Siegfried Kracauer’s essay The Mass Ornament (1927) is a key work in cultural theory, in which he analyses popular entertainment, such as the Tiller Girls’ synchronised dance routines, as a reflection of the capitalist, rationalised structures of modern society. Their performances, built around intricate geometric patterns and mathematical precision, mirrored the mechanised logic of mass production and factory labour.

Each of the Tiller Girls' dancers functioned as part of a larger system—indistinguishable, replaceable, and subordinated to the whole. For Kracauer, this aestheticised uniformity reflected the growing influence of industrial capitalism, where efficiency, repetition, and rationalisation dictated both work and culture.

I was fascinated by the idea of recreating a human "mass ornament" that exists within the  contemporary neoliberal context, in which people are sold the idea that they are radically free, yet their actions are shaped by economic and technological systems that dictate how individuality is performed—a surface-level spectacle masking deeper material conditions.

I found it compelling to revisit these mass formations to uncover something deeper. What emerged in the process was not a loss of personality but an intricate system of care, awareness, and collaboration. The most striking realisation was that this kind of collective precision doesn’t erase the individual; it requires deep connection, trust, and interdependence. The choreography became less about the finished form and more about the process—the unseen bonds, the silent communication, and the shared energy that makes the structure come alive.

CREDITS
Choreography Fran Díaz, in Kollaboration mit den Tänzer:innen
Choreographic Assistant Keren Leiman
Music Henryk Górecki
Additional Composition / Sound Design Tom Foskett-Barnes
Harpsichord Waldemar Martynel
Set design and Costumes Fran Díaz
Set design advisor Manuel Cornelius
Costume Assistant Janine Schwind
Light Design Tanja Rühl
Rehearsal Director Jaione Zabala Martin
Dramaturgy Lucas Herrmann