Hunter

English

A Physical and Cinematic Celebration of the Monstrous

Hidden underground, concealed within a closed room, HUNTER explores the redemptive process of a classical tragedy, where a character attains insight through suffering. 

However, in this tragedy, performer and choreographer Courtney May Robertson performs "life-affirming monstrosities" on both herself and her life-sized double. The duo—one of flesh and blood, the other made of foam and silicone—maps out the internal torments and ecstasies of an individual in conflict with a society that holds purity as the moral standard.

Inspired by horror, BDSM, and melodrama, Courtney May Robertson creates a vision where the grotesque, sexual perversion, and excess become triumphant symbols of bodily autonomy and empowerment. The audience is invited to enter a space where the rigid divide between repulsion and attraction dissolves. Courtney believes that when shame is overcome, the visceral emotion of disgust—typically associated with rejection—has the potential to transform into paradoxical intrigue. Propelled by an industrial soundscape composed by Acidic Male, HUNTER embraces self-destruction as an act of self-preservation.

Winner of the 2024 VSCD Mime/Performance Prize, from the jury report

Courtney May Robertson has already proven herself a gifted performer and now demonstrates in HUNTER her skills as an outspoken and daring creator. Drawing virtuously from various idioms such as mime, krumping, dance, and puppetry, she offers an impressive exploration of beauty in the perverse. 

About the Artist
Courtney May Robertson (Scotland, 1992) is a Rotterdam-based performer and creator. After graduating in 2013, she joined Club Guy & Roni's Poetic Disasters Club. Since then, she has performed extensively across Europe in works by Jan Martens, Connor Schumacher, and Florentina Holzinger, among others. Alongside performing, Courtney creates her own work; The Pleasure of Stepping Off a Horse When It’s Moving at Full Speed (2020) and The Woman Destroyed (2022) are internationally touring, critically acclaimed productions. HUNTER is her latest work as an emerging creator.

Please Note
This performance is not recommended for audiences under 16 years old. It contains flashing lights and references to self-harm, which may be perceived as shocking.