UNDER LILI'S BALCONY THEATRE
Created in 1995 by Stephen Bain (NZ) et France Hervé (France), Under Lili’s Balcony Theatre has been based in Wellington, New Zealand. Regularly subsidized by Creative NZ (Arts Council) and commissioned by theaters and festivals, the company possesses a repertoire of 8 plays, obtaining prizes at the NZ Theatre Awards. The aesthetic of each production aimed to challenge the audience’s imagination by creating epic visual stories of social and political contemporary relevance for innovative formats. Stephen Bain and France Hervé maintained an on-going research and writing process attuning the text to the perception/integration of movement (body, stage furniture, lights, sound and virtual landscapes).
The company opened classes of Choreographic Theatre in a number of Universities, schools of Theatre and Dance, both in France and New Zealand, and frequently participated through performances in Art galleries, museums, and cultural events.
Créée en 1995 par Stephen Bain (NZ) et France Hervé (France), Under Lili’s Balcony Theatre a été basée à Wellington, en Nouvelle-Zélande. Régulièrement subventionnée par Creative NZ (Arts Council) et soutenue par des théâtres et des festivals, la compagnie possède un répertoire de 8 pièces, récompensées aux NZ Theatre Awards. L’esthétique de chaque production vise à défier l’imagination du public en créant des histoires épiques sous-tendues d’actualité sociale et politique vers des formats innovants. Stephen Bain et France Hervé ont maintenu un processus continu de recherche et d’écriture en accordant le texte à la perception/intégration du mouvement (corps, mobilier de scène, lumières, son et paysages virtuels).
La compagnie a ouvert des cours de théâtre chorégraphique dans de nombreuses universités, conservatoires, écoles de théâtre et de danse, en France et en Nouvelle-Zélande et a fréquemment
participé à des performances dans des galeries d’art, musées et événements culturels.
REPERTOIRE
TOO HIGH THE SON
A passionate drama pursuing flight
Too High the Son is inspired by the life of pioneer aviator Richard Pearce who flew for the first time in 1903 from his isolated farm in Otago, New Zealand. Rumor has is that Pearse arrived ahead of the Wright brothers in the conquest of the skies. Irrefutably a self-taught genius, his work was ignored by his rural community, preoccupied with the demands of daily life in a colonial society.
Treated as a contemporary myth, the play explores the quest for autonomy, essential to the achievements of men and women of research.
Too High the Son s'inspire de la vie du pionnier de l'aviation Richard Pearce qui vola pour la première fois en 1903 depuis sa ferme isolée d'Otago, en Nouvelle-Zélande. La rumeur veut que Pearse soit arrivé avant les frères Wright pour la conquête du ciel. Indéniable génie autodidacte, son travail fut ignoré par sa communauté rurale, préoccupée par les contraintes d'une société coloniale.
Traitée tel un mythe contemporain, la pièce explore la quête d'autonomie, essentielle aux accomplissements des hommes et des femmes de recherche.
Written by Stephen Bain
Devisers Stephen Bain, France Hervé, Tim Spite
Direction Stephen Bain, France Hervé
Set design Steven Lloyd
Lights Paul O’Brien
Costumes Nic Smillie
Maïté Hervé
Music France Hervé, Stephen Bain
Actors: Stephen Bain Richard Pearse
Tim Spite Warne Pearse
France Hervé Marie Garance
Duration 80 mins
Premiere City Gallery
Wellington NZ
4 Sept 1996
Return season
Maidment Theatre, Auckland, May 5-9; Downstage Theatre, Wellington, May 13-23
Toured North Island 1998
National Tour supported by Creative New Zealand
Winner Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards 96 : Most Original Production of the Year
Nomination: Most Promising Female Newcomer of the Year: France Hervé
Mentioned in Richard Pearse
REVIEW
NZ Listener “A breathtaking combination of wit, imagination and physical bravura.... The key is simplicity of image. One gesture, one pose, one object symbolises all. Too High the Son is something very special, a fantasia brimming with such invention, freshness and charm that it would be a worthy ambassador for New Zealand on any stage in the world. It is like being handed a boarding pass to the future.”
NZ Herald “Surreal and real at the same time, Too High the Son juxtaposes images of breathtaking beauty. Dance and theatre flow seamlessly into one another in this multi-disciplinary work, creating a new language, a kind of visual poetry. Yet for all its abstract charm, Too High the Son is never pretentious or inaccessible. It is ultimately about three people and their dreams, a tale told with warmth, intimacy and humor. ”
The Evening Post “At no time does the performance ever lose its flight of theatrical imagination.”
