“Who does the air belong to?”
“Depends who you ask”
Photo Credit: ©Richard Davenport 2015, Richard@rwdavenport.co.uk, 07545642134
Displace Yourself Theatre Company are immersed in creating socio-political theatre using projection, live performers and energetic movement scores. Their current production Free to Stay is an exploration of life without nationality and they have undertaken research with communities of people who have first-hand experience of statelessness to inform their latest production.
The audience are welcomed into Carriageworks studio with a gift bag containing a pen, sticker, piece of card with a peg attached, a small glass bottle, a piece of paper and a chocolate. Intrigued to what was going to take place, I took my seat. Jen of Displace Yourself invited the audience to open the gift bags and participate in the games.
A buzz of excitement fills the studio as people begin writing down when they most felt at home and pinning it to a line across to stage. I write my message to a refugee who has just entered the country and squeeze it into the bottle, wondering if this message will actually reach anyone, before placing the sticker where my heart lies on a map of the world.
Free to Stay opens with a monologue from Mike Auger, which is the majority of text within the piece as it unfolds to be an amalgamation of physical theatre, clowning and verbatim recordings. This mix of visual and audio unearths an emotional link to the reality of the situation of statelessness along with the current crisis in Syria. That particular issue was difficult to dislodge from my mind whilst watching the performance.
A strong emotional and human side to statelessness was apparent with the line “You can’t dream here”. This hit me hard as I watched the two talented performers struggle to breathe in this chaotic hurricane that over ten million people around the world are currently in. The show unravelled a myriad of experiences and pain for this demographic, whilst highlighting the divide between communities, countries, governments and the economy. The use of projection added dramatically to the theatrical element and the audio keeps the audience rooted in the truth of the content.
A question and answer session takes place afterwards where the audience questions what defines statelessness, who Free to Stay’s audience would be along with the impact of the current political situation with refugees in Syria. The feedback mixes positive comments with structural guidance, advising to include the audience more in the production including incorporating the (untouched) items the audience created before the show started. With their next development stage taking place in 2016, I look forward to seeing the show mature and grow, integrating the audiences feedback into shaping the final production. A definite production to catch when it tours!
Reviewed by Francesca Joy as a work in progress at Carriageworks Theatre, Leeds, 12 September.