Ten Thousand Hours by Gravity & Other Myths (GOM) is a reminder that greatness is never accidental and that the most exhilarating artistry often comes from showing the work, not hiding it.
The Adelaide-based, multi-award-winning company presents an exceptional production that is as generous as it is jaw-dropping. Built around the concept of the 10,000-hour rule, a theory popularised by Malcolm Gladwell, where mastery in any complex skill typically requires around 10,000 hours of focused, deliberate practice.
Compressing the titular 10,000 hours of practice into a breathless 60 minutes, this Melbourne debut feels less like a spectacle designed to impress and more like an invitation to witness devotion in motion.
From the moment the enormous digital countdown clock flickers to life, Ten Thousand Hours announces its central thesis, that time, effort and people matter. As live percussionist and composer Nick Martyn sets a pulsing, muscular rhythm from the stage, nine world-class acrobats launch into a playful yet perilous game of human Jenga.
What sets this work apart is GOM’s refusal to trade honesty for polish. Under the assured direction of Lachlan Binns (Darcy Grant assists), the performers peel back the curtain on their own virtuosity.
We are shown not only the flawless execution of seemingly impossible feats, shoulder-walks, human pyramids, airborne flips and gravity defying leaps, but also the fragile scaffolding beneath them. Wobbles are visible. Falls are acknowledged. Recoveries are hard-won and thrilling. This transparency transforms awe into empathy.
The ensemble, Jacob Randell, Alyssa Moore, Chase Levy, Lachlan Harper, Annalise Moore, Louis Gift, Axl Osborne, Shani Stephens and Martin Schreiber is exceptional. Each performer brings distinct physicality and personality, while functioning as part of a finely tuned team. Humour is threaded throughout, often emerging organically from improvisation and human connection, offering welcome moments of lightness amid the intense movements.
Visually the production is striking in its restraint. Chris Petredis’ set and lighting design centres the ever-present digital clock within an open stage framed by bench seating and touring road cases, a subtle nod to the company’s global journey across 46 countries. Olivia Zanchetta’s costumes, in understated hues of blue, black and grey activewear, keep the focus squarely on bodies in motion.
Ten Thousand Hours is a tribute to discipline, collaboration and the remarkable capabilities of the human body when shaped by patience and care. Thrilling without bravado and virtuosic without ego, the work remains deeply accessible, one that lingers long after the clock stops counting!
Ten Thousand Hours
Playhouse – Arts Centre Melbourne, 100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne
Performance: Tuesday 13 January 2026
Season continues to 25 January 2026
Bookings: www.artscentremelbourne.com.au
For more information, visit: www.gravityandothermyths.com for details.
Images: Ten Thousand Hours – photo by Darcy Grant | Ten Thousand Hours – photo by Darcy Grant | Ten Thousand Hours – photo by Andy Phillipson
Review: Rohan Shearn