This February, the Howard Assembly Room makes its annual transformation into a free gallery space as acclaimed video installation Five Truths comes direct from the V&A to its first UK showing outside London. The installation will be enhanced in Leeds by a new Opera North Projects commission, Who is Ophelia? a digital city-wide trail by Yorkshire-based interactive arts organisation, Invisible Flock.
Five Truths sees director Katie Mitchell (National Theatre, The Royal Opera House) presenting five interpretations of one scene from Hamlet in the styles of the 20th century’s most radical and inspirational theatre directors. Olivier-award winning actress Michelle Terry performs Ophelia’s famous ‘mad scene’ five times, in the visionary styles and techniques of Stanislavski, Artaud, Brecht, Jerzy Grotowski and Peter Brook.
The resulting films play simultaneously across ten screens, seamlessly blending theatre and technology to create a powerful immersive experience in which each Ophelia reveals a different side of the story. The installation, which is free to the public, takes place in the Howard Assembly Room from Tuesday 14 – Saturday 25 February.
The installation will be accompanied by a new interactive journey by Invisible Flock, which takes place across Leeds City Centre from 1 to 25 February. Who is Ophelia? is a digital, online and live encounter which takes participants on an interactive retelling of the ‘Ophelia myth’. The work has both a physical, discoverable presence in the city, and an online strand, with the pieces of the puzzle coming together as those taking part unlock new digital content.
Dominic Gray, Projects Director, Opera North comments:
“We are absolutely thrilled to be able to bring Katie Mitchell’s Five Truths to the Howard Assembly Room, continuing our commitment to opening our programme and venue to a whole new audience free of charge each year. We are particularly delighted to bring this very theatrical video installation, by one of Britain’s most exciting directors, out of London for the first time, just before it opens at the National Theatre.
“ Yorkshire based Invisible Flock was a natural choice for us when commissioning a new piece of work to accompany Five Truths. Who is Ophelia? is programmed both to complement the installation and to extend its reach and scope, engaging with audiences throughout the city in new and potentially surprising ways.”
A mini-series of film screenings on the theme of ‘Troubled Heroines’ is also planned to accompany Five Truths in conjunction with Hyde Park Picture House in Leeds. Screenings will include Lars von Trier’s Dancer in the Dark (2000) and John Cassavetes’ A Woman under the Influence (1974).