""Together, these artists shape an evening that is wild and intimate, fierce and reflective—a celebration of disruption, discovery, and what lies beyond the edge of balance." "
Anonymous
Audience Member
When Language Fails unfolds as a journey in three visceral phases—Unveiled, Entwined, and the titular When Language Fails—each a portrait of identity in crisis. The work magnifies the spaces between the civilized, the wild, and the deeply suppressed, where identity is shaped or distorted by social and political forces.
From the opening solo’s search for self to the entangled negotiation of the duet, the final section erupts into a charged confrontation, where layers of civility peel away to expose raw, untamed truths that persist beneath. Across these three portraits, When Language Fails explores how identity is fractured, silenced, or reclaimed—and how the body becomes the final site of resistance.
Physical language replaces the spoken word; what can’t be said is danced with urgency and emotional truth.
Featuring Sierra Oszust, Nicole Charlton Goodbrand, and Jared Tobias Herring—with powerhouse performers Marie France Forcier and Wojciech Mochniej in the final section—this work resists fixed meaning and invites the audience to witness transformation.
Choreographed by Wojciech Mochniej in collaboration with Melissa Monteros, When Language Fails is supported by lighting design from Steve Isom and live audio-visual engineering by Colin Barden. Together, they create an immersive world where what is silenced finds voice through the body.
Get Tickets Today!Credits:
- Choreographer: Wojciech Mochniej in collaboration with Melissa Monteros
- Performers: Sierra Oszust, Nicole Charlton Goodbrand, Jared Tobias Herring, Marie France Forcier, Wojciech Mochniej
- Lighting Design: Steve Isom
- Audio and Video: Colin Barden
- Set Design: Scott Reid
- Rehearsal Director: Melissa Monteros
- Funded by Calgary Arts Development, Alberta Foundation for the Arts, Alberta Gaming, Canada Council
- Sound: Soundscape by Wojciech Mochniej with music and samples by the following:
Unveiled, part 1:
- Johan Johannsson & BJNilsen, 04+, Max Richter, 07-, Black Light, Dark Ambient Noiscescape, White Canvas
- Text: Sierra Oszust
Entwined, part 2:
- Zoe Keating, Dark Music, Data Matrix, dl193, Max Richter, Hakkon Finn, dl122, Dreamfi Lofi,
When Language Fails, part 3:
- 7777, Mika Vainio, Olafur Arnal, L3, Dark Piano, Peter Gundry, Eric Holm, The Ghost Traveller, Sogar, Ryoji Ikeda, Alibabki
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