MAINSTAGE 2025-2026
by means of each other
Generous Mess
Contact sarahhutton@me.com for link to Full Length Performance Video.
Photo: Landon Lake
by means of each other
Drawn from their everyday lives as both romantic and creative partners, Hutton and Cass expose the absurd and profound lengths we go to for one another. Blending dynamic, physical partnering with subtle gazes and gestures, they explore the intricacies of communication, power, and coexistence — all delivered with their signature humour and wit. In the face of relentless conflict, the two embrace their trust, love, and willingness to transform. Set to a vibrant playlist and interwoven with live dialogue and elegant prop work, their tangible chemistry brings to life the ridiculous, tangled, and resilient pursuit of partnership.
This work demands a moment-to-moment presence from both performers and audience — a refreshing antidote to our digitally driven, instant-gratification world. The audience is invited to respond, react, and feed directly into the performers’ choices, blurring the line between observer and participant. Through voice, gaze, and direct address, Hutton and Cass invite you to come along for the ride — and lose yourself in their story.
The characters navigate the familiar challenges of cohabitation — the push and pull recognizable to couples, roommates, siblings, or anyone who’s ever shared a space (and a life). In our most difficult moments, why do we choose to stay? What do we gain — or sacrifice — when we commit to partnership?
This piece resonates deeply, capturing the infuriating, heartbreaking, and joyful chaos of loving another human being. Join us for an evening that celebrates connection in all its messy, beautiful forms.
Generous Mess
Born in North Vancouver BC, Aiden Cass began his training with North Shore Academy of Dance before joining Modus Operandi (MO) in 2015. Born in Hanna AB, Sarah Hutton moved to Vancouver in 2013 and trained with the Source Dance Company and EDAM before joining MO in 2016.
During their graduate project at MO, Aiden and Sarah first collaborated on what now exists as their duet, by means of each other. They offered each other a sounding board to their own creative interests and decision making, and soon realized movement innovation, partnering, and physical theatre would ground their collective practice and company, Generous Mess.
Generous Mess plays between movements grounded in realism and outlandish, distorted realities. Unruly and vulnerable lifts and pathways make up their partner work. Storytelling, humour, and autobiographical themes have molded the context for their first works. Aiden and Sarah’s process is devoted to encouraging their collaborators to mine their unique curiosities, skill sets, and desires inside of each project they facilitate and believe this meaningful work is not linear nor hurried.
Sarah and Aiden have shared their work and teaching practice in Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, Winnipeg, Whitehorse, and Toronto. They have undergone residencies at Dance Victoria, Decidedly Jazz Dance, and have an upcoming creation residency at Shadbolt Centre for the Arts in Burnaby, BC this fall.
Generous Mess is privileged to work and play in so-called Vancouver on the unceded, stolen territories of the xwməθkwəyə̓ m (Musqueam), Sḵwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and s ̱ əlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
Performance History & Upcoming Performances
July 2021 Work-In-Progress Show, Dancing On The Edge Festival, Firehall Arts Centre Courtyard Stage, Vancouver BC
January 2023 Work-In-Progress Show, Plastic Orchid Factory & Left of Push, Left of Main, Vancouver BC
April 2025 Premiere, Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers, Rachel Browne Theatre, Winnipeg MB
Project Created by: Sarah Hutton & Aiden Cass
Key Artistic Collaborators: Sarah Hutton - Choreographer & Performer
Aiden Cass - Choreographer & Performer
Jonathan Kim - Lighting Designer
Raina von Waldenburg - Dramaturg
Performance type: THIS WORK IS BUILT FOR THEATRE, THIS WORK IS ADAPTABLE TO THEATRE OR OUTDOORS OR ALTERNATE VENUES /SPACES
How do you define this work: CONTEMPORARY DANCE/THEATRE
Length of performance: 55 minutes
Audience type: General Audience
General Technical Requirements:
-Minimum 30’ x 30’ stage.
-Entire stage must be covered with Black “Marley” style dance floor professionally laid and taped with black or clear PVC tape.
-Ideally all black masking. Legs ideal for striking chairs during performance and for entrances/exits.
-2 shotgun microphones for larger houses to amplify the performer's voices.
-The Company requires the venue to provide two chairs (preferably the non-folding type with arm rests).
-PA SYSTEM: Professional quality stereo sound system in good working order, providing clear, undistorted, evenly distributed sound proportionate to hall capacity.
-Minimum of 2 On-Stage Monitors (DSL and DSR).
-Sound is played through a QLab file that can be run from the Company’s MacBook or files can be transferred to venue sound operators equipment.
Required amount of time for tech set up: 1 DAY
Alternative Venues: Work may be adapted to other non-theatre venues if marley dance floor can be laid down.
Number of Performers on tour (including choreographer): 2
Number of Support Staff on Tour: 1
Availabilities: 2025/26 Season, 2026/27 Season
Project Details
Community Engagement
Past community engagement activities have included: inviting community members into open rehearsals, having pre or post show Q&A’s, and teaching classes/workshops. We are always open to new ideas from communities and their programmers.
For activities geared to young adults, we are open to having them shadow our rehearsals, technical rehearsals, and having one on one’s to discuss the creative process and careers in the arts.
To accompany this duet, we often teach the following class which can be an advanced level or modified for beginners:
Practicing Partnering Pathways
In this workshop we will share some of our partnering tools, ideas, and curiosities we use in our company’s creative practice and partnering repertoire. We will start the class with a series of exercises and games to warm up our sensation, listening, weight sharing, and backspace. We will then share some partnering pathways and explore the range of possibilities in each movement by switching both roles and partners. Lastly, we will link together a few of the things we practiced in class and learn a partnering phrase. We will try the phrase with multiple partners and use the sequence of movement as a container for you to explore your own curiosities inside the partnering technique.
$2500-$5000
We are open to negotiating the fee based on the amount of performances, community engagement activities, distance travelled to community, and technical adaptation of each venue.
Outreach Activities
Generous Mess is dedicated to meaningful outreach and engagement with the communities they visit. We would love to adapt and evolve activities to serve the needs and desires of each community. We are happy to cater to all ages and previous experience with dance is not required.
Aiden and Sarah have had the pleasure to share their teaching practice with beginner, pre-professional, professional students at Vancouver Public Schools, Training Society of Vancouver, Lamondance, Modus Operandi, YYC Contemporary Drop-Ins, Yukon Contemporary Training Community, Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers, Coastal City Ballet, Dance Arts Institute, and many more.