Show ‘awesome challenge’

Daniel Nodder will fill empty space with physicality and invention during the Dunedin Fringe Festival.

Learning how to safely perform contortion on stage is part of the preparation for a highly physical show.

Wellington-based dancer and actor Daniel Nodder will perform a solo show during the Dunedin Fringe Festival that demands a high degree of control.

Only Bones — Daniel Nodder is a challenging low-tech solo show that focuses on the creative mind and body of a single performer.

Nodder said it took a huge amount of body strengthening, flexibility training and endurance work to perform the show.

"There’s not really many breaks, I have to be on for the whole time.

"I especially had to learn how to do certain contortion sections of the work safely, so that took some getting used to."

The show has deliberately tight restrictions without any props, complex sets or lighting.

"The idea of the empty space with a single hanging light reminded me of outer space, so I loosely based all the scenes around a journey through the cosmos."

He explored concepts including theoretical physics, quantum tunnelling, black holes, magnetism, the changing of states of matter, quarks, vacuums and gravity while developing the show.

"I had to find a way to paint a picture with just my body and nonverbal noises, so that was an awesome challenge that pushed me as a performer."

Using just one light source and only moving within a 1sqm area, he worked with light designer Rebekah de Roo to explore light and darkness in creative ways.

This is the 11th iteration of the Only Bones project created by award-winning physical and circus performer Thom Monckton.

"It was actually extremely fun limiting what I was able to make this work with, that is the beauty of the Only Bones project — it forces you to be extra creative and pushes you to think [if you’ll pardon the pun] outside the box."