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“I really love turning into this sort of four-legged creature. All the little places that you can wedge the crutch really right into a corner or into a crack. In Scotland, we’d say nooks and crannies. I get so lost in that sort of play…when the ground really becomes… my companion.”
In this new solo Cunningham asks what it is to wander. To seek to scale great heights. What can be learned from those of us who reach for the ground through crutches as 4-legged creatures? What it means to keep going and, importantly, the wisdom to know when to turn back.
Led by her lived-experience as a disabled person, her memory of training as a classical singer, knowledge drawn from the world of mountaineering, and Gustav Mahler’s “Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen”, Claire Cunningham sets out to traverse known and unfamiliar landscapes. Through a crip* lens, Cunningham invites us to pay closer attention to the ways we navigate the physical world, alongside profound loss and change in our lives.
*Crip is a political and cultural identity embraced by some disabled individuals
Biography
Photo: Sven Hagolani
Claire Cunningham is a Glasgow-based multi-disciplinary performer and creator. As one of the most internationally renowned disabled artists, her pieces explore experiences of the body, care and societal values. Her works range from intimate solos such as “ME (Mobile/Evolution)” to ensemble productions such as “12” for Candoco Dance Company. in 2023 she became Einstein Professor at the HZT Berlin. Her current piece “Songs of the Wayfarer” (2024) is touring internationally.
Cast & Credits
| Concept & Choreography | Claire Cunningham with Dan Watson and Luke Pell |
| Performance | Claire Cunningham |
| Assistant Director & Dramaturgy | Dan Watson |
| Dramaturgy | Luke Pell |
| Set & Costume Design | Bethany Wells |
| Lighting Design | Chris Copland |
| Sound Design | Matthias Herrmann |
| Video Design | Michelle Ettlin |
| Artistic Collaboration | Julia Watts Belser |
| Subtitles | Maria Wünsche (Panthea) |
| Executive Producer | Nadja Dias |
| Producer for Projects & Accessibility | Vicky Wilson |
| Production Management | Emma Jones, Grahame Coyle |
| Sound & Video Programming | Keir Martin, Ben Morgan |
| Stage Management | Anastasia Booth, Dayna Cumming, Mickey Graham |
| Artistic Consultancy | Nelly Kelly, Panthea, Angela Alves, Rita Mazza, Naomi Sanfo-Ansorge |
| Mountaineering Counselling | Cormac Lynch, Simone Kenyon |
| Administrative Support (for HZT) | Susanne Adam, Jeanette Gogoll |
| Photography | Sven Hagolani |
| Audio Description Script | The script for the audio description was written by Claire Cunningham together with Julia Watts Belser, Luke Pell and Dan Watson, with advisory and research support from Leo Naomi Baur and Fia Neises. |
| Audio Description Translation (German) | Maria Wünsche |
| Artistic Access Consulting & Assistant to the Management | Leo Naomi Baur |
Funding
The event is part of the Tanzplattform Deutschland 2026.
A Claire Cunningham Production. Created as part of the Einstein Strategic Professorship “Choreography, Dance and Disability Arts” at the HZT Berlin. Co-commissioned and co-produced by Mousonturm Frankfurt, No Limits Festival Hong Kong, HAU Hebbel am Ufer & No Limits Festival Berlin, Münchner Kammerspiele, Next Festival Kotrijk, Sadler's Wells London and Dampfzentrale Bern. An Unlimited International Strategic commission made possible thanks to funding from British Council.
