The infamous and consequential tale of political ambition, Shakespeare‘s tragedy Macbeth, renowned for its quietly sinister, psychological deterioration of both leads, articulates the ascension of, and inevitable downfall of a power hungry general – the basis of which can be traced back to a prophecy expressed by the famous three witches.
Sleep plays a vital role within our daily routines, the sleep-wake cycle a process forming one of our circadian rhythms – an internal 24hr clock supporting our survival. Delving into this cycle further in her new work Small Hours, showing online as part of IF Oxford from the 19th to 25th October, writer Ava Wong Davies talks about what inspired her to create the show, seeking scientific advice from the University of Oxford Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute and how she’s found creating work during this time.
A response to current theatre closures and keeping in line with social distancing restrictions, Access All Areas Theatre have curated an 8 stage tour of Hackney, a tour offering insight into the thoughts and feelings of the company’s members during this unprecedented time. Starting off at Hackney Town Hall, the 90 minute tour not only places centre the voices of learning disabled and autistic artists but also highlights locations significant to the artists behind the audio.
Social distancing has now become a fixture of our ‘new normal’, an adaptation within theatre and wider society responding to the Covid pandemic. In a time where we’re all being made to keep our distance, human contact and interaction has become compromised – an aspect of humanity we would have taken for granted up until now. Reimagining C-o-n-t-a-c-t, a French production written by Eric Chantelauze and adapted into English by Quentin Bruno, Gabrielle Jourdain presents an experience considering the importance of connection and the importance of connecting and resolving emotional pain within oneself.
With the current Covid crisis having made the arts adapt to alternative ways of reaching audiences, the number of productions that have been presented via online streaming has significantly increased. The digital sphere has offered a new way of accessing arts content, with online platforms becoming the go to place for live art. But how else can audiences be reached? New Perspectives have decided to take a nostalgic turn, creating a postcard drama with their new work Love from Cleethorpes.
Returning to St Paul’s Church in the heart of Covent Garden, award winning theatre company Iris Theatre will showcase an eclectic line up of live outdoor performance as part of their Summer Festival. A mixture of music, theatre and new work, the festival champions and celebrates performance in a time of uncertainty. Taking part in this summer’s event, writers Asa Haynes and Jesse Bateson will showcase their work in progress Words I’ve Said, a play exploring themes of family and loss. Ahead of the festival, Asa tells us more about his inspirations for the show, writing the show during this unique time and what audiences can expect.
We – the modern human (Homo Sapiens) have embarked on a 12,000 year journey that presently sees us where we are today whereby we’ve created complex civilisations and social structures. Within this time we’ve compiled, measured and collected countless amounts of data documenting our existence, at present the online space the new frontier in terms of the archive of human history it holds. Delving into this facet of human history further are composer Jamie Perera, artistic filmmaker Katherine Round and journalist Leah Borromeo in their audio visual presenting their work Twelve Thousand Years in Fragments playing as part of the Electric Dreams Online Festival.
Overwhelmed by a myriad of images on our timelines constantly, photo sharing has become the norm in terms of how we communicate to others and curate our digital lives. Our accounts serving as digital legacies telling our story how we choose to, each image a gateway to a differing chapter. Delving into this phenomenon in their topical work Rich Kids: A history of shopping malls in Tehran, Javaad Alipoor and Kirsty Housely craft an early 21st century defining show tying together entitlement and technology to showcase the theatrical within our new normal.
Our relationships and how we interact with others around us help form our realities and perceptions of the world, relationships our foundations for helping us to figure out who we are, but complex in nature. Exploring this notion in their award winning show GRIP, Nothing to Perform showcase an ambitious piece of work cleverly shifting in form. Originally performed as part of the International Youth Arts Festival, and filmed by online streaming service LIVR, GRIP forms part of this year’s Reading Fringe Online Festival.
‘A digital meditation on hearing loss’, Platform 4’s immersive filmic experience Invisible Music places centre the personal experiences of Artistic Director Catherine Church, her mother and voices from the Winchester Lip-Reading Group. The 45 minute piece’s aim to highlight how the sense of sound when altered impacts day to day interactions.
