Performance

I’ve been performing since early childhood - as a dancer, a classical musician, and later, through the medium of rope. For me, performance is not separate from life; it’s a space of heightened presence, raw emotion, and collaborative expression. Stepping into performance within my Kinbaku practice felt like a natural evolution—another way to explore vulnerability, embodiment, and connection.

My performance style is fluid and deeply influenced by context. I don’t see performance as something I do to an audience, but rather with them. Each piece is a co-creation between myself, my collaborators on stage, and those witnessing it. This exchange is what breathes life into the work. No two performances are the same, because no two audiences are the same—and that’s part of what keeps it alive for me.

I have a particular affinity for the absurd, the extreme, and the unsettling. I’m drawn to themes that disturb and disorient, that provoke dark and contradictory feelings. I believe performance has the power to confront us with the parts of ourselves we’d rather not see—and in doing so, offers a kind of liberation.

As both a rigger and a model, I draw deep inspiration from artists like Akira Naka, Pilar, Felix Ruckert, and Nicolas Yoroï. Their work has shaped the way I approach the body in performance - as something to be celebrated, challenged, contorted, and held. I’m constantly exploring how we can push the body toward suffering without losing grace, and how that tension can be transformed into something beautiful, honest, and deeply human.

Book Saara Rei