by Terminus Lab
S T O N E
The weight of absence
S T O N E was born from the deep desire to live and love beyond the borders we face. A powerful path to overcome the weight of absence. Friendship with fate. We believe that creative energy can arise from division — and the only real boundary between us is the point of convergence.
— Terminus Lab
The work explores
01 — Concept
S T O N E is an object-oriented contemporary circus performance incorporating techniques related to and borrowed from dance. The concept explores the properties, possibilities, and limitations of an inanimate object and its relationship to humans as actors.
The technique of aerial acrobatics, known as corde à parel, is employed to make physical phenomena in motion tangible. A 19.5 kg stone becomes an antagonist — a non-organic, yet highly palpable, acting force with which the artist establishes a dialogue through the laws of mechanics.
The work reveals the forces of nature in all their power and beauty: gravity, mass, rotation, pendulum, and axis. It depicts the forces that keep the universe in equilibrium. In this concept, the work follows Aristotle’s notion that all things must find their place.
02 — Why stone?
Its texture. Its weight.
In this element of nature, formed long before me, I encounter something calm, grounded, and uncompromisingly honest. The stone carries time within it. Everything has already been said — my task is to enter into dialogue with it.
The work began as an exploration of counterbalance, but it gradually evolved into a study of time, presence, and resistance. The stone is not simply a prop, nor just a partner. For me, it is a form of time — an object charged with the experience of being.
In performance, I suspend pure physical domination. Instead of controlling the object, I negotiate with it. What emerges is not choreography in the traditional sense, but a visible dialogue between body and matter.
Through this encounter, I invite the audience to witness gravity as something tangible, tension as something shared, and time as something that can be felt physically. To step outside linear time — while remaining fully present in the now.
03 — Bio
Iurii Kharchenko
“The body is my material. I work between discipline and rebellion, between control and the desire to break it.”
Iurii Kharchenko is a contemporary circus artist and creator based in Berlin. Through movement and physical theatre, his practice explores balance, tension, and the raw honesty of human presence.
Across a wide range of projects and disciplines, his work has brought him to stages internationally — from the 43rd Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris and The Møn Theatre in Denmark, to Collective Audition Montreal in Canada. His practice has also taken him to events such as the 38th Teddy Award and La France a un incroyable talent, on tour with Feuerwerk der Turnkunst across the VIVA Tour, and to the stages of Fringe Adelaide.
Dmitry Melkin
Dmitry Melkin is a trailblazing director who redefines the boundaries of theater. A graduate of the London International School of Performing Arts, he has been a driving force at Liquid Theater since 2007.
His productions, such as SOLARIS and DRONE, showcase a fusion of multimedia and physical theater often exploring themes of technology and human nature. Melkin's innovative approach has earned him a Golden Mask award in the “Experiment” category, solidifying his position as a leader in experimental theater.
Credits
- Concept
- Terminus Lab
- Direction
- Dmitry Melkin
- Performer
- Iurii Kharchenko
- Sound design
- BY low tech
- Producer
- Terminus Lab / Entr'act
04 — Media
05 — Production
Material
- Body
- Stone
- Rope
Creation period
- March – May 2025
- First sketches
- September – November 2025
- First presentation, work in progress
- Residency 2026
- Short independent residency at Berlin Studio e.V. / Base Berlin
Technical rider
- Duration
- [specify]
- Stage
- Indoor & outdoor venues
- Stage dimensions
- min. 5 m × 5 m, suspension point min. 6 m height
- Rigging
- 1 suspension point — working load 300 kg
- Age
- 12+
- Language
- Non-verbal performance
06 — Press & Audience
- 2025
- Teatre Møn, Denmark
- 2026
- Tollwood festival, München — Germany
Voices
“I have encountered Iurii Kharchenko to be a highly sensitive and powerful artist. His sensitivity toward the objects and subjects he works with are testament to how he can draw deeply on his turbulent life experiences while remaining captivatingly present as a performing artist who expresses with nuance and subtlety.” — Benjamin Richter
07 — Contact