this work looks at ideas of intimacy and desire, betrayal and responsibility.
the work is 60 minutes in duration and had a short story commissioned for the work about a woman working in a foreign country and her actions concerning love, relationships and infidelity.

this work was developed during a month-long residency at Tanzfabrik in berlin in 2007 and then had two more months work in Australia where it was premiered in december 2007.

below is a short 5 minute excerpt of the work that was created in berlin.

the final work was was presented in a massive open theatre, with a white square tarquet and 100 black chairs arranged in an oval. the two performers worked inside and behind the chairs forcing the audience to change their point of view of the work. This, coupled with the text and the strong visual imagery, asked questions of the audience of what it means to watch a performer so intimately and how does distance change your perspective... to see more of that show ">click here...

"Being There seemingly rejects the Sartrean take on being-for-others, or existing purely in terms defined by the Other which is so problematic for her fictional protagonist. Instead, an open invitation is issued to be fully present to a face to face encounter by directly challenging the stance of the audience as uninvolved observers. When Dyson’s art moves us, it moves us to ethically new positions. We are moved by the naked intensity of the live performers, and even sympathise with the one who is not present. We care for them all, and want to take responsibility for them. This is the possibility for an ethics defined by the philosopher Levinas."

Douglas Leonard - RealTime

performance team

performers & creators
jess watson-galbraith
trish wood
emily amisano


choreography
clare dyson
lighting design & production management
mark dyson
design
bruce mckinven
original text
siall waterbright

photography
fiona cullen
david berge
clare dyson

premiered in december 2007
at the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts

this work was created at Tanzfabrik in Berlin during an artist-in-residence fellowship in 2007. it had a draft showing of that process in August 2007 and it was then re-developed in Brisbane for the december premiere

this work will be 60 minutes with no interval
audience are seated onstage with performers

this work is tour-ready and travels with 5 company members

please contact the company for more details