In confined spaces one longs for vastness; in tohuwabohu for simplicity and clarity. Often something contains its own opposite. The images and situations in “This Beautiful Messy Thing” are characterised by such tensions. Where does the urge for change lead?

Perhaps one can simply enjoy the contrasts themselves, rather than hoping for a moment when all desires are fulfilled. In dance you can play with the limits of the situation rather than being held back by them. Objects that might serve as building blocks for a stage design refuse such a utilitarian order and instead assert their own life as a noisy choreography of objects. Probably quite a bit is flying through the air.

In the hands of drummer Philipp Danzeisen samples of various noises blend with the sounds of the drums. The lively, organic physicality of the dancers, both confined and safeguarded by the stage design, really close to the audience or scattered in space, appears both vulnerable and powerful. It is a piece by Mandafounis, but even louder – and quieter.

If you look closely, you can discern patterns even in seemingly random actions. If you look for long enough, you can observe how they change. With his first work for the DFDC, Thomas Bradley invites us to take such a close look. He approaches choreography through game-like, social systems.

Sustained attention creates a charged atmosphere where rules and conditions bring the dancers’ decision-making into focus. Whilst each dancer has their own strategies, a shared goal sustains their relation. The costumes, too, have a decisive influence on the action. In a carefully structured space, the choreography meets two further acoustic elements: the sonic traces of dismantling an object and a solo sonata for trumpet by HK Gruber.

Thomas Bradley

Thomas Bradley was born in Cootamundra, Australia and trained at the NZ School of Dance before joining Sydney Dance Company in 2012. In 2015 he joined Australian Dance Theatre. From 2017-2023 he was dancer, pedagogue and costume designer for Emanuel Gat Dance. Since 2023, he works for the Dresden Frankfurt Dance Company as dancer and repeatedly also as costume designer.

Bradley’s solo work has been presented across Europe among others at Butohpolis (International Butoh Art Festival, Warsaw, Poland), Teatr Rozbark (Bytom, Poland), Fuori Programma (Rome, Italy), International Dance Week Budapest, Le Louvre (Paris, France), Rez Gauche (Bruxelles, Belgium), Thessaloniki Queer Arts Festival (Thessaloniki, Greece), Garage 19 (Corfu Island, Greece), SOLO International Contemporary Dance Festival (Ankara, Turkey) and O.Z.O.R.A. Festival (Hungary). As costume designer he has been commissioned among others by StaatsBallett Berlin, Scottish Dance Theatre, TANZ LINZ (Austria) and The Opera Graz (Austria). Bradley is co-founder of performance collective LANDBREAKERS and facilitator of the choreographic ensemble PLAYWORK-GROUP.