Portuguese Sofia Dias and Vítor Roriz make language move and their movements speak

You have those performances that remarkably simply and unobtrusively drag you into a world completely your own. Performances in which everything is recognisable. Words, movement, scenery. Everything equally familiar and homely. But then there is a tap against it. Patterns blur. Language is at odds. Everything rattles and drifts. And yet it makes sense. Before your eyes and ears, a world plays out without cracks and with its own logic. Somehow, you leave the auditorium afterwards feeling good.

One such performance is 'A gesture is nothing but a threat'. Sofia Dias and Vítor Roriz make language move and their movements speak. The same rhythm, the same pace encompasses their words and their gestures. They build tremendous tension with it.

In their performance-like work, such as 'Again from the beginning', Dias and Roriz more often break prevailing codes and images, in order to build a new connection out of them. In 'O mesmo mas ligeiramente diferente', they used movement to show what wondrous paths lie beneath language.

In 'A gesture is nothing but a threat', Dias and Roriz do something wonderful with words. They string them together. They make associations, not on what the words mean, but on their sound. 'Open your eyes,' they invite the audience. The words flow out. 'I hope you rise,' comes out, and then: 'You're right'. It goes on like that. Again and again, they trigger such a beautiful poetic flood. Words are no longer defined chunks with fixed meanings. It is remarkable how creatively these two Portuguese deal with the English language. Or are they able to do so precisely because they are not native speakers? Are they more able than English speakers to pick out the partitions separating words and their meanings? Perfectly naturally, they take you into one language surprise after another. The sound determines the winding path. Of course, words can never be completely separated from their meanings. That is why the sets of words in this performance are so witty. At high speed, Dias and Roriz tip off all kinds of meanings without dwelling on them. The meaning flies away in an instant. This gives you a dizzying feeling, as if you are being whizzed through the universe at tremendous speed.

With their movements, they do the same, but more gradually and subtly. The beginning is dead normal: a man and a woman at a table. From that position, they build a series of movements, repeated each time, each time complemented by the next movement. Standing up, picking up a card, drinking water: nothing out of the ordinary, it seems. But gradually they break down the walls of normal in a light way. Furniture goes on its side. Dramatic gestures and facial expressions break outwards. And all this smoothly and with a compelling rhythm. Slowly, domesticity gives way to a beautiful absurdity. Still very simple and clear. Liberating it is. It makes you leave the room feeling so good.

Maarten Baanders

'A gesture is nothing but a threat', by Sofia Dias and Vítor Roriz. Seen: Theatre Kikker, 24 April. Still to be seen there: 25 April, 8pm