Peering Into The Void: An Exploration of Cosmic Horror through Choreographic Practice / Isidro Ridout-Tavares (2022)

Peering into the Void: An exploration of Cosmic Horror through choreographic practice is a choreographic exploration of the horror subgenera known as cosmic horror. Over the course of a year I explored how to adapt cosmic horror into choreography, treating my stages of research as performance-based investigations. These were Seance (2021), Butterfly (2022) and my final project Sisyphus (2022). I took particular interest in phenomenology, and the possibility of exploring this philosophy in order to craft horror narratives in live stage performances. The research aimed to answer the following questions: Is it possible to create a choreographic work based on ‘nonphenomenology’? Can cosmic horror be successful in physical adaptions? Which elements beyond movement are necessary to create this style of work?
Does choreography lend itself better to particular sub-genres of horror? The exploration and design of cosmic horror was explored through a focus on the dramaturgical elements involved. These included lighting, sound design, script-writing, and audience interactions with the performance. The crafting of these experiments was fluid, changing the aforementioned variables with each live performance. Building on each previous iteration, these experiments were used to better understand how to combine phenomenological concepts and technical elements in order to create cosmic horror. Compiling all the information, it is an indication as to what a cosmic horror performance may require in order to be crafted.