The sound of people talking slowly fills the theater.

At the lip of the proscenium, parallel to the audience, five performers are positioned on a long bench. Light isolates this area, redefining the stage as a narrow, linear space. Along this line, the performers move through a sequence of composed actions. They sit, stand, recline, drape.

The bench functions as support, display, and frame. Drawing on Hassabi’s language of stillness, deceleration, precision, and sculptural physicality, Us treats time as material and presence as an active, sustained state, negotiated moment by moment.

Drifting between moments of rest and observation, the performers maintain a continuous tension within their unfolding narrative, as singular beings and as a group. Each action affects their neighbour, passing from one to the next.

Positioned opposite the audience. Them and us. Seated, in parallel. A quiet exchange of attention, duration, and perception..

Maria Hassabi’s performance Us is supported by NEON through its annual Grants Scheme.