark the start of the season at the Gessnerallee, he presents ‘SYNTHETIC / Artefact’, his first group choreography, created by and featuring the brilliant performers Davide-Christelle Sanvee, Élie Autin, Ophelia Young and Elizabeth Mulenga. Willemse has a background in ballet and trained at P.A.R.T.S – School for Contemporary Dance in Brussels. On the recommendation of his friends, local artists Annina Machaz and Nils Amadeus Lange, he completed a Master’s degree in Experimental Theatre at the HKB in Bern. Willemse found a flat in Zurich and moved to Switzerland. In Zurich, more than anywhere else, he feels the freedom to work in an experimental and humorous way.
Movement vocabulary: In ‘SYNTHETIC / Artefact’, artist and choreographer Tiran Willemse develops a choreography for himself and the dancers Davide-Christelle Sanvee, Élie Autin, Ophelia Young and Elisabeth Mulenga, drawing on a movement practice that has evolved over many years. The dancers’ movements emerge from improvisation, ritual practices and conceptual considerations. These emerge, on the one hand, around the figure of the doll in modernity and, on the other, around its ritualistic significance in Indigenous practices, as well as the aesthetic and thematic overlaps between these two fields. The movements of the bodies in ‘SYNTHETIC / Artefact’ can be abrupt and explosive, appearing uncontrolled. At times, the dancers’ faces are distorted into extreme expressions. Willemse chooses these movements to portray an intensified mechanisation of the body. At the same time, the poses and movements can be read as references to the racist minstrel shows in the USA in the 1930s and 1940s, inviting a reflection on the role of racialised bodies in the history of dance and theatre. The moments of seemingly uncontrolled gestures and facial expressions can also recall the long history of ableist representations of mental illness and disability in dance and other forms of artistic expression (Cripping Up).
Accessibility and practical information
Step-free access
Duration: 105 minutes, including a 15-minute interval after 45 minutes
Language: The play is not dialogue-based.
Content Notes: Appropriation of racist stereotypes (minstrel show aesthetics, animal-like sounds, grimaces); A dance-based exploration of the figure of the puppet in indigenous ritual practices, as well as in the context of historical modernism; depiction of repetitive, abrupt and seemingly uncontrolled movements that may evoke associations with physical disabilities (cripping up); gestures, facial expressions and movement material used to depict altered states of consciousness
Lighting: Use of strobe-like flashing effects. In a few scenes, potentially dazzling orange light; the intense light may be particularly dazzling for those seated on the beanbags in the front row. There is a blackout lasting approximately one minute during the performance. The performance ends with an abrupt blackout.
Sound: Use of loud, rhythmic electronic music with bass. Some parts of the performance are very quiet. In several scenes, the performers call out into the space or towards the audience.
Audience and interaction: The performers sit in the audience at times. They are seated in the front row on the far right and on the steps on the left-hand side of the stands. On several occasions, the performers move very close to the front row for a short time.
Beanbag and wheelchair spaces: The beanbags and wheelchair spaces in the left-hand half of the front row are located in an area where the dancers do not move in close proximity of the audience.
Other: The doors to the courtyard are opened during the intermission.
As the production is still being rehearsed, more information on the accessibility of the show will be released closer to the premiere date.
For sold-out performances, we reserve a small number of accessible seats (wheelchair spaces and beanbags). We kindly ask that anyone requiring accessibility support contact kasse@gessnerallee.ch.
- Concept, Choreography & PerformanceTiran WillemseEnsemble:Davide-Christelle Sanvee, Élie Autin, Ophelia Young, Elizabeth MulengaMusic:Tobias KochDramaturgy:Andros Zins-BrowneChoreographic Advice:Laurent ChétouaneLight Design:Ryoya FudetaniLight Technician:Max Windisch-SpoerkStyling Consultant:Alice LushimaText:Theo CascianiProduction:Kelly TukeIn Co-production with:Gessnerallee Zurich, Arsenic Lausanne, Kaserne Basel, Pavillon ADC Geneva, Tanzquartier Vienna
A co-production within the framework of the event fund of Reso – Tanznetzwerk Schweiz. Supported by Pro Helvetia and the cantons.
