PRIMUS is the first work in Nønne Mai Svalholm’s BIG BANG trilogy (2019-2021), a series devoted to the idea of beginnings.

Duration: 45 minutes.

PRIMUS is a duet between two women — one young, one old; one clothed, one naked. The work is created and performed by choreographer Nønne Mai Svalholm together with her muse and friend, performer Sisse Lunøe (75 years old). Through their dance, they shape the world around them.

The duet unfolds as a shared act of imagination, allowing them to dream themselves into being each other’s sister, daughter, mother, grandmother, great-great-great-grandmother. Time dissolves, and in its place they create their own chosen lineage — a self-authored family bond beyond chronology.

The audience is invited into a landscape of experimental forms, where tactility, light, and imagination play a central role. The work unfolds at the intersection of the sculptural language of contemporary art and the performative, sensory realm of the performing arts.

In collaboration with visual artist Signe Klejs, the lighting design is composed from the light of the morning sunrise — a continuously shifting score of illumination that transforms the stage through subtle, fluctuating color constellations.

PRIMUS premiered at Åbne Scene, Godsbanen in Aarhus in September 2020 and was curated as the first performance ever presented within K: Selekt at The Royal Danish Theatre in Copenhagen later that same month. The work was selected for CPH STAGE International Days 2021 and was performed at Dansekapellet in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Parts of PRIMUS were developed during residencies at ARoS Aarhus Art Museum, Denmark (October 2019), and Turnéteatret in Trøndelag, Norway (November 2019).

The Artistic Team: Artistic Director/ Choreographer: Nønne Mai Svalholm, Dancers: Sisse Lunøe and Nønne Mai Svalholm, Scenography and light design: Visual Artist Signe Klejs and Nønne Mai Svalholm, Composer: Olga Szymula, Artistic concultant Niels Rønsholdt, Dramaturge and Creative Producer: Carlos Calvo, Dramaturge Assistant: Ida-Elisabeth Larsen, Sconography and light design: Visual Artist Signe Klejs and Nønne Mai Svalholm, light design consultant: Jon Skulberg, Filmmaker and Photography: Michael Dinesen, Photographer: Peter Ravnsborg. This picture was taken at ARoS Aarhus Art Museum.

 

Curated and co-produced by Åbne Scene, Godsbanen, Denmark.

With support from The Danish Arts Foundation, Kulturudviklingspuljen, Aarhus Kommune, Wilhelm Demant Fonden, Initiativpuljen, Aarhus Kommune and Arts Concil Norway.