An evening of original new work in development by members of our artist network, Troop. 

Anna Melander
Who Does She Think She Is?

Who Does She Think She Is? is a vibrant dance theatre piece exploring female existence and identity through blending embodied ancient myth and fairy-tale characters with verbatim contemporary stories and original soundtracks containing over 20 women and girl’s voices and languages. Three performers will be weaving a fantastical journey through history and womanhood. We meet among others: Medea, Clytemnestra, Cassandra, Babou, Persephone, Baba Yaga and Inanna, and find out how their stories resonate with our modern lives. Can these archetypes help us re-evaluate our history? Do they appear different viewed through the female gaze? What can these matriarchs tell us about ourselves and how does a female adventure differ from that of a male one?

”WDSTSI” reclaims and re-evaluates these iconic women by allowing them to tell their own stories on their own terms; beyond victimhood, beyond stereotype and vilification. In WDSTSI a mundane bike ride to school with a dramatic twist helps to highlight the vulnerability and predicament of Medea in Corinth. Clytemnestra and Cassandra give their different versions of their intertwined story. The mighty goddess Inanna teaches us self-worth and complexity whilst Babou allows us to joke about and enjoy our bodies without shame.

Ages 16+ (adult themes)
Duration: 40 minutes

Daisy Thurston-Gent
Furious Life

Furious Life is an extended poetical narrative devised by spoken word artist Daisy Thurston-Gent. Accompanied by an evocative soundscape spanning multiple decades, the piece blends archival footage with personal interviews, peppered with pop-culture references and up-beat nostalgic content. Follow the narrator through the visceral journey of coming out, dissecting the importance of visibility, and the damaging, lasting effects caused by government policy.

Beginning amongst the charged rave scenes of 80s acidhouse Britain, tumbling through the early 2000s into modern day, the show explores queer identity and belonging, combining political social commentary and detailed sound design, unpacking the jolting homophobia that rose in the wake of Section 28 and the dark shadow that piece of legislation cast on a generation. It is a show about seeking hope amidst those awkward teenage years, navigating queer crushes and finding community later in life.

It interrogates the social environment which allowed for that legislation to pass, and the self-policing that happened inside schools and establishments which perpetuated misinformation, calling for reflection on the mistreatment of Queer and Trans people in the current political climate, drawing uncomfortable similarities in homophobic smear tactics from the past.

Ages 16+ (aimed at an adult audience, mild drug references, sexual and political content)
This performance contains strobe lighting
Duration: 60 minutes

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