TOIL
Dance Dance Theatre & Performance
A sweat-inducing interrogation of exertion in dance as in other forms of work – high-energy and fast-paced like a sports match.
In “TOIL”, Northern Irish choreographer Sheena McGrandles investigates the dancing body at work – torn between alienation and desire, routine and rebellion. Drawing on ballet, Irish folk and punk, five dancers and two musicians create a physical portrait of dance as a place of work and longing alike. “TOIL” is a choreographic exploration of work and its emotional, historical and physical dimensions. Born out of a deep devotion to dance, with all its accompanying struggles and joys, the five dancers reflect on what is left when movement itself becomes work. Throughout this engaging, fast-paced and energetic performance, the solidarity and support between the dancers is consistently visible. What is otherwise hidden behind the perfection of performance-oriented dance is exposed here, perfection is pulled apart, mistakes forgiven. In live accompaniment by Marta Forsberg and Steve Heather, the specially composed music moves between electro, folk and punk. What emerges between the dancers is a concentrated exploration of their own physicality, rhythm and cohesion: a constant effort to follow the ever-changing pulse of time.
cast
Concept & Choreography: Sheena McGrandles
Choreography: & Performance: Michelle Cheung, Eli Cohen, Mickey Mahar, Dasniya Sommer, developed with Martin Hansen, performed by Emil Ertl
Music Composition: Steve Heather, Marta Forsberg
Dramaturgy: Jette Büchsenschütz
Set Design, Costumes: Michiel Keuper
Costume Assistant: Julianne Längin
Lighting Design: Elliott Cennetoglu
Technical Director: Emese Csornai
Choreographic Outside Eye: Laurie Young, Louise Trueheart
Artistic Production: Saskia Schoenmaker
Production Assistant: Cote Jaña
PR & Social Media: Agnė Auželytė
Sheena McGrandles is choreographer and dancer based in Berlin. Originally from Northern Ireland, she grew up in a working-class family with little access to dance training, learning ballet from books and television before securing a place at the Laban Centre London. She later completed the MA Solo Dance Authorship (SODA) at HZT / UdK Berlin with an excellence scholarship from the German National Academic Foundation and was selected for the eight-month residency at K3, Kampnagel. Since 2010, she has lived and worked in Berlin. Her practice is hybrid and extends beyond the stage, encompassing choreography, performance, teaching, mentoring, curating, and long-term collaborative and infrastructural work. Alongside her artistic practice, she is active in artist-led collectives such as PSR and neue häute / agora, which develop grassroots, non-hierarchical spaces for body-based practices and local exchange.
credits
A production by Sheena McGrandles in co-production with HAU Hebbel am Ufer (Berlin), PACT Zollverein (Essen), Theater im Depot (Dortmund), funded by Berliner Senatsverwaltung für Kultur und Gesellschaftlichen Zusammenhalt, Hauptstadtkulturfonds.
The event is part of the Impulse Festival for Performance, Theater & Dance. The 2026 Impulse Festival is organized and funded by the NRW KULTURsekretariat, in partnership with the cities of Düsseldorf, Bochum, Mülheim an der Ruhr, and Cologne, in cooperation with the FFT Düsseldorf, PRT Bochum, Ringlokschuppen Ruhr, and studiobühneköln. The festival is primarily funded by the Ministry of Culture and Science of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, the Kunststiftung NRW, and the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media.