Panama Pictures - Tipping Point

'Tipping Point' is a breathtaking balancing act in which six performers confront a large, barely controllable semi-circular object. A challenging performance, to be seen in Bijlmer Parktheater, about dependency, changing power relations and large uncontrollable elements. With a unique, powerful language on the border between dance and acrobatics, full of risks, Panama Pictures knows how to keep the audience on the edge of their seats.

Panama Pictures - Tipping Point

Location

Bijlmer Parktheater

Anton de Komplein 240

1102 DR Amsterdam

Tipping Point

The object looks like a broken-off piece of a shipwreck or a piece of space junk. As soon as the six climb it, it tilts and they have to react immediately to stay upright. This instability increases both their vulnerability and their dependence on each other; every movement has an effect, on the object and on each other. The performers search for balance – of the object and of their mutual relationships – but discover that in doing so they mercilessly collide with the limits of their individual freedoms. Only by surrendering to the laws of gravity and each other can they play the object and stay upright. Only by working together can they find perfect balance and control for a moment. The movements are accompanied, propelled, magnified or even weakened by a specially composed musical composition that is at times larger than life, but at other times emphasises the emptiness and makes the intimacy of the performers palpable.

Tipping Point is a fine example of balancing. The players jump, run, roll, crawl, sneak, climb, shuffle for an hour with enormous dynamism across the platform to keep the contraption in balance. They literally twist themselves into all sorts of positions, perform spectacular capers, swing like monkeys and writhe like a snake. In other words, they defy the laws of gravity. (Brabant Cultureel) As spectators, we are (…) treated to a rich variety of eye-catching images and acrobatic tricks. A performance that remains captivating until the end. (Scenes) An exciting performance in which six dancers defy and challenge gravity. The moving decor is fantastic and all-determining. (Theaterkrant)