In the Unique Flow of the Dream World
People spend a significant part of their lives sleeping, dreaming, or otherwise being guided by their subconscious. It is from these states—where the mind moves freely without the constraints of conscious thought—that Annamari Keskinen and Ryan Mason’s piece, DREAMER, draws its inspiration.
“We are not interested in linear storytelling but rather in how dreams have their own logic. Dreams are playful and open—anything can happen in them,” says Keskinen.
Keskinen and Mason have been working together since 2017. They met while dancing in the same company in Germany and soon after began creating choreography together.
Valtteri Raekallio, artistic director of Helsinki Dance Company, says he has followed their artistic work for nearly a decade.
“I feel that they are deliberately developing their own aesthetic and boldly exploring new choreographic expressions. I believe they offer our dancers an intriguing challenge with their associative and imaginative approach to movement.”
A Long Process
Keskinen and Mason describe their approach as process-oriented. One of the first creative decisions for DREAMER was the choice of a fuchsia-colored stage, designed to evoke a metaphysical or existential waiting room.
“A monochrome space is very pure, which makes it open to imagination. When you add music, lighting, or scenes, the space transforms along with them,” Mason explains.
Before the direction of the piece became clear, the choreographers focused on getting to know the dancers.
“It’s a long process of experimenting and going on a kind of psychophysical journey with the dancers. The time we spend with them before shaping the actual piece is essential to the outcome,” Mason says.
They often incorporate task-based exercises into their creative process. “We give the dancers an idea to explore. Then, we observe what emerges, select certain elements, and refine them into something more defined,” Keskinen describes.
“We work in close dialogue with the performers, taking into account their personalities and natural movement language. At the same time, we are meticulous in fine-tuning the movements and structuring them on stage,” Mason adds.
The movements do not follow traditional dance styles or classical techniques but instead arise from the dancers’ internal worlds, expressed without predetermined steps. The goal is for movement to embody an inner landscape and engage in dialogue with the space and stage.
Personal Meanings
At the heart of DREAMER are questions about the experience of meaninglessness and the search for meaning amid chaos. Is it possible to let go of the need to see things as permanent or unambiguous? How can one create personal meanings in a world where traditional structures and beliefs no longer provide support?
“These themes may not be obvious in the piece, but they subtly influence it,” says Keskinen.
Keskinen and Mason explain that they want to create a piece that does not aim to provide answers but instead raises questions and explores ideas that have no definitive resolutions.
They emphasize that experiencing the piece is far more important than analyzing it.
“It’s much more interesting to discover a personal meaning than to focus on how well the piece addresses a specific theme or to try to decipher what we, as choreographers, intended to convey,” Mason says.
“We have an intuitive need to place certain elements together on stage, but our reasons may differ from how someone else perceives them,” Keskinen continues.
“The piece consists of layered associations, but it does not strongly define any particular thing. We aim to keep the space open and create something unique,” Mason concludes.
Text Ida Henritius