conversations in ten questions 56: Sung-Im Her

Korean dancer/choreographer Sung-Im Her graduated from the famous P.A.R.T.S. dance school and later worked with important dance companies such as Les ballets C. de la B. and Needcompany. NUTCRUSHER, choreographed by Sung-Im Her questions the objectification of women, the relationships we establish with our bodies, and how the body is represented, with repetitive gestures and an energetic language of movement, taking the influence of the #metoo and #timesup movements in the background in South Korea.

NUTCRUSHER will take place at Alan Kadıköy on June 5-6, 2023, as part of the 2022-2023 seasonal shows of the Istanbul Fringe Festival with the support of the British Council. On this occasion we interviewed Sung-Im Her.

What is the essence of performance in your opinion?

We are doing live performance and there is uniqueness to it. We breathe and feel together in the same place, same moment, with no phone, no internet, no digital. For me, that is the core part of live performance and I really take this profoundly. How do we share, what do we share now, here?

Do you believe in the transformative power of art? How?

I believe in Art and Artist’s power. It might look small but this small ripple can be quite effective. I believe artists offer a chance to look at the world from a different angle, talk about things that aren’t easy to talk about, give an alert to the things that we need to be warned about, and think together. And I think that is the power of Art. 

When you are working on a piece, what sources inspire you? Do dreams play a role in your pieces?

Unfortunately, I don’t remember my dreams in the morning. I would say our life is the source of inspiration of my themes. Life and death, unbalanced power in our life, nature and human relationship, social media etc… For me It is nice to talk about our life that we share with a different perspective.

When do you decide to give a title to a piece you are working on if it already does not have one? 

I always start with the title. I have never experienced making a work where I didn’t already have the title. It is exciting process to make a title. The performance that I’m working on is called “Tomorrowisnowtodayisyesterday” It is difficult to remember and read. There is a reason for that and it’s very exciting to create the core of the show with short words.

Is there any artist or person whom you think influenced your art the most? And if there is such an artist or person, who would that be?

I have worked with Needcompany in Belgium for more than 14 years. I admire how much freedom they take on the stage, creating complete cross disciplinary performance work. I have learned all my performativity from them.

When you consider the current state of the world in every sense, what is the most important and urgent issue for you as an artist?

There are so many things to talk and share about.. Climate change, Imbalance of power, overwhelming media and information over abuse. All of my work is analogue, less media but more about the physical body. Concentrated on the body and it’s transformation through movement.

What does ‘Fringe’ signify for you?

Fringe signifies for me a market place where you meet people from all different backgrounds. It’s a chance to share and connect with people where everyone and everything is welcome.

How did the idea for this piece come about, how did the creating process develop?

NUTCRUSHER came from the #metoo movement back in 2018. Korea wasn’t hit by this until mid 2019 and I knew it was because sexual abuse was repressed by the society. I wanted to bring it to the surface and to talk about this freely, as well as creating a piece which celebrates the female body. What is it to be female, what do we want to see from female body, how do we want to show it?

Is there anything particular you would like to tell the Istanbul audience before they experience your piece? 

NUTCRUSHER is funky, powerful, Rock n Roll and yet talking about sexual imbalance in our society. I aim to share this experience with people who doesn’t have artistic background. I hope that everybody feels welcome and enjoys this.

[The Turkish version of this conversation was published in unlimited.]