Thick & Tight, the award-winning dance theatre company led by Daniel Hay-Gordon and El Perry, brings their vibrant new show Natural Behaviour to Battersea Arts Centre this June. Known for their bold mix of dance, satire, impersonation, and poetry, the company’s latest work is a playful yet profound exploration of what it means to be ‘natural’ or ‘unnatural’.
Natural Behaviour features a dazzling cast of human and non-human characters-including moths, cockroaches, a lamenting songbird, and a lesbian seagull-offering audiences a queer, diverse, and thought-provoking performance. The show continues Thick & Tight’s mission to challenge artistic norms and celebrate the essential role of diversity in all life forms.
Natural Behaviour runs at Battersea Arts Centre from 3–7 June, with all performances relaxed and tickets available on a Pay What You Can basis. Book your tickets here.
You’re bringing Natural Behaviour to Battersea Arts Centre-what can you tell us about the show?
Natural Behaviour is a unique mixture of dance, mime, lip-syncing, poetry and drag. We have created 11 different short works which all look at the subject of queer ecology. Each piece takes a completely different viewpoint on the natural world, what makes it queer, what makes us queer, what we can learn from nature and from one another.
We want people to also contemplate these big subjects that we’ve been asking ourselves in the process of making the work. We approach the work with the use of humour, physicality, storytelling and music. The show mixes together serious and profound pieces with ludicrous and funny numbers. We’ll always keep you guessing and keep you entertained!
Natural Behaviour features a cast of both human and non-human characters, from moths to a lesbian seagull. What inspired this unique line-up of performed portraits?
This line-up has been a few years in the making now. After lots of reading and research we landed on a group of very distinct characters, through which to communicate dense concepts of queerness, otherness and what is means to be natural or unnatural.
Years ago, we began making work which satirised famous or infamous people, creating portraits of them through dance and other theatrical devices. We wanted to shift away from this format and create a body of work which took inspiration from all life on earth. These portraits are of entirely different creatures, plants and even matter. It’s been so much fun bringing these oddities to life.
There will still be plenty of human content though (can’t quite let go) which will include a well know author (James Baldwin) and an astronaut (Katy Perry!)
Thick & Tight is celebrated for blending dance, satire, impersonation, and poetry. How do these elements come together in this production?
These elements are weaved through every single work. Each piece is choreographed in its own specific way. We have directed how each piece is performed, how pre-recorded or specially created text is used and what the work is directly responding to or commenting on. A large focus of our choreographic practice is how we blend other art forms with movement in surprising or novel ways. We hope to present a show which showcases the broad spectrum of how all these elements can be used in creating theatre, while each work is specific in how these elements align.
The show explores what it means to be ‘natural’ or ‘unnatural’ and highlights diversity. How do you hope audiences will engage with these themes?
Ideas of natural or unnatural have been a distinct focus of ours through studying queer ecology. It feels that is aligned with the experiences of the queer and/or learning-disabled artists who are part of the show, on and off the stage. The thematic focus of each work will be clearly explained through text introductions at the start of each work. We want people to understand the breadth of what natural or unnatural can mean (we don’t have the answer!), as well as what diversity can look like, as is the case with each performer who brings their distinctive voice into the mix, helping to articulate what being queer and/or learning disabled can mean in 2025.
Each work will upturn what proceeded it, helping audiences to understand that there is no ‘one-way’ and there is certainly nothing unnatural in being different.
With a focus on accessibility and community, all performances are relaxed and pay-what-you-can. Why are these aspects important to you and the company?
We work with a range of communities, all the time; it is core to our values and what makes our practice something we cherish so much. We aim to disband elitism and hierarchy throughout our practice and management of the company, as we truly believe that this not only makes people happier but produces better art. It is wonderful that this is mirrored in how audiences can engage with the work too.
What would you say to anyone thinking of booking to see Natural Behaviour?
Do it! Even if you’re not into dance, drag, science or know anything about the queer community. Think of it like your favourite sketch, just with a little more information. There will be unbelievably talented artists, and you might even find it funnier than the repeat comedy you were going to watch on the TV. For the price of an expensive pint, you can come see something that is actually new!