Tiran Willemse is an interdisciplinary collaborative artist working in the field of dance, theater, video and performance with Trajal Harrell, Jerome Bel, Ligia Lewis, Wu-Tsang (moved by the motion), Deborah Hay, Eszter Salamon, Meg Stuart and Andros Zins-Browne. Willemse's practice centers on the interrogation of presence and absence in the performance of identity, he endeavors to foster new desires in the imagination through a visceral experience. His work has been presented by Palais de Tokyo Paris, Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts Lausanne Museum Macro Rome, Impulstanz Wien, Santarcangelo Festival Italy, Kunsthaus Baselland, Tanzquartier Wien, Swiss Institute New York and Arsenic Lausanne. Willemse won the swiss performance prize 2023 and lives and works in Zurich.
Davide-Christelle Sanvee (1993, Switzerland / Togo) is a performance artist who focuses on spaces and staging. Investigating invisibility of individuals in public space, she hunts for architectural, behavioural and gestural elements to create scenographies that fully surround her spectators. In order to activate these new spaces Sanvee uses historical, collective memory and performative actions built around political and social realities. After a bachelor's degree in visuals arts at HEAD - Geneva (2016), she obtained her master's degree at the Sandberg Institut in Amsterdam (2019). She is the winner of the Swiss performance Award 2019 with her performance ‘Le ich dans nicht’. In 2022, she joined Rébecca Chaillon's ‘Carte Noire named desire’ as a performer. In 2023, she received the Kiefer Hablitzer Art Prize at the Swiss Arts Awards at Art Basel. That same year, she was awarded a grant from the Leenaards Foundation. In 2025, she received the Swiss Performing Arts Award for her career achievements.
Élie Autin is a multidisciplinary artist who works across several artistic media: choreography, performance and the visual arts. Her first solo, ‘Présage’, premiered at the Arsenic in autumn 2022. In it, her fluid identities play directly off the audience’s gaze. As a performer and dancer, Élie works with a number of artists, including Tamara Alegre, caner teker, Tiran Willemse, Volmir Cordeiro, Marvin Mtoumo, the Ouinch Ouinch collective, Natasza Gerlach and other artists… 2023 she received the price ‘Prix de la relève’ (Fondation vaudoise pour la culture). 2026 for the Swiss Art Awards she wone the price of the Kiefer Hablitzel Göhner Art Prize. As a model and photo model, she regularly performs and poses for various artists and brands, including Dior for DAZED. In parallel, the artist is also developing her visual work, with exhibitions at Circuit (Lausanne), Amore (Basel) Hamlet (Zurich) and La rada (Locarno), WallStreet (Fribourg) MCBA (Lausanne) Like little disaster (Polignano a mare), La Becque (La Tour de Peilz) and other venues.
Ophelia Young (she/her) works as a dancer and dance maker in the performing arts.
She has been studying at Folkwang University of the Arts in Germany and was working in institutions such as Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch and Ballett Basel. For many years she has also been working in freelance project-based collaborations in dance, choreography, dance schools, performing and visual arts and film. She is teaching, performing and creating in different collaborations in Switzerland and abroad.
Ophelia is based in Basel. She was born in New York City (USA) and grew up in Upper Austria.Elisabeth Mulenga, a Sadler’s Wells Young Associate alumni, is a London-based choreographer and dancer creating provocative, autobiographical work examining themes around grief, dysfunctional intimacy, and hauntology. Influenced by her Pentecostal Christian upbringing, her practice embraces supernaturalism, ritual, and the sensation of constant surveillance. Her recent work, ‘Christ Alone’, premiered at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in 2024 before being restaged at the Royal Opera House in 2025. In 2022, she won the Choreographic Innovation Award at the BBC Young Dancer Grand Final. She has performed solos at venues such as The Roundhouse, The Place Theatre, and Cafe Oto. Elisabeth works across contemporary dance, commercial and performance art contexts. Her performance work for other artists & companies includes: Holly Blakey, Miles Greenberg, Marina Abramović Institute, Alison Goldfrapp , Clod Ensemble, Miley Cyrus x Lost City Immersive, Pepa Ubera, Magnus Westwell, Tiran Willemse, Ryan Heffington, Wolf Alice, Robyn, Yann Tiersen, Sampha, Harry Price, Later with Jools Holland, Boston Gallacher, Dickson MBI, Lewis Walker, Ivan Michael Blackstock and Russell Maliphant.
Stadt Zürich, Kanton Zürich, Pro Helvetia, Schweizerische Interpretenstiftung SIS, Landis & Gyr Stiftung, Ernst Göhner Stiftung
Copyright: Hannah Gottschalk
Copyright: Hannah Gottschalk
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