The residency supported us with space and time for early development of a new work in progress (working title ‘Weathering) exploring how internal and external landscapes are shaped slowly, and often imperceptibly, over time. This new work is growing out of themes we explored last year through our project ‘About Fungi and Being in the Dark’ when we spent time in caves in UK and Thailand, listening deeply in the darkness, and exploring the dialogue between rock and water over deep time. In Weathering we are exploring the interaction between form and process in human and more-than-human entities and a boundary-less space between beings.

We like to make work slowly, with enough space to allow our works to unfold themselves with as little conscious shaping as possible. Our process is very experimental, putting ourselves deliberately in a space of not knowing whilst maintaining an active listening; so that composition becomes more about noticing or catching ideas that emerge organically out of process than prescribing an outcome. We work across disciplines to find the right expression and form for the theme we are working with; meaning we do a lot of experimentation to find the language that sits between movement, light, projection, material and sound.

The residency gave us regular time in the Barbican theatre to test out staging elements, especially large textiles and projection; and to develop choreographic and sound scores. We are always interested to connect with other artists, and the residency also gave us a chance to invite local professional dancers in to our process.

Working in the black box was fantastic, giving us time to play with different lighting states. We used body-worn torches to create small focal points within the space, highlighting dancers’ silhouettes and playing with scale and appearance / disappearance in darkness.

We worked with gold foil emergency blankets to represent ideas of transience and displacement. The material is highly translucent when lit from behind, and very reflective when lit from in front; and we were able to use these two aspects of the material to communicate different meaning or spaces. Using handheld torches with choreographed gesture shifted the focus between the crystalline and apparently solid exterior to the movement within / behind through a translucent surface. Having perfect black box conditions to test and film this in was really invaluable throughout the residency to find the dialogue between movement, material and light we wanted for Weathering.

We were able to play with projection and test out the interaction with different materials, and at scale due to the space available. We worked with an enormous silk parachute with a dancer underneath to create a moving textured landscape. We tested projecting different images of water onto this and played with frame rates to create a surreal stop motion effect. We played with using a thin vertical strip of cyclorama to create a sense of depth and fissure through the space, connecting with the material spread on the ground, or ‘worn’ by dancers.

We tested different projections and choreographies (solo / duets) with an 8m strip of white lycra across the space to create a thin and dynamically fluid image of water flowing through and filling the theatre space. Being able to test different projector locations, a range of footage and visual effects, and diverse choreographic approaches; meant we had time and space to discover what was working and what was less successful.

We experimented with sound and music – both live sounds in the space (from material as well as musician) and audio collected in nature including high wind and storms. In our work the sound and visuals work together, each influencing the other. During the residency we were able to test effects through Touch Designer and projection mapping live in the space – trouble-shooting some practical issues and evolving the audio-visual language for the work.

The residency was so invaluable for us. Play space without pressure of a show or end result makes all the difference at this tender stage of early R&D; and it is a stage in the process that NooN like to stay in for as long as possible, staying open to what is possible, allowing ideas to unfold themselves. As a result of the R&D we shared a short extract of the work at Exeter Phoenix as part of an evening of early work in progress hosted by South West Dance Hub. We have plans to explore Weathering as a short film as well as a work for stage in the longer term.

The team at Barbican were so helpful and welcoming and we felt very at home throughout our time there. We are extremely grateful for the generous support – thank you from all of us at NooN Collective!

Clare Parker, May 2026.