The world in my eyes
“The quiet, wondering feeling of happiness when I sat at the microscope and
observed the diversity of life in my little world.”
Marie Hammer (from Forsker i fem verdensdele, 1981)
Join us on a journey into the world, down into the soil fauna, and into unknown and invisible worlds, and follow the traces of a female researcher who was ahead of her time and later forgotten.
THE WORLD IN MY EYES is a sensory walking performance and a choreographic work that celebrates the rediscovered Danish researcher and zoologist Marie Hammer (1907-2002). A woman who, throughout her life, sought and found a great truth about our shared world. THE WORLD IN MY EYES is not just a portrait of a unique researcher but also a very familiar story about one of science’s overlooked women. The performance renews focus on Marie Hammer and allows the audience to experience the wondrous beauty of nature through her eyes.
The performance explores Marie Hammer’s lifelong studies of microscopic moss mites that live hidden underground worldwide and are crucial to ecosystems. Marie Hammer’s deep fascination with microbiology and her dedication to research took her on journeys to all the world’s continents for over 50 years. At home in her study with her husband and four children around her, she examined thousands of collected moss mites under the microscope. Over time, she provided evidence for Alfred Wegener’s theory of continental drift; that all the world’s continents were once united in a supercontinent more than 200 million years ago and have since drifted apart to their current positions. Marie Hammer’s research is exceptional, her work effort enormous, and her research results groundbreaking.
THE WORLD IN MY EYES takes the audience on a fascinating journey: Three dancers explore Marie Hammer’s life and research, with curiosity and humor, leaping between human and moss mite, fieldwork and family life, past and present, and between small and large universes.
Marie Hammer (1907-2002), zoologist and Dr. Phil., was one of the first women in the natural sciences at the University of Copenhagen and received her Master’s degree in 1932. She participated in Knud Rasmussen’s 7th Thule Expedition in Greenland in 1933 as the only woman. Her research on moss mites began in 1931, and she was simultaneously fascinated by Alfred Wegener’s controversial theory of continental drift proposed in 1912. Marie Hammer collected moss mites on all the world’s continents for over 50 years, traveling to places such as Canada, Iceland, North America, South America, Australia, Tahiti, Bali, Tonga, New Guinea, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, Iran, and the Sahara. In a remote meadow in Argentina, she made a sensational discovery; the moss mite Mucronotrus Nasalis proved to be identical to individuals from cold springs in Lapland, Rold Forest, and as far away as New Zealand. Marie Hammer published more than 40 papers on moss mites. In 1979, she published the paper A Review of the World Distribution of Oribatid Mites in Relation to Continental Drift with J.A. Wallwork, which finally argued for the connection between the distribution of moss mites and the movements of continents over the past 200 million years, thereby proving Alfred Wegener’s theory of continental drift.
INFO
THE WORLD IN MY EYES begins outdoors in front of Flynderupgaard, Agnetevej 9, 3060 Espergærde, with a walk through a nearby green area before the audience is guided back and into the performance space where the rest of the performance unfolds.
Note: Unfortunately, the performance is not suitable for those with walking difficulties. Remember to wear practical clothing according to the weather!
Duration: Approximately 90 minutes
Age: From 15 years
“The quiet, wondering feeling of happiness when I sat at the microscope and
observed the diversity of life in my little world.”
Marie Hammer (from Forsker i fem verdensdele, 1981)
Join us on a journey into the world, down into the soil fauna, and into unknown and invisible worlds, and follow the traces of a female researcher who was ahead of her time and later forgotten.
THE WORLD IN MY EYES is a sensory walking performance and a choreographic work that celebrates the rediscovered Danish researcher and zoologist Marie Hammer (1907-2002). A woman who, throughout her life, sought and found a great truth about our shared world. THE WORLD IN MY EYES is not just a portrait of a unique researcher but also a very familiar story about one of science’s overlooked women. The performance renews focus on Marie Hammer and allows the audience to experience the wondrous beauty of nature through her eyes.
The performance explores Marie Hammer’s lifelong studies of microscopic moss mites that live hidden underground worldwide and are crucial to ecosystems. Marie Hammer’s deep fascination with microbiology and her dedication to research took her on journeys to all the world’s continents for over 50 years. At home in her study with her husband and four children around her, she examined thousands of collected moss mites under the microscope. Over time, she provided evidence for Alfred Wegener’s theory of continental drift; that all the world’s continents were once united in a supercontinent more than 200 million years ago and have since drifted apart to their current positions. Marie Hammer’s research is exceptional, her work effort enormous, and her research results groundbreaking.
THE WORLD IN MY EYES takes the audience on a fascinating journey: Three dancers explore Marie Hammer’s life and research, with curiosity and humor, leaping between human and moss mite, fieldwork and family life, past and present, and between small and large universes.
Marie Hammer (1907-2002), zoologist and Dr. Phil., was one of the first women in the natural sciences at the University of Copenhagen and received her Master’s degree in 1932. She participated in Knud Rasmussen’s 7th Thule Expedition in Greenland in 1933 as the only woman. Her research on moss mites began in 1931, and she was simultaneously fascinated by Alfred Wegener’s controversial theory of continental drift proposed in 1912. Marie Hammer collected moss mites on all the world’s continents for over 50 years, traveling to places such as Canada, Iceland, North America, South America, Australia, Tahiti, Bali, Tonga, New Guinea, Cambodia, India, Pakistan, Iran, and the Sahara. In a remote meadow in Argentina, she made a sensational discovery; the moss mite Mucronotrus Nasalis proved to be identical to individuals from cold springs in Lapland, Rold Forest, and as far away as New Zealand. Marie Hammer published more than 40 papers on moss mites. In 1979, she published the paper A Review of the World Distribution of Oribatid Mites in Relation to Continental Drift with J.A. Wallwork, which finally argued for the connection between the distribution of moss mites and the movements of continents over the past 200 million years, thereby proving Alfred Wegener’s theory of continental drift.
INFO
THE WORLD IN MY EYES begins outdoors in front of Flynderupgaard, Agnetevej 9, 3060 Espergærde, with a walk through a nearby green area before the audience is guided back and into the performance space where the rest of the performance unfolds.
Note: Unfortunately, the performance is not suitable for those with walking difficulties. Remember to wear practical clothing according to the weather!
Duration: Approximately 90 minutes
Age: From 15 years
Credits
Idea, manuscript, choreography, text and setup: Pernille Garde
Performers and dancers: Helene Kvint, Lisbeth Sonne Andersen and Tomomi Yamauchi
Dramaturgical and choreographic consultant and co-developer: Kasper Daugaard Poulsen
Composer and sound design: Mons Niklas Schak
Scenography and videodesign: Signe Krogh
Lightdesign: Michael Breiner
Costumes and props: Åsa Gjerstad
Signature photo and graphical design: Robin Neil Hart (Photo kindly loaned by Marie Hammer’s children)
Administration: JC – Copenhagen
Producer: Pernille Garde Stage Art
Partners: Motropolis/ KIT and Helsingør Teater in 2024
Supported by Statens Kunstfond, Augustinus Fonden, Danske Skuespillerforbunds Projektstøttemidler and Knud Højgaards Fond.
