FUR / MORE THAN ONE ANIMAL

More Than One Animal—a blend of a nature mockumentary and an emotional pop concert. Inspired by the world of wildlife as well as the performers’ own experiences, the project challenges the traditional narratives found in popular nature films. Instead of glorifying the family as the fundamental unit of nature—with strong males dominating weaker females—or depicting brutal hunts, it explores other themes and alternative visions of the natural world: the extreme matriarchy of elephants, fish that change sex multiple times, and the baffling empathy of certain predators. The performance turns our typical attitude toward animals on its head: it does not attempt to anthropomorphize them, but rather considers what we can learn from them. In “More Than One Animal,” weariness with humans and the human perspective prompts us to study nature—to create a new herd. Costumes: Tomasz Armada; photographs: Pat Mic