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“Pendulum” is a large-scale performance installation co-created by Australian choreographer Lucy Guerin and percussive artist Matthias Schack-Arnott. Commissioned by the Melbourne RISING Festival, it won the 2021 Green Room Award and was invited to major international art platforms such as the Venice Biennale.

The work breaks with tradition, constructing the stage with 39 precisely designed interactive pendulum installations that blend dance, sound, and installation art. Each bronze bell is equipped with speakers, light sources, and sensors. Under the dancers' manipulation, the pendulums generate real-time dynamic audio-visual feedback, including light effects and multi-layered soundscapes ranging from crisp chimes to deep hums.

During the performance, seven dancers engage in a dialogue with the pendulums through masterful technique. They interact by throwing, catching, halting, spinning, dodging, and resisting the swings, creating tension on the edge of control and chaos. The dancers must both counteract gravitational inertia and harness momentum to guide the oscillations, showcasing the interplay between precise control and spontaneous response—a testament to humanity's struggle against physical laws.

 

 

 

Through the dialogue between mechanical motion and dancers’ performance, the work explores the essence of time, gravity, and existence. The pendulum's steady, unstoppable motion symbolizes the objective passage of time and the constancy of physical laws, while the dancers' interventions and interactions artistically portray human's resistance to and adaptation of predetermined rules. Within this realm of perpetual motion, humanity's relentless effort to control the pendulum's ceaseless rise and fall reveals both the strength and fragility of the flesh against physical laws, while mirroring the human being’s quest for meaning within eternal flux.

 

Pendulum not only redefines the fusion of dance and installation art but also guides audiences through an immersive audio-visual experience, embarking them on a meditative journey exploring the essence of time and existence. Within this realm where machinery and life intertwine, everyone can find their own unique interpretation of time.

Presented by The Center for China Shanghai International Arts Festival (ARTRA2025）

Co-creators:
Lucy Guerin, Matthias Schack-Arnott

Choreography:
Lucy Guerin with the dancers

Composition & Sound Design:
Matthias Schack-Arnott

Performers:
Alice Dixon, Amber McCartney, Caitlin Mewett, Deanne Butterworth, Helen Herbertson, Stephanie Halyburton, Tra Mi Dinh

Costume Design:
Harriet Oxley

Lighting Design:
Bosco Shaw

System Design & Programming:
Nick Roux

Executive Producer:
Alison Harvey

Production Technical Director:
Keith Tucker

Designer/Technical Operator:
Rob Larson

Presented by:
Lucy Guerin Inc

Commissioned by:
RISING Melbourne