“Big Time Miss – an absurdist dance fantasy”
In Big Time Miss, a group of comic performers are forced to shed their clownish masks and reveal their rich, emotional inner worlds as they navigate the turbulence of their real lives.
Within an ever-shifting cloudscape of theatrical possibilities, an absurdist dreamworld unfolds—carried by Rock Bottom Movement’s signature style of uninhibited, athletic contemporary dance theatre.
Big Time Miss is a surreal dance epic in which the personal biographies of the performers become the stage for an intense confrontation: funny people facing feelings that are anything but funny. With Rock Bottom’s trademark collision of hyper-physical energy and theatrical honesty, the work explores what it means to be ambitious, vulnerable, anxious, and in love.
Alyssa Martin — choreographer, founder, and artistic director of Rock Bottom Movement (Toronto) — is known for her distinctive blend of surrealism, humour, and modern dance. She creates dance theatre where humour sets the rhythm and empathy leads the way.
The original soundtrack for Big Time Miss is a collaboration between indie sensations Semiah and Jacobi Vanderham. Semiah — a groundbreaking Kanien’kehà:ka (Mohawk) pop-electro-R&B artist — is celebrated for her honey-smooth voice and unique blend of R&B, electronic, hip-hop, post-punk, dream pop, and Indigenous vocal traditions. Jacobi, a Montréal-based producer and performance artist, composes for film, theatre, and dance, and also creates alt-pop under the name Telehorn.
The dancers of Rock Bottom Movement, who have been working together for nearly a decade, form the powerful core of this full-length performance. With courage, wit, and unexpected tenderness, Alyssa Martin creates work that Intermission Magazine described as “as outrageous as it is intelligent.”
Rock Bottom Movement – surrealist dance theatre from Toronto
Holland Dance Festival proudly welcomes Rock Bottom Movement, Toronto’s leading surrealist contemporary dance company. Under the direction of the unconventional Alyssa Martin, the ensemble has built a strong reputation for its biting, hyper-physical style and distinct sense of humour.
Their work has been presented on some of Canada’s most prestigious stages, including Fall for Dance North Festival, Fluid Festival (Calgary), Festival of New Dance (St. John’s), Festival des Arts Saint-Sauveur, and Citadel Live (Toronto). Major productions such as Big Time Miss, Sex Dalmatian, and Hollow Mountain have earned widespread acclaim, receiving eight Dora Mavor Moore Awards and the Canadian Stage Award for Direction, among others.
Rock Bottom Movement has developed many of its groundbreaking works during residencies at renowned institutions such as the Banff Centre, The National Ballet of Canada, and the Stratford Festival Lab. The company’s strength lies in its fearless combination of exuberant energy, sharp humour, and surprising emotional depth.
