The new multi-sensory production reveals apertures onto deeply hidden parts of the self within an increasingly complex world.

Ballet Sur_real, the signature dance ensemble of the international production company DANCÆ, presents Modalities of Me, a new work premiering at Berlin’s Monopol, the former distillery now turned cultural venue in northern Berlin. The piece unfolds around five figures who do not appear as traditional characters, but as embodiments of different states of being: power, chaos, duplicity, fragility, and ferality. Rather than following a linear storyline, these figures interact with one another, with the installation, and with the surrounding architecture. The performance takes place within a life-size environment created by Swiss-based visual collective Encor Studio, making choreography and installation inseparable.

Modalities of Me is a multi-sensory dance performance that explores how modern love is shaped and often distorted by the environments we move through: digital spaces, club culture, curated identities, and hyper-capitalist frameworks. Examining how desire shifts under pressure - how we perform it, commodify it, consume it, and sometimes destroy it - the work invites audiences to reflect on intimacy as something both fragile and volatile in today’s world.

The performance begins with a solo by Tess Voelker, former member of Nederlands Dans Theater, whose piece functions as a kind of autobiography - an exploration of presence and personal memory expressed through respecting “the most” of what is “the least.”

Encor Studio’s window installation is a 25 x 30 meters mixed-media work of glass, sunlight, and electrochromic films, reflecting the systems that shape and influence our environment, evolving in real time with the atmosphere. Encor stands out for its integration of physical materials and responsive technology, crafting site-specific works that interact with natural light and changing conditions to alter how space is seen and felt. As the performance unfolds, the dancers mirror the shifting dynamics of today’s social and emotional landscapes.

The work is choreographed by Soraya Schulthess, founder of DANCÆ, and co-director Renato De Leon, who together co-created the official ensemble Ballet Sur_real. Performed to electronic music and accompanied by site-specific light and spatial design, it draws audiences into an immersive environment where dance, installation, and sound create a unique performance experience.

Performance Dates

Wed, Sept 17, 8 pm
Thu, Sept 18, 8 pm
Fri, Sept 19, 8:45 pm
Sat, Sept 20, 6 pm 
Sun, Sept 21 3 pm

Tickets
27–34 EUR 

Cast
Choreography: Soraya Schulthess & Renato De Leon 
Ensemble: Anna Okuneva, Jade Albrieux, Renato De Leon, Soraya Schulthess, Eoin Robinson, Marlena Umland 
Special Performance: New solo creation by Tess Voelker
Credits Creative Direction & Production: Soraya Schulthess & Renato De Leon 
Lighting Design: Joe Bellin 
Music Mixing: Ogtrues 
Poster & Graphic Design: Tiana Lenz 
Images: Masha Kulch & Anna Vialova