ONLY BONES to Make UK Premiere at Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Daniel Nodder performs the solo show at Downstairs at Assembly Roxy, mentored by Thom Monckton.
Blending non-verbal physical storytelling, absurdist comedy, and contortion, dancer and clown Daniel Nodder transforms into a jelly-like creature, creating a vast universe within a strict one-square-metre space. Using just their body, an original soundscape, and a lightbulb that moves to create optical illusions, Nodder transforms through time. They capture the explosion of the Big Bang, the prowl of dinosaurs, the birth of fire, and the shadow of global warming—before being consumed by a black hole to begin it all again. It is a playfully inventive and intimate celebration of the human form and its extraordinary capabilities.
The Only Bones Project, created by Thom Monckton, premiered at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe a decade ago in 2016 and has had iterations at Summerhall (2016), Assembly (2019) and Zoo Playground (2024). Using uniform and restrictive parameters, solo performers create their own unique live shows with a similar aesthetic. With guidelines of "only one light, no narrative, no set, no props, no text, and all within a limited amount of space", artists are then left much to their own devices to create their own world within a concept. Performances will run 5 – 30 Aug 2026.
Only Bones – Daniel Nodder has been touring both nationally and internationally since its debut in 2023, and has received an Outstanding Solo Performance award (NZ Fringe 2023), an Artist Pick Award (San Diego International Fringe 2024) and Most Innovative Show award (Nelson Fringe 2025).
Creator and performer Daniel Nodder said, “I've always found that my body moves in a super unique, kind of weird way. This show has been an opportunity to turn all of that weirdness into something wonderful. It's a celebration of all the odd stuff, all the creativity, storytelling and humour that is stored in our muscles, bits and bones. Thom had been an artist that I'dlooked up to for quite a while, so making this show with him as a mentor was a dream come true. Now, heading to Edinburgh where his version debuted 10 years ago, I feel super grateful to be carrying on the torch of wibbly wobbly physical theatre."
Daniel Nodder (they/he) is an internationally award-winning physical performer, dancer and clown based in Te Whanganui-a-Tara / Wellington. A École Philippe Gaulier trained clown, they have received mentorship from Thom Monckton and have almost two decades of street dance experience under Projekt team. They specialise in subtle body isolation, twisty contortion and movement that is slapstick, silly and sometimes grotesque. They choreographed for Untitled Warehouse Project's Entry: Encounter, an award-winning dance-rave-installation work, and was a headline talent performer in World of WearableArt's 2025 show, RISE.
Thom Monckton is a circus artist from Taranaki, Aotearoa who has been loosely based in Europe for the past 15 years. He has produced a large amount of solo work including The Pianist (Edinburgh Fringe Award nominee 2014), Only Bones v1.0(Edinburgh Fringe Award nominee 2016, NZ, Auckland, and Perth Fringes Award-winner, Tehran Theatre awards nominee) The Artist (Wellington Theatre Awards winner) and has directed or produced a number of currently active productions as well as teaching workshops and taking part in side projects like music videos, short films, and guest directing. In 2017 Thom was awarded a 5-year grant from the Finnish Arts Council Taike and has been the co-Artistic Director for Kallo Collective since 2018.
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