Durational Rope

(2013 – 2014)

ROPE is a several-hour performative exploration in which QUARTO uses a one-kilometre-long rope to challenge conventional notions of the body and its physical capacities. The work investigates the relationship between body and object, asking: What is a thing? What is an object? How does an object interact with the body as subject?

A rope can take on entirely different meanings depending on how it is used: to tie something together, to hold something in place, or to function as a whip. Its identity is therefore not fixed, but emerges through its relationship to the body and the action performed with it.

Over the course of five hours, a 1,000-metre rope is continuously manipulated, creating an evolving tension between body and material. Through sustained movement and physical exertion, approaching the limits of endurance, the performance gradually strips away familiar notions of body and object, ego and drama, revealing a more elemental relationship between matter, movement, and force.

Choreography, Concept & Performance: Anna Mesquita & Leandro Zappala
Premiere: Moderna Museet, Stockholm

With thanks to: Pille Repmakarn

Co-production: Moderna Museet, INKONST, MDT and SITE

Supported by: The Swedish Arts Council; Stockholm City Culture Committee; The International Dance Programme – Swedish Arts Grants Committee’s International Programme for Dance Artists.