Research & Development
When making our pieces for children, as with all our work, we take a long time. We take a long time talking, playing, observing and listening to children. We work in schools, and in nurseries and we have a number of schools who regularly help us in our endeavour to make the best work we can.
School workshops
Yesterday I had the pleasure of working with some children from Hillside Primary School in Ipswich. This was the first of many workshops I will be delivering to schools who bring classes to see the show. What’s perhaps unique about our workshops is that its me, one of the directors, running them and so it [...]
How to tour a Forest
If you come and see The Forest, you’ll see a great big set made of gold metal and mirrors and real trees: eleven real trees on stage and even more dotted amongst the audience. It was once described as a “set that would be at home in Tate Modern”, which made us happy, but whereas [...]
Speaking as a parent…
When it’s half term and I scan the pages of the ‘what’s on for children’ sections of magazines I want to know that the experiences I choose for my children will be, to be honest, worth the effort, that they will enjoy it, that they will be enriched in some way, in any way, by [...]
What’s it all about?
The Forest: a dance piece… for children? Yes! The Forest is a dance, and it’s an installation, and a spectacle, and a piece of moving art, and it’s funny, and a bit scary, and lovely, and strange, completely bewildering, and at times just plain silly. When we made The Forest we talked and played with [...]
Final week of rehearsals
We’re just about to dive into the last week of rehearsals. The trees are ready, the lights are being programmed, the performers know their stuff (just about) and the birds are singing sweetly. The Forest is the most-performed piece we’ve made, and after showing it all over the UK and at Sydney Opera House last [...]
Growing the Forest
We’ve just started week 2 of rehearsals, and times are exciting. We have a new performer (all the way from Brazil, n’all) who’s already learned the show. We’ve waiting for red elastic to be shipped over from Japan; pinecones are being collected in Regents Park. Our studio in Dalston is over-run with conkers and we’re [...]
Conkering in September…
Collecting conkers in September for a show in February is fraught with difficulties!
We’ve arrived in Sydney
The Forest has arrived in Sydney – all the performers are now on their way!