Capital Times “Packed with everything inventive performance should be.”
The Dominion “The production is elegant in its strength and simplicity. It defies categorization, except perhaps as exploration and cultivation of myth."
LA CHAMBRE D’AMOUR
The story of an infinite love in a finite time
Elle and Lui have no other choice than to hide their love from view. They discover the ideal place for their rendez-vous - an open chamber in the heart of a rock, only accessible at low tide.
The story traverses time and space in twelve chapters. From the prehistoric origin of a rock, sensitive to erosion which opened a cavity conducive to meetings, to a Kafkaesque information bank where numbers and codes record the lives of humans, the investigation reaches as far as the Sun and the Moon, universal dictators, in the midst of a power struggle.
Inspired by a medieval legend from the French Basque countryside, La Chambre d'Amour is a multimedia piece combining live performance with projected imagery (slides, 16mm film, video). The actors play above the ever encroaching void, crossing series of settings enhancing the sensation of vertigo (doors opening into nothing, swings in heights, staircases, a giant water tank).
Elle et Lui n'ont d'autre choix que de cacher leur amour aux regards. Ils découvrent le lieu idéal pour leurs rendez-vous : une chambre ouverte au cœur d'un rocher, uniquement accessible à marée basse.
L'histoire traverse temps et espaces en douze chapitres. De l'origine préhistorique d'un rocher sensible à l'érosion, qui a ouvert une cavité propice aux rencontres, à une banque d'informations kafkaïenne où chiffres et codes enregistrent la vie des humains, l'enquête se poursuit jusqu'au Soleil et à la Lune, dictateurs universels en pleine querelle de pouvoir.
Inspirée d'une légende médiévale du pays basque français, La Chambre d'Amour est une pièce multimédia mêlant performance live et images projetées (diapositives, film 16 mm, vidéo). Les acteurs jouent au-dessus du vide toujours plus grandissant, traversant une série de décors accentuant la sensation de vertige (portes ouvrant sur le vide, balançoires en hauteur, escaliers, réservoir d'eau géant).
Writing,
Direction,
Multimedia,
Design,
Music : Stephen Bain, France Hervé
Lights Martyn Roberts
Actors France Hervé Elle
Stephen Bain Lui
Duration 70 mins
Premiere Bats Theatre
STAB FESTIVAL
Wellington, NZ
2 Oct 1996
Commissioned by STAB Multimedia Festival,
in association with Bats Theatre and Creative NZ
Nomination Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards : Most Original Production of the Year
REVIEW
City Voice “A simple tragic tale about two lovers and their clandestine meeting on a rock between tides becomes a multi-dimensional exploration through space and time in Bain and Herve’s innovative production La chambre d’Amour. Bain and Hervé tell the story from different realities with fluidity and ease. Their personal repertoire and readiness to explore and experiment to their very limit is very evident. They don’t ‘milk’ dramatic highlights, instead moving on to each new idea, keeping the audience intently focussed on the story- after all, time and tide are against them. The performance is part of the STAB season of plays with a theme of art and technology. This array of visual imagery doesn’t distract from a dynamic performance.”
The Dominion “It is quite beautiful, obeying to its own logic and interconnections. The audience has its attention drawn to every part of the theatre in Hervé and Bain’s original and inventive use of the space.”
Capital Times “Structured like a giant poem, or a set of haïkus, there is a beautiful lyrical sensibility and some astonishing theatrical devices. That ‘relish’ is some of the most beautiful image-making you’ll see this year, and fulfilling the experimental tag that the STAB season is there for. Images are screened to the side, above and beyond the audience and film is screen through a water tank, in which they swim underwater.”
THE EXCHANGE
The price of freedom in the race of a day
Louis Laine and his wife Marthe, newlyweds, guard the property of a millionaire, Thomas Pollock Nageoire. His wife, Lechy Elbernon, is an actress undermined by desire and alcohol. Quickly, she seduces the freedom-loving young man, while Thomas Pollock, attracted by Marthe's simplicity, offers to Louis to buy his wife from him. Each then becomes the fuel of the other, the one who reveals truths.
