Mercury Rising
In Mercury Rising, three performers weave sign language and dance into a single, fluid movement language.
What happens when language is not translated, but takes a physical, visible form? In Mercury Rising, choreographer Jefta van Dinther explores communication as artistic material. Together with Dawn Jani Birley, Rita Mazza and Lukas Malkowski, he develops a hybrid movement language in which sign language, gesture and dance merge. No translation, no subtitles. Language unfolds here as movement, as the body becomes a site where meaning is made, unmade, and transformed.
Festival Julidans
Programme section Julidans On Stage
Dutch premiere
Location Frascati
Venue Frascati 1
Run time 70 minutes
Genre Dance
Language Language no problem
Mercury Rising
On stage, the three performers move with great precision. Their hands and arms trace rapid sequences of signs. A large, shifting frame structures the space: what happens inside the frame is sharply defined, while what lies outside becomes blurred. A play emerges between the visible and the invisible, between understanding and letting go.
A landscape of subwoofers sends low frequencies through the space—felt in the chest, in the feet, down to the bone. Vibration becomes tangible, creating a shared experience for Deaf, hard-of-hearing, and hearing audiences alike.
-|-The title Mercury Rising refers to mercury: a liquid substance that is always in motion. Meaning is not fixed, but constantly shifts through what the performers do with their bodies. At the same time, the performance suggests that complete understanding is an illusion—and that this very incompleteness, this shared search for meaning, can bring us closer together.
Jefta van Dinther
Jefta van Dinther is a choreographer and dancer working between Berlin and Stockholm. In his work, he investigates how the body produces meaning and how that meaning can shift, distort, or disappear. His work is known for its physical precision, hypnotic intensity, and strong visual worlds. Van Dinther presents his work internationally at leading festivals and theatres, including Tanz im August, Julidans and ImPulsTanz. With works such as GRIND, Plateau Effect, Dark Field Analysis and the diptych On Earth I’m Done, he has established himself as one of the most influential choreographers of his generation.
Credits
Choreography Jefta van Dinther
Created and performed by Rita Mazza, Dawn Jani Birley, Lukas Malkowski
Costumes and stage Cristina Nyffeler
Lighting design Jonatan Winbo
Sound design David Kiers
Backdrop Gonçalo Sena
Dramaturgy Gabriel Smeets
Artistic advice Maja Zimmermann
Technical direction Andrea Parolin and Fabian Bleisch
Light Fabian Bleisch
Sound Andrea Parolin
Management Sven Neumann
Production management Uta Engel and Romy Hansford-Gerber
Distribution Sarah De Ganck, ART HAPPENS
Financial management transmissions GmbH (DE) and Interim kultur AB (SE)
-|-Mercury Rising is produced by Jefta van Dinther
Co-production Norrlandsoperan Umeå, Dansens Hus Stockholm, Dansnät Sverige, HAU Hebbel am Ufer Berlin, PACT Zollverein Essen, CNDC Angers
Funded by Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion and Fonds Darstellende Künste
In 2025 Jefta van Dinther was funded by Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion and Swedish Arts Council
The presentation of this performance is supported by: Nationales Performance Netz (NPN)
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
