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Theatre
PREVIEW NEW WORK
OLD PEOPLE CHILDREN AND ANIMALS
Tramway, Glasgow, Thu 19-Sat 21 Jun
Many of us have elderly relatives. kids. even pets. but in our busy lives. how much time do we actually spend worrying about their welfare? Certainly. these three groups have rarely appeared on a stage together. so Manchester-based company Quarantine are to be applauded for devising an entire show around precisely this neglect.
'The piece started from the concept of wanting to work with that generational gap.' says artistic director Richard Gregory. ‘lt's also about the 2.1udrence. most of whom will belong to the generation that sits in l_)etween youth and old age. It gives an opportunity to look backwards to childhood. and also to the future.‘
The 'animals' of the title refers to real. live creatures. ‘The animals are an unknown duality. and that's why we've got them." says Gregory 'lt's about them doing what they do. but on stage. I'm making parallels between the animals. the four-year-old child and the (38-year—old performer. The show asks: “How aware are we about how others see us. How aware is an animal that it's on stage. how aware is a four-year-old. a 17- or (31 - year old?“
The main focus of Quarantine's work is always to ask questions. including those that may not have immediate answers. ‘Is this show a work of genius. or a recipe for chaos?‘ could well be one of them. (Sarah Redhead)
PREVIEW ADAPTATION ANTIGONE IN NEW YORK GilmorehillG12, Glasgow, Fri 27-Sun 29 Jun
Known for finding inspiration in outdoor spaces. Theatre Found Will transform Glasgow's Kelvrngrove Park into Central Park for a production of Janus/ Glowacki's Antigone in New York as part of the West End Festival. This lively promenade performance begins outside the GilmorehillG 1 2 theatre where the audience will be led into the park by a shadowy figure known as ‘the policeman.
Glov-racki's tragi-comedy follows three immigrants who come to America and end up living in the park. The Antigone myth surfaces when a Puerto Rican woman named Anita searches for a dignified way to bury her lover. Paulie. With its moving dialogue and challenging themes. members of the company are hoping the play will raise people's awareness of Scotland's own homeless people.
Artistic director Carrie Westwood's policy of 'theatre without doors' aims to create a comfortable drairratic experience for everyone. So far they've had a posrtive response. ‘If it's an outdoor play. people can walk away. but we've found that people haven't." she says. Coincidentally, the company put on a production of Sophocles' Antigone last year to a receptive audience of all ages.
While it's refreshing to see theatre performed in the envrronrnent for which it was written. Scotland is not the ideal place for al fresco entertainment. Does the weather play a lll’d]()f role? ‘That can be trrcky.’ laughs Westwood. ‘Bring your
umbrellas.‘ (Theresa Muno/l
PREVIEW SI TLSPLCll-IC DANClt
ASCENDANCE REP
St Mary’s Cathedral, Glasgow, Wed 25 Jun; St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh, Fri 27 Jun
Weddings, worship, baptisms and burials — the usual line-up of events at your local cathedral. This month, however, pulpits will be pushed aside and pews rearranged to make way for Ascendance Rep, a dance company on a mission. Starting at York Minster, Ascendance will work its way around 17 cathedrals across the UK, performing Standing Stones, a site- specific work choreographed by Jacky Lansley.
‘When Ascendance asked me to take on the project, I thought we were going to one or two,’ says Lansley. ‘But when they said the show would tour to 17 different cathedrals, I said I had to visit them all.’ And visit them she did, travelling from Northern Ireland to Newcastle, Glasgow to Exeter, and many places inbetween. All in the name of research.
‘It was very inspirational,’ says Lansley. ‘Gathering together imagery, stories and characters from the past. I think cathedrals are such special spaces with such a layered sense of history. Most of them are a thousand
years old, with foundations that are even older.’ Having learnt about each building’s history, and explored the gargoyles, carvings and sculptural works they had to offer, Lansley set about creating the piece.
‘We’ve made a generic piece of work that will adapt to different spaces,’ she explains. ‘The cathedrals all have a similar central space with a very natural theatricality, but they’re on very different scales.’ Despite their similarities, each cathedral has its own unique nooks and crannies, which Lansley has taken advantage of, making last minute rehearsing an absolute necessity. ‘We’ve negotiated a lot of time in each cathedral,’ says Lansley. ‘The practical issues for touring the work are huge, but we’ve got a whole day before we perform to place and space the piece.’
Set to Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet, played live by members of the Cornish Sinfonia, the show is being seen as a great way to introduce new people to dance. ‘I want the piece to have that special event quality,’ says Lansley. ‘I think it’s important to take dance into other places, and this is also a strong music project. I like to think this work is accessible to everyone.’
(Kelly Apter)
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