The first major play written by the celebrated French playwright Paul Claudel, The Exchange confronts the desires for gratitude and sincerity of four characters, uncompromising ideals suffering the satisfaction of their own interests.
Louis Laine et sa femme Marthe, jeunes mariés, gardent la propriété d'un millionnaire, Thomas Pollock Nageoire. Sa femme, Lechy Elbernon, est une comédienne minée par le désir et l'alcool. Rapidement, elle séduit le jeune homme épris de liberté, tandis que Thomas Pollock, attiré par la simplicité de Marthe, propose à Louis de lui racheter sa femme. Chacun devient alors le carburant de l'autre, celui qui révèle les vérités.
Première grande pièce écrite par le célèbre dramaturge français Paul Claudel, L'Échange confronte les désirs de reconnaissance et de sincérité de quatre personnages, des idéaux sans compromis souffrant de ne parvenir à satisfaire leurs propres intérêts.
Direction: Stephen Bain, France Hervé
Writer: Paul Claudel
English Adaptation : Stephen Bain, France Hervé
Live Music : Jeff Henderson
Steve Cournane
Design: Steven Lloyd
Lights: Andrew Foster
Costumes: Rachel Fogarty
Actors: Kenneth Spiteri Louis Laine
Zsuzsanna Varkonyi Marthe
France Hervé Lechy Elbernon
Stephen Bain Thomas pollock Nageoire
Duration: 120 mins
Premiere International Theatre Season
Downstage Theatre
Wellington NZ
3-19 July 1997
Supported by Creative New Zealand
The script combines parts of Paul Claudel’s version 1 (1894) and Version 2 (1951).
The right holders have authorized the exploitation of the play for its New Zealand season.
Le script combine des parties de la version 1 (1894) et de la version 2 (1951) de Paul Claudel.
Les ayants droit ont accordé l'exploitation de la pièce pour sa saison néo-zélandaise.
Nomination Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards : Most Original Production of the Year
Nomination: Actress of the Year: Zsuzsanna Varkonyi
REVIEW
The Dominion “A magical amalgam of music, dance and language, the production of the Exchange by Under Lili’s Balcony is theatre both thrilling and profoundly challenging. The music, from Jeff Henderson on the saxophone and Steve Cournane on drums and percussion, accompanies the actors, moulding and supporting their words and movements. Steven Marriott Lloyd’s set is stunning with its grainy walls and polished steel floor, while Andrew Foster’s lighting is superb. Original in concept, daring in design, immaculately performed, The Exchange is the most exciting production in Wellington this year.”
The Evening Post “The four actors use the entire space with great dexterity. The physical expression of emotions is highly charged, always appropriate, and exciting to watch. A remarkable production.”
City Voice “Lechy hovering above the stage in a billowing white dress, a pair of lighted hands writing a letter out of the darkness, Marthe and Louis as syncopated, puffing factory machines, Louis and Thomas sprinting again and again to the sides of the stage and flinging themselves against the wall. The actors throw themselves into this work with deep and impressive physical commitment. Visually - and physically - the play is a knockout.”
Capital Times “ There is a synergy between movement, text and drama from creating their own intelligent and moving translation. An elegant seamlessness, which sees Under Lili’s Balcony move beyond the loose pigeon holes of ‘dance theatre’, to create distinctive contemporary performance.”
THE ABATTOIR
The epic tale of a modern art work
Why are the museum wardens standing guard over piles of horse shit? These are all that is left of a major art work, Wild Horse, which has escaped from its room and is rampaging through the gallery and beyond, threatening to pull down not only the building but society itself.
A plethora of characters, all implicated in the dilemma, confront a satirical world where works of art defy their creators and where voyeuristic spectators cherish images of scandal and destruction.
In conjunction with the play, a multimedia installation was placed in the foyer of the theatre.
In response to a letter - informing the public of the Wild Horse’s escape and its imminent execution by the authorities, many international artists presented their viewpoints in the form of e-mails, letters, poems, music, audio montage, painting, engraving and videos.
The Abattoir is conceived to be performed in museums and art galleries to incline debates about the role of art and cultural institutions in modern society.
Pourquoi les gardiens du musée montent-ils la garde devant des tas de crottin de cheval ? C’est tout ce qui reste d'une œuvre d'art majeure, Cheval Sauvage, qui s'est échappée de sa salle et fait des ravages dans la galerie et au-delà, menaçant de détruire non seulement le bâtiment mais la société elle-même.
