Jefta van Dinther

›Mercury Rising‹ emerges from a phenomenological excavation of language. Created in collaboration with and performed by Dawn Jani Birley, Rita Mazza, and Lukas Malkowski, the performance by Dutch-Swedish choreographer and dancer Jefta van Dinther charts both ancient and future non-linear languages, navigating the terrain between communication, gesture, agency, and physicality.

›Mercury Rising‹ positions the body as a volatile site of discourse – a place where meaning is made, unmade, and transformed through movement.

While inviting its audience to decipher an abundance of signs, the work also explores the slippery nature of interpretation and ultimately releases us from the need for the literal or the explanatory. Incorporating multiple sign languages, and created for all audiences – including Deaf and hearing audiences – ›Mercury Rising‹ addresses the complexity of human communication on the brink of a paradigm shift. What we share, in the end, is not certainty – but the impossibility of full understanding, and the urge to connect nonetheless.

Choreography Jefta van Dinther Creation, Performance Rita Mazza, Dawn Jani Birley, Lukas Malkowski Costume, Stage Cristina Nyffeler Lighting Design Jonatan Winbo Sounddesign David Kiers, including "Run for Your Life (feat. La Chat)" by Clipping, "Cangilón" by Nicolás Jaar and "Momentaries" by Bjarni Gunnarsson Backdrop surface Gonçalo Sena Dramaturgy Gabriel Smeets Artistic Consultation Maja Zimmermann Rehearsal Director Tomislav Feller Technical Direction Andrea Parolin and Fabian Bleisch Light Fabian Bleisch Sound Andrea Parolin Management Sven Neumann Distribution Sarah De Ganck, ART HAPPENS Production management Uta Engel and Romy Hansford-Gerber Financial Management transmissions GmbH (DE) and Interim kultur AB (SE)

Mercury Rising is produced by Jefta van Dinther. Co-production: Norrlandsoperan Umeå, Cndc – Angers (Accueil Studio), Dansens Hus Stockholm, Dansnät Sverige, HAU Hebbel am Ufer Berlin and PACT Zollverein Essen. Funded by: Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion and Fonds Darstellende Künste.

In 2025 Jefta van Dinther was funded by the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion and Swedish Arts Council.