OUTDOOR WORK

Street shows

There is nothing to hide behind in the streets. You have to hold the attention of a potentially restless, potentially hostile public. A public that chooses to take the time to see you as a split second decision.

Most of the street work that I have devised involves incorporating the tricks of the trade in a simple sequence of events that could be read as a story. The real development of this came when Bim Mason asked me to join the international troupe Mummaranddada. We simply blended the old ritual of the Mummers play with the surrealistic nonsense of modern times.

I toured for two years with this company and was amazed by it's capacity to pull a crowd and hold them without resorting to busking techniques.

This work with its street and circus origins will always be very dear to me because it used no more than the basic blocks of theatre dynamics; the performer, the ensemble and the public. No building, no reputation, no hype, just people gathering and enjoying a story that was an event. Every trick hand held, both magical and ridiculous.

SPECIAL PRODUCTIONS

In 1995 I directed and devised Die Heimkehrer for producer Helmut Bürgel of the Cultural Abteilung, Lörrach, as part of a Nachkrieg event. I assembled an international group of professional actors and musicians together with twenty or so local amateur performers. The performances took place in the converted factory space the MMZ Halle in Lörrach and later transferred to the Kaserne in Basel.

In 2003 I directed a version of Titus Andronicus for the Porto Scuola Superior, in Portugal. This involved a cast of over twenty, and a technical team to match. We performed throughout an entire disused factory.