Split Signs stars Julia de Rosenworth and Adriana Jamisse. Photo – Alessandra Giffin

Split Signs is a double bill performance at the Theatre Arts Admin Collective, based at the Methodist Church Hall on the corner of Milton Road and Wesley Street, Observatory, Cape Town, at 8pm on October 26, 27 and 28, features exciting new work by Julia de Rosenwerth and Adriana Jamisse.

These young dance artists are working towards a language of movement and improvisation that is exploratory and different.

Both Julia and Adriana have worked with award-winning choreographer, Nicola Elliot, one of the Theatre Arts Admin Collective’s emerging theatre directors bursary recipients in 2012.

Split Signs is a unique collaboration between artists of dance, photography and design. Friends and colleagues shared skills and expertise as they worked towards creating a production that is multidisciplinary and multidimensional.

The first work Split is a solo piece choreographed and performed by Julia and directed by Adriana.

“This work emerged from an exploration of significant childhood memories,“ says Julia. “I recognised a particular uneasiness I felt toward them and in response, through movement and costume, I began to purposefully invert, destabilise and deform my own female body. I became interested in the different political, gender-based and sexual readings that can arise from seeing a female body constantly upside down.

“As a women, I often experience a rift between knowing my own subjective complexity and continuously being objectified (both by myself and others). This is a result of the male-dominant, hyper-sexualised and hyper-image conscious society that I find myself in. A kind of doubleness or SPLIT in the experience of myself and how I relate to my body is created. I explore this in the work which began on a residency with The Forgotten Angle Theatre Collaborative in 2016.”

Fit of Peak is a duet which follows Split. This is choreographed and performed by both dancers.

“Our duet arose from an investigation into how breath, rhythm and voice could seed a movement vocabulary,” says Julia. “We chose not to investigate a theme or concept at first, but allowed something to emerge from our bodies. This introduced a tension between being intuitive in our tasks and creating meaning for an audience.

“Due to our positionality as friends, women and artists, what arose from our process was a desire to express frustration and anger, free our sensuality and physicalise our personal relationship. As a result the work has a lyricism that emphasises our moving bodies, but does not neglect our personal politics and interactions.“

Adriana adds: “Fit of Peak is a multi-layered duet between two people who have been through a lot together and cultivate each other positively on a daily basis, regardless. It is an investigation of our internal and individual struggles while together, while holding and being held, and also while in conversation with each other.”

During the staging of Split Signs there will also be photography on display by Alessandra Griffin.

The collective’s innovative ANY BODY ZINE will also be available for purchase during the run. This is a self-produced collaborative project featuring engaging content around dance, bodies and movement. It was created by Nicola van Straaten, Kopano Maroga and Julia de Rosenwerth.

Tickets for Split Signs are R70 (R50 students). Cash at the door or EFT booking: email adjcollective@gmail.com