Une pléthore de personnages, impliqués dans le dilemme, sont confrontés à un monde satirique où les œuvres d'art défient leurs créateurs et où les spectateurs voyeurs chérissent les images de scandale et de destruction.
Conjointement à la pièce, une installation multimédia a été placée dans le foyer du théâtre.
En réponse à une lettre informant le public de l'évasion de "Cheval Sauvage" et de son exécution imminente par les autorités, de nombreux artistes internationaux ont présenté leurs points de vue sous forme de courriels, lettres, poèmes, musiques, montages audio, peintures, gravures et vidéos.
L'Abattoir est conçue pour être présentée dans les musées et les galeries d'art afin d'incliner les débats sur le rôle de l'art et des institutions culturelles.
Written by France Hervé, Stephen Bain
Devisers All actors
Direction France Hervé & Stephen Bain
Set Tony De Goldi
Lights Martyn Roberts
Composer Jeff Henderson
Costumes Nic Smillie
Actors: Juliet O’Brien Masterpiece, Museum Gard, Demolition squad, Official, Vulture
Gentiane Lupi Zoo Director, Demolition squad, Official
Kelson Henderson The artist’s son, Demolition squad, Official, Chair, Stoat
Miranda Rivers Untitled, Demolition squad, Poacher, Official, Lizard
Stephen Butterworth Museum Director, Camel
Jeff Henderson The artist
Bevin Linkorn Museum Gard, Demolition squad, Official, Whale
France Hervé Mother, Demolition squad, Official
Stephen Bain Demolition squad, Official, Chair, Seal
Duration 130 mins
Premiere BATS Theatre STAB Festival
Wellington NZ
29 Oct 1998
Commissioned by STAB Multimedia Festival, in association with Bats Theatre and Creative New Zealand
Nomination Chapman Tripp Theatre Awards : Most Original Production of the Year
Nomination: Most Promising Female Newcomer: Gentiane Lupi
REVIEW
Theatre News, Summer “A very New Zealand topic with universal implications is given the French surrealistic-absurdist treatment and its both funny and thought-provoking. The contemporary relevance is undeniable. Under Lili’s Balcony questions other theaters too. Next to this, conventional theatre looks like a Museum, with nicely constructed works on the wall, threatened with laughter by the Abattoir. Bravo France Hervé.”
Capital Times “The play is billed as humour, fantasy, social comment, which is true- you can sink into the glorious imagery. Every performance mature, controlled and humorous at the right times.”
City Voice “Written and directed by the very talented France Hervé and Stephen Bain, the Abattoir has a deliciousness of language rarely seen in the capitals theaters. A mature play by the stylish and sophisticated Under Lili’s Balcony Theatre, carried by a grade A group of actors.”
Illusions, Autumn “What was powerful and refreshing throughout the performance was the tireless choreographic invention of the production. Une pièce philosophique which would demand that an audience begin to consider what art is, how it is made, how it is housed and presented, and to what ends."
Publication:
"STABS at BATS" Illusions Number 28. Autumn 1999. 36 - 41.
by John Downie
Truth by illusion / John McDermott.
Book/Illustrated - 1999
ON OFF
On the Edge of Change
Abbie, a girl, is split between the choice of living in the security of her Island, governed by a lighthouse where her imagination is allowed to roam free… Or living one day in the outside world where time, space and even people seem to hold no limits.
On Off is a choreographic monologue, inspired by a text written in 1876 by Annie Bell Hobbs, the daughter of a lighthouse keeper. When it was first published in a children magazine, the poignant recount of her life on the minuscule Boon Island - lost in the middle of the ocean with only room enough for two houses and a lighthouse, moved the public so deeply that authorities demanded all families subjected to such condition be returned to the mainland.
“I’m not afraid because I’m on my own. Is darkness really the same everywhere?
Abbie, une petite fille, est partagée entre la perspective de vivre dans la sécurité de son île gouvernée par un phare où son imagination peut vagabonder librement… Ou de vivre un jour dans le monde extérieur où le temps, l’espace et les gens semblent n’avoir aucune limite.
On Off est un monologue chorégraphique, inspiré d’un texte écrit en 1876 par Annie Bell Hobbs, la fille d’un gardien de phare. Lorsqu’il a été publié pour la première fois dans un magazine pour enfants, le récit poignant de sa vie sur la minuscule île de Boon – perdue au milieu de l’océan avec juste assez de place pour deux maisons et un phare – a tant ému le public que les autorités exigèrent le retour sur le continent de toutes les familles soumises à de telles conditions.
