Work in progress // Unskrewd Collective – More Footwork, More Energy

Work in progress presentation from the residency.

More Footwork, More Energy is an artistic research project that deepens the investigation of hip-hop footwork as both a physical practice and a socio-political language. At the center of the work is the question: What does one step entail and who does it actually belong to?

Footwork is understood here not only as a technique, but as a work practice — repetitive, demanding, rhythmically guided and based on endurance. The project is based on the history of hip-hop as a culture shaped by the working class and marginalized communities and reflects class in the context of contemporary dance and performance. As street dancers entering institutional spaces, the creators consciously relate to the working class not as a lack, but as a source of knowledge, resistance and aesthetic power.

The research focuses on the body at work: on sweat, repetition, crossing limits and constantly returning to the same step. Working feet, the working class become the central metaphor here — footwork as work, struggle, survival and relaxation. Through the collective creation of rhythm, individual movement is transformed into a shared language that resists hierarchies of virtuosity and authorship. The repetition, variation, acceleration and fragmentation of the steps show that the meaning of the movement arises through endurance and collectivity rather than through smoothness.
Class here is not only a social category, but also a choreographic decision. The choice of street dance vocabularies, freestyle structures and cipher means a constant need to defend one's legitimacy in an institutional environment. The work asks why some bodies, techniques and aesthetics must still justify their presence on stage, while others are considered neutral or universal.

Musical, rhythmic and physical loops, created by the dancers themselves, form the basic structure of the work. The dramaturgy is complemented by textual fragments, while the choreographic flow is guided by the natural transitions of the body. More Footwork, More Energy understands footwork as resistance, communication, play and collective survival — as a transfer of energy between the performer and the audience that physically makes class, work and belonging.

Duration: 12–20 min.
Recommended age: 12+

Author: Katharina Richter
Performers: Paul Damiano, Shorni, Bernd-Michel Pierre Louis, Remi, Ruby
Creative team: Julie Ilner, Katharina Richter, Paul Damiano, Shorni


ADMISSION: VOLUNTARY

________

Katharina Richter, also known as Remi, is a dancer, choreographer and performer based in Germany. In his work, he combines street dance, choreography and interdisciplinary performance. Her artistic practice is based on hip-hop and other street styles and focuses on movement research, collaboration, urban contexts and participatory formats. In recent years, he has devoted himself more intensively to choreographic and scenographic procedures in interdisciplinary and community-oriented projects. Her work focuses on the social dimensions of dance and street styles as tools of expression, empowerment and collective practice.