daniel kok / diskodanny.com
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Daniel Kok studied Fine Art & Critical Theory (Goldsmiths College, London), Solo/Dance/Authorship (HZT, Berlin) and Advanced Performance and Scenography Studies (APASS, Brussels). In 2008, he received the Young Artist Award from the National Arts Council (Singapore).
His artistic research explores the politics of inter-subjective relationality. By drawing a key distinction between spectatorship and audienceship, he highlights the tension between the experience of an individual and that of a group. From 2010 to 2018, he created performances through ‘figures of performance’ - such as the pole dancer, cheerleader, and military commander - each engaging the crowd through specific tools and protocols.
Since 2014, he has collaborated with Melbourne-based artist Luke George on a performance practice based on rope bondage that investigates collective negotiations of consent and intimacy. Their performances are live experiments in democratic politics and acquiescence, welcoming failure as part of a radical approach to consensus and coalescence. Their work has been presented across the Asia-Pacific, Europe, and North America, including at the Venice Biennale, AsiaTOPA (Melbourne), Singapore International Festival of Arts, and Taipei Arts Festival. Still Lives: Melbourne won Outstanding Contemporary and Experimental Performance and Design/Technical Achievement at the 2023 Green Room Awards.
As Artistic Director of DANCE NUCLEUS (Singapore), Daniel develops capacity for independent artists and builds trans-local partnerships across the Asia-Pacific. He regularly coaches younger artists in the formulation of their praxes across four domains - Research, Creation, Production, and Dissemination - treating independent artistic production as a question of dramaturgy in and of itself. He also curates the da:ns LAB coaching programme and the VECTOR exhibition of performance annually with support from the Esplanade (Singapore).
Daniel Kok is based between Singapore and Berlin.
C.V.
08.Bunny, 2016
Daniel Kok + Luke George
Theatre Performance
In order to unravel shared lines of connection, to suspend tension and to unleash collective desires, Kok and George look to macramé, sailors’ knots, Chinese knots and rope bondage to weave together an interactive experience of collectivity. "Bunny" is a nickname given to the person being tied in rope bondage. In this work, we ask ourselves this question: What if everyone (in the theatre) is a Bunny?
Creation & Performance: Luke George & Daniel Kok
Dramaturgy: Tang Fu Kuen
Lighting design: Matthew Adey / House of Vnholy
Technical Stage Manager: Gene Hedley
Bunny was commissioned by Campbelltown Arts Centre (AUS), co-produced by The Substation (SIN), with support from the Playking Foundation (AUS), Australia Council for the Arts, Victorian Government through Creative Victoria, the National Arts Council (SIN), Singapore International Foundation, Abrons Arts Centre (NYC) and Tanzfabrik (BER).
KNOT NOTES Performance Notes
INTERVIEW WITH CONCERTGEBOUW