Tom Sainsbury, Lara Fischel-Chisholm and a cast of sparkly new Dynamotiondebutants present Sharp Teeth for a five-day fling at Q Theatre from 21 July – 25 July.
Scientists have studied it. Poets have romanticised it. Musicians have written approximately 4.7 million songs about it. Yet nobody has successfully explained why humans continue to voluntarily participate in love. So, let’s take it to the dance floor.
Sharp Teeth is a new comedy-dance-theatre work from Dynamotion, a collective of self-described “dactors”, performers working in the space between dance and acting, where emotional life becomes physical, and physical life becomes slightly unhinged.
Led by Tom Sainsbury and Lara Fischel-Chisholm, the Dynamotion crew include Harrison Keefe (Celebrity Treasure Island, The Edge host), Arts Foundation Laureate recipient Sean Rivera (Scenes from the Climate Era), Batanai Mashingaidze (Dakota of the White Flats, seven methods of killing kylie jenner) and Nomuna Amarbat (Ngā Rorirori, CHICK HABIT).
“We’ve all opened our little black books, checked our Tinder and Grindr messages, and turned them into some questionable dance routines,” says Tom Sainsbury.
Across a series of absurdist, high-energy vignettes, the ensemble moves through the strange physics of attraction, obsession, heartbreak, and the recurring human impulse to ignore obvious warning signs. The world is populated by romantics, catastrophists, hopeful idiots, and people who absolutely should know better by now.
Expect high-octane dance, a shifting musical landscape from club anthems to aching ballads, and a visual world of outlandish costumes and unexpected props. Sharp Teethlives in a trippy, heightened universe where humour and heartbreak collide.
“We wanted to explore the idea that love can’t exist without some degree of pain. It’s one of the quirkiest and most endearing things about humans: we throw ourselves headfirst into something that might hurt us, then turn around and do it all over again.” says Lara Fischel-Chisholm.
Dynamotion last lit up the Q stage with A Christmas Crisis. Last Christmas, they gave you their hearts. They would like them back, thank you, please. Sharp Teeth continues this tradition. Faster, messier, and slightly less advisable than previous works.
Dynamotion’s original dance comedy works have become a staple of the Auckland theatre calendar, with 11 full-length productions to their name. They’ve presented at the NZ International Comedy Festival, the Body Festival in Christchurch, and Tempo.
Photo Credit – Fraser Clements
SHARP TEETH
21–25 July 2026, Q Theatre
Duration: 55 minutes
Tickets: $33–$60 (+ booking fees)