Today my day started with being lucky enough to attend a performance in a local special school, Antarctica by Rosán Sensory Adventures. On route to the school I had an Irish taxi driver who chatted all the way and was very keen to know, as I lived in England, what I thought of Brexit, the last time I had this conversation was in Spain and in Spanish. It reminded me of the impact this crazy decision has had for so many people from many European countries and all walks of life. For the Southern Irish these complications are exacerbated by a complex history and relationship with their Northern Irish neighbours.
Antarctica is described as a theatrical experience which brings the audience on an immersive sensory expedition through the icy world of Antarctica, it was a fully immersive experience for an intimate audience of 6 children.
The audience entered with the cast singing a song and setting the premise that we were all going on a journey to Antartica. We were treated to live music (flute), songs, sounds, movement and minimal text, as well as gorgeous small ships on a sea of real ice which the children could play and interact with.
The audience got to travel around the space to look for a new place after the ship had sunk, they helped with moving boxes and scrubbing the decks . It was a joyous and playful performance which immediately captivated the audience and kept us engrossed throughout. A gorgeous atmosphere was created with lovely gentle storytelling, perfect for audiences with special needs, well anyone really!!
Later in the day I went along to Producing Essentials with Rose Producing, it was billed as an introduction to producing but I was curious to see what I could learn, having been self-producing for many years and aquiring all the skills I have learned along the way. It was an informative session which affimed that I am indeed mostly self-producing!
This evening I had booked to see Chotto Desh by Akram Khan Company and adapted for a family audience by Sue Buckmaster (Theatre Rites) a show I have heard lots of good things about and have been keen to see for a long time, it did not disappoint. The programme note tells me, Chotto Desh, meaning “small homeland” draws on Khan’s unique quality of cross-cultural storytelling, creating a compelling tale of a boy’s dreams and memories from Britain to Bangladesh that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit in the modern world. Blending Kathak and contemporary dance with an exquisite mix of spoken text, dreamlike animation, visuals and specially composed music.
A simple empty stage with a textured backdrop, a solo dancer who moved with a dexterity that left you in awe and wonder, as well as telling the story through mime, conveying a whole range of emotions. At times I giggled, the puppeteering of Akram's father created by drawing a face on the top of the dancers bald head, a giant chair for climbing on and a teeny weeny chair which was definitely not for sitting on. Stunning hand drawn animations projected onto the backdrop took Akram (and us) on a journey into the forest and up into the trees. I was also drawn into the sadness of the tempestuous relationship that Akram had with his father, largely potrayed through a recording of spoken text. No surprises that the show received a standing ovation at the end, it was beautiful storytelling performed by a stunning dancer, with absolutely no dumbing down Chotto Desh is childrens theatre at its best.
My evening ended with an organised Delegates evening at the local Electric nightclub, here I got to chat to lots of lovely artists and delegates and more importantly finally got to try a pint of Guinness, as advised by multiple messages from my friends over the week, you cannot go to Ireland without trying the Guinness. I'm happy to report that it was delicious.
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