Postdramatic Dance Machine
Mission
Postdramatic. Drama is characterized by narrative, by dialectics. Postdramatic theatre, in contrast, occurs "when the progression of a story with its internal logic no longer forms the center, when the composition is no longer experienced as an organizing quality but as an artificially imposed 'manufacture'". Articulated by German theatre scholar Hans-Thies Lehmann. He introduced and elaborated on the term in his influential book “Postdramatic Theatre,” first published in 1999. In short, postdramatic theatre is non-linear storytelling invoking a feeling in the ever-present now. Collaborative artistic pieces that don't conform to Aristotle's Poetics.
Dance. Dance is more than Ballet, Graham, Abstract movement, etc. Dance is a sensibility of community and play. Dance is the ability to use one's body for expression and use all of it, including the emotional center, the diaphragm, the face, etc. Dance showcases the human body to its fullest capacity and rigor.
Machine. We are actors in the machine of a capitalized society, a commercialized theatre scene, and an exponentially expanding technological world. We are a cog to two political parties, to massive tech corporations, to the patriarchy, and to the man upstairs.
Mission. Postdramatic Dance Machine is dedicated to creating, devising, and adapting new work on the vanguard of Technology, Politics, and the Human Body. All in service for an art that reflects, affects, and predicts a globalized society.
Hamletmachine
"Alienating the self"
A new production that recognizes Müller’s work being deeply personal and rooted in his own experiences, the project will integrate the stories and poetry of performance from the actors, directors, devisers, and the whole cast and crew to honor the text’s intent through conversation. We will question the role of young actors in New York City, reimagining Heiner Müller’s Hamletmachine.
