Sweat, Strobe, and Survival: The Relentless Power of The Butterfly Who Flew Into The Rave

From award-winning choreographer and performer Oli Mathiesen comes The Butterfly Who Flew Into The Rave – a relentless, euphoric, sixty-minute celebration of rave culture through contemporary dance. Backed by a pounding Detroit techno soundtrack, the show is a physical and emotional rollercoaster that’s toured major festivals around the world and now makes its UK premiere at Summerhall as part of the Edinburgh Fringe.

We caught up with Sharvon Mortimer, the performer and co-choreographer behind this high-energy explosion of movement and meaning.

For those unfamiliar with The Butterfly Who Flew Into The Rave, how would you describe it in one sentence?

Set to a booming techno album, a relentless 3-day rave is condensed into an hour, witness the destruction of three humans as you beg for it to stop while screaming for more. 

You’ve described the show as both the “come up and the come down.” What do you mean by that?

When we describe the show as both “the come up and the come down,” we’re talking about the full spectrum of the rave experience - the euphoric highs and the inevitable lows. Stuck on the ever-persistent treadmill of the pulse, you reach a kind of cathartic ecstasy. There’s pain, grit, and the need to cling to each other just to keep going, pushing to the absolute edge. It’s not just about the glory of the peak, but also the consequence that follows. It captures the brutal beauty of being alive and the dogged determination to endure it, together.

How did rave culture influence the movement vocabulary and energy of the piece?

Raves have such a rich history and are deeply rooted in community. This communal energy exists between the performers and the audience. Raver and non-raver alike, everyone is all in. Each person experiences this work differently; some read the deeper layers, while others vicariously experience the rave and dance with us. But we all enter and endure the booming void together. Raving encompasses a massive range of movement styles and aesthetics, and we’ve tried to honour these within our choreographic language. We’ve drawn from vocabularies that span the history of rave and beyond: House, Whacking, and even a bit of Fosse, to name a few. Each vocabulary holds its lineage, and it’s a privilege to reference them. Raving is also grounded in self-expression, and although the choreography is in unison throughout, each performer interprets it differently. This gives rise to three distinct characters you see evolve, and eventually dissolve,  through the sweat and endurance of the work. We also have to mention the iconic ’90s techno album Nocturbulous Behaviour by Suburban Night. It’s the brilliant soundtrack to the show and was a massive influence that truly shaped the journey of the work as a whole.

You’ve toured this show across Australia and New Zealand – what makes bringing it to Edinburgh special?

It is such a privilege to stand alongside so many other incredible artists from across the globe and represent Aotearoa. We have been so lucky to be able to share this work on home soil and across the ditch so it is amazing to be able to share the Rave with this corner of the world. Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Summerhall have had such an amazing tapestry of artistic history, and it feels pretty special to be a small part of that. Having the chance to inject our rave flavour into a city like Edinburgh is epic.

What’s been the most unexpected audience reaction to the show so far?

That’s a tough one — some audience members have said they’ve gotten emotional during a section of strobe lighting, which I think is quite beautiful. But in general, we didn’t expect the work to connect with such a wide range of people — raver and techno fan or not, it resonates in so many different ways. It’s lovely to be a part of that journey.

If this show were a drink on a night out, what would it be?

A never-ending shot of tequila, but with this show, probably more sensible to just make it a tall glass of water. Especially after all that dancing.

The Butterfly Who Flew Into The Rave is at Summerhall, Main Hall, 31 July – 25 August (not 12 & 19), 18:05 (19:05). For tickets, head to https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/the-butterfly-who-flew-into-the-rave