PHONATE (solo)
If silence could speak…
Breathing is dance: inhalation, pause, and exhalation are the fundamental conditions for existence. PHONATE (solo) invites audiences to open the senses and reflect on an essential part of life—breathing. A four-hole harmonica and a piece of muscle tape continually reconstruct historical fragments of the work in a minimalist setting. Choreographer Wayson Poon bridges the audience with PHONATE (solo) and the essence of breathing through exhibition elements and interactive segments, creating multidimensional possibilities for artistic interpretation. The vibrations of air through breathing connect us to our subconsciousness and the unspoken reflections.
Wayson Poon’s choreography is informed by Taoist notions of “Qi” and the movement and meditation practices Liquid Body and 5Rhythms. The research and development of this work was conceived through the residency exchange project Creative Meeting Point: Hong Kong x Finland (2016–2018). In 2023, WestK commissioned Poon to create a full-length ensemble dance work titled PHONATE, which received critical acclaim. This solo version is an adaptation of the original performance.
Creative team
Choreographer and performer: Wayson Poon
Lighting Designer and Sonographer: Samuel Chan Kwan Chi
Sound designer: Peter Lenaerts, Martin Lai
Media design: Adrian Yeung
Graphic Designer: PETER BIRD STUDIO
Co-producer/ Artist management: KALOS Productions HK
Tour Producer：Zhonglei Liu
Tour Technical Manager：Xiaoyan
“The work is presented in the form of “Lecture Performance”, which uses words, images, dance performances and breathing exercises to lead the audience to immerse themselves in the theme of “breathing”. The narrative of the work uses strong contrast, dislocation and delay to prompt the audience to reflect on the “connection” between themselves and the performers, so that the audience can re-question the issues of “self-healing” and “alienation” in today’s society from the logic of words and physical and mental experience.
Although everyone’s life trajectory is unique, what has happened can also be used to connect “breathing” to support and accompany everyone to the end of their life journey. As a ritual space, the theater creates resonance and understanding that cannot be expressed in words through the common breathing and perception of everyone, emphasizing the power of collective experience. “
—– Wayson Poon (6.2025)
Date:
2025.6.21 16:30
2025.6.22 16:30
Venue: Experimental Theater, Shanghai International Dance Center
Duration: Approximately 70 mins (no interval)
Commissioned, Produced and Co-presented by: WestK, Hong Kong
Co-presented with: Shanghai International Dance Center Theater
Acknowledgement: School of Dance, The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, E-side Dance Company
“…The whole performance not only brought me visual enjoyment, but also made me realize something else, such as the close relationship between movement and stillness, breathing and dance in life. I can also see the Taoist form of “Qi”. It was really a wonderful performance.”
—— Comment from an audience, Only
This programme is commissioned and produced by West Kowloon Cultural District, co-presented by West Kowloon Cultural District and Shanghai International Dance Center Theater, as part of the WestK Shanghai Week 2025 organised by the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority (WKCDA). WKCDA’s Travel Partner Cathay is the Lead Sponsor for WestK Shanghai Week. WestK Shanghai Week is supported by Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism as well as the Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau and the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in Shanghai of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). Shanghai United Media Group and Shanghai Media Group are the media partners.