We're currently working on a miniature archive of our works to date. Here is part 1:
Re:::lay
October 2008
Nottingham and Edinburgh, Sheffield and London, Bethesda and Nottingham, UK
performance journeys
A performance series exploring the nature of long-distance relationships, created for participants to experience simultaneously in separate locations: between Nottingham and Edinburgh, London and Sheffield, Nottingham and Bethesda, UK. Each piece was devised specifically for two people; in response to their location and the nature of their long-distance relationship.
Elements of this work, which we continue to develop, involve:
Intertwining Landscapes: Participants will fill in details of an unfinished direction we provide, using landmarks/ physical attributes of what they see/ find in their present landscape. For example 'Keep straight until the _______ is at arm's length'; 'When you see the _______, run past it.' The finished direction is then passed on to the participant in the other location, for them to find/ follow. In addition to asking participants to navigate their surroundings through another's view, this activity can involve much playfulness and debate as participants complete and interpret the directions.
Translation Drawing:Participants are asked to describe their view at a particular spot, or describe the horizon line while facing in a particular direction, while their long-distance 'partner', listening over the phone, attempts to translate the description into a drawing. The finished drawing is mailed to the other participant at the end of the journey.
Re:::lay
October 2008
Nottingham and Edinburgh, Sheffield and London, Bethesda and Nottingham, UK
performance journeys
A performance series exploring the nature of long-distance relationships, created for participants to experience simultaneously in separate locations: between Nottingham and Edinburgh, London and Sheffield, Nottingham and Bethesda, UK. Each piece was devised specifically for two people; in response to their location and the nature of their long-distance relationship.
Elements of this work, which we continue to develop, involve:
Intertwining Landscapes: Participants will fill in details of an unfinished direction we provide, using landmarks/ physical attributes of what they see/ find in their present landscape. For example 'Keep straight until the _______ is at arm's length'; 'When you see the _______, run past it.' The finished direction is then passed on to the participant in the other location, for them to find/ follow. In addition to asking participants to navigate their surroundings through another's view, this activity can involve much playfulness and debate as participants complete and interpret the directions.
Translation Drawing:Participants are asked to describe their view at a particular spot, or describe the horizon line while facing in a particular direction, while their long-distance 'partner', listening over the phone, attempts to translate the description into a drawing. The finished drawing is mailed to the other participant at the end of the journey.
Poetic Maths: The distance between both participants is translated into a scale that can be experienced physically. For example, "The distance between London, UK and Sheffield, UK at a scale of 50,000 : 1, is the length of your index finger to your heart times two." Measurements like these encourage participants to understand and experience space and distance in relation to their own bodies.
While intimate, the experience of these works was also shared by audiences through this blog and as we journeyed through public spaces. Often traces of the experience—an imprint that we leave on the space with our bodies (i.e. footprints), a direction drawn in chalk or an arrow built from twigs will also catch the attention of someone long after the performance; leaving them to stop, wonder and re-interpret these markers on their own.
