Raging Against Various Elements by Connor Schumacher

Jury about the nomination

''Connor Schumacher connects with Raging Against Various Elements in many ways. The work moves towards a joyful release while sharing a deeply personal sadness along the way. The way Schumacher communicates with his audience, explicitly inviting them to move and give voice to their experiences, is refreshing, connecting and innovative. The jury is very hopeful that Schumacher shares so liberatingly what dance can do. In a contagious interplay with dance idioms from jazz dance and the club scene, R.A.V.E. celebrates life through the dancing body in a close group of friends. The almost living set design by Boris Acket and Elsemarijn Bruijs is a powerful additional player in this.''

About Connor Schumacher

ARK/Connor Schumacher, founded in 2014 by Connor Schumacher, is a Rotterdam-based dance organisation that brings social choreography to life. ARK's work moves people, physically and mentally, from the intimacy of theatres to the energy of festivals and clubs. 

ARK's deepening of essential soft skills was shaped by participation in international dance research projects such as Empowering Dance and Dancing Museums. This led to collaborations with institutions such as Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen and the Louvre. 

ARK creates productions such as Funny Soft Happy & The Opposite, Pilot PC and Threesome. Recent projects include Clubinc, in collaboration with Theater Babel, and Physical Therapy, a concept for a sober morning rave. In 2024, the techno-jazz musical Raging Against Various Elements also premiered. 

ARK's philosophy is rooted in neuroscience and psychology, and works towards a social dance culture that knows: Society would be better if we danced every day.

Fotography: Amanda Harput

Fotography: Aqueene Wilson