There is no stage, and no lighting. Just a collection of stones and a man wearing overalls, deep in concentration. What follows is an hour’s performance in which the Dutch artist produces, live, sculptures from the rocks using precarious balance and the laws of weightlessness. Nick Steur tames the stones, imparting his concentration to these inanimate masses and control to the elements in order to build miniature, temporary and motionless cathedrals. Stones have never seemed so light and ethereal.

FREEZE! is a minimalist performance that generates maximum emotions, slowly developing a hypnotic relationship with the audience as they hold their breath, waiting for the inevitable fall. All eyes focus here and now on each stone / component of the performance. Somebody clears their throat, makes a noise or moves their chair and the delicate balance is suddenly under threat in this interdependency that links the cool, calm and collected performer to the audience.

“I think it’s important for spectators to become aware of what is happening in the here and now, and of their own presence,” summarises Nick Steur about his relationship with the audience in this in situ experience of sharing, a magnificent contemplative experiment and shared discovery of a gravity-defying shared moment.