20 January 2026

In Manoeuvres we observe four characters in their desire to break free from the routine of everyday life. The dancers, two men and two women, show their struggle for attention and the diversion tactics they use along the way. A performance with a wink, about dreams, the art of seduction, and daily working life.

Choreographer Conny Janssen has a long history with Introdans. Since the 1990s, she has created various works for the main ensemble and for the youth ensemble, back when that was still a separate group within Introdans. Now Introdans and Conny Janssen are working together again. For HubClub’26, the renowned Rotterdam-based maker blends several fragments from her piece Manoeuvres and adapts them for the diverse HubClub cast.

“I wanted to make something festive,” Janssen says about the piece she created twenty years ago especially for the 15th anniversary of the travelling theatre festival De Parade. The result was a light-hearted performance about four people who are completely stuck in a daily routine and then suddenly decide to stop and throw a party. “They fight for attention and unleash all kinds of distraction manoeuvres on each other to escape boredom.” All of this takes place in a 1970s canteen setting: “you hear old music on the radio as background noise, and the performers wear vintage clothing.”

There is a sense of playfulness in the choreography that, according to Janssen, fits perfectly with HubClub’26: “Manoeuvres communicates quite directly because it is a short performance in itself. That is why the fragment we see in the HubClub’26 programme is also light and accessible.”

How is it to retranslate a piece like this with an inclusive cast for HubClub’26?
“Because the physical realities and professional backgrounds of the performers are further apart than those of the dancers who originally performed the piece, their individuality comes through even more strongly in this new version. I personally find personality in performers extremely important, so it’s wonderful to see that amplified with this cast. At the same time, they form a strong collective, and the intention and story of Manoeuvres remain fully intact. That is also woven into the interplay between choreography, set design, and music.”

Working with a diverse cast is something the choreographer is already familiar with; she has previously collaborated with dancers with different bodily realities. “And besides,” says Conny Janssen, “everyone has different qualities and challenges, whether physical or mental.” Her approach therefore remains the same as always: “we make a professional dance performance. We look at where each person’s strengths and possibilities lie and work from there. That can be difficult at times, but it’s also challenging and incredibly enjoyable. And every now and then, you suddenly receive a little gift in what emerges.”

For the choreographer, it is important that everyone gets the chance to show who they are. “In a performance, that means there is an undercurrent where you are watching authentic people, each with their own strength and vulnerability. That’s how you show the human being.”

That is why Janssen is also happy with this initiative by Introdans: “It’s inspiring and rewarding to give older work a new life in this way. And it’s especially meaningful to do that within a programme featuring a colourful cast and other choreographers, meeting one another in the process. It sparks a dialogue in which we inspire and enrich each other.”