Last and First Men By Neon Dance

A future race of humans finds itself on the verge of extinction. Almost all that’s left in the world are lone and surreal monuments, beaming their message into the wilderness.

Based on the ground-breaking 1930 sci-fi novel by Olaf Stapledon, Last and First Men (2020) concluded the beautiful career of the Icelandic composer Jóhann Jóhannsson. Neon Dance presents a contemporary dance work set to the backdrop of Johann Jóhannsson’s 16mm black and white film, with narration from Tilda Swinton and original score composed by Jóhannsson and Yair Elazar Gotman.

Neon Dance previewed Last and First Men at the Science Museum in London as part of their Science Fiction exhibition on 4 May 2023 and premiered the work at the Volksbühne in Berlin as part of CTM Festival on 2 February 2024. The work has gone on to be presented at Festival of Tomorrow (Swindon, UK) and a live music premiere took place at Rewire Festival (The Hague, NL) on 2 April 2024.