THE RULER
2023THE RULER
Performance
The Ruler, conceived specially for Frederiksberg Centret uses live drumming, dance and a flying drone to respond to the distinctive architecture of the Centret and explore the nature of public space and how we act collectively within it.
Two dancers travel up and down the Centret’s central pairs of escalators, at times moving with their motion, at others against it, working with the pace of the escalators to create moments of flow, synchronicity, followed by resistance and rupture. A drummer plays a live piece composed specifically for the performance, evoking the ideas of pace, rhythm and authority, and setting a cadence to be followed by the dancers.
A drone circles overhead like an aerial conductor, ever-watching as the dancers perform then disrupt expected public-facing behaviours. As a shopping mall, Frederiksberg Centret is a public space that arguably brings together one of the widest cross-sections of society, a theatre of life that exemplifies how we co-exist and act in public, adhering to rules and etiquettes of conduct.
The title The Ruler is drawn from the name Frederik, which is derived from Germanic words meaning "peaceful ruler" - the name given to the Centret, as well as an allusion to surveillance’s invisible and omnipresent jurisdiction over society’s public face.
Concept, artistic direction & production - Anna Lann, Yonathan Trichter and Helen Neven
Original composition & sound design - Anna Lann
Performers - Maji Claire, Thea Carla Schøtt
Drummer - Jonathan Ludwig III
Drone operator - Emil P.Gregersen
Curated by - intr.pblc Gallery, Copenhagen DK
Commisioned by - FRB.C, Copenhagen DK
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