"Je n'ai pas peur parce que je suis seule. Est-ce que l'obscurité est la même partout?"
Writing, Direction France Hervé & Stephen Bain
Design Feather Stephen Bain
Set Steven Lloyd
Lights - Video Matt D’Herville
Music Jeff Henderson
Tom Calwood
Craig Monk
Chris O’Connor
Actress Gentiane Lupi
Duration 20 mins
Premiere Studio 77 (FACTORY)
Wellington, NZ
22 Fev 1999
Premiered as Prologue of « The Tower Under the Sky »
Return season Solo piece - Wellington Fringe Festival 1999, Shed 11
Commissioned by Wellington International Fringe Festival and FACTORY, VUW
REVIEW
The Package “On-off” or “On the edge of change”? Shockingly poignant, the material is performed with childish innocence and grace.”
The Dominion “The audience is perched on a high walkway above the side of a lighthouse watching Gentiane Lupi on a table on which she writhes and pounds in frustration at her confinement.
City Voice “On Off is a choreographic monologue, inspired by a text written in 1876 by the daughter of a lighthouse keeper. A manic dance of a mind grown beyond the limits of its surrounds.”
THE TOWER UNDER THE SKY
A Treatment of Deconstruction
One stormy night, a sailor saves a foreign woman lost at sea in extremis. He finds refuge in a lighthouse where the keeper and his lover are confessing farewell. Despite the difficulties of language and culture, they all try to comfort each other, fearing the solitude that awaits them otherwise.
The Tower Under the Sky is a triptych:
a choreographic quatuor, a cinematic work, a multimedia play.
Three independent and interdependent forms within its scenic superstructure-like design.
Une nuit de tempête, un marin sauve in extremis une étrangère perdue en mer. Il trouve refuge dans un phare où le gardien et son amie se confondent en adieux. Malgré les difficultés de langues et de cultures, tous tentent de se réconforter, craignant la solitude qui les attend autrement.
La pièce contient des textes en anglais, japonais, français et une langue inventée.
La Tour sous le ciel est un triptyque :
un quatuor chorégraphique, une œuvre cinématographique, une pièce multimédia.
Trois formes indépendantes et interdépendantes dans sa conception scénique en forme de superstructure.
Written & directed by France Hervé, Stephen Bain
Set Design Steven Lloyd
Lights - Video Matt D’Herville
Music Jeff Henderson
Musicians Jeff Henderson
Tom Calwood
Craig Monk
Chris O’Connor
Short film director Lala Rolls
Actors: Heidi Simmons Goya
Miwa Shigewa Kazu
France Hervé Elise
Stephen Bain Lewis
Duration: 90 mins
Premiere Studio 77 VUW Wellington NZ
22 Fev 1999
Last Date 6 March 1999
Supported by Wellington Fringe Festival and FACTORY
Winners Wellington Festival: Best Original Production & Best Technical Production
La création a bénéficié d'une résidence de 8 semaines au département Théâtre & Film de l'Université Victoria de Wellington. Sous l'égide de FACTORY - un programme de recherche dirigé par John Downie. La compagnie s'est concentrée sur l'investigation du cadrage de l'action et l'étude des techniques cinématographiques pour leur adaptation à la scène.
REVIEW
The Evening Post “ Assured, inventive and technically sophisticated. For once theatre the claim that a show is “ a multimedia event” is true, and the Tower Under the Sky, succeeds with each media is uses.”
The Dominion “Stephen Bain and France Hervé continue to demonstrate their commitment to explore theatrical limits, using not only text and movement, but lighting, sound and music. It is mesmerizing and fascinating.”
City Voice “Stylized and sumptuous with an impressive set as well as imaginative staging and choreography.”
Research Magazine “Way down in the Pacific, Under Lili’s Balcony has been re-introducing the terms of such propositions with elegance, modesty, and an increasing sophistication of means.”
Publication:
PERFORMANCE RESEARCH VOLUME 5 ISSUE 1
The Tower Under the Sky: Choreographic and cinematographic theatre in New Zealand
pp. 54 - 61, by John Downie.
ADA, THE MACHINE MUSE
A small life of Infinity
The play is based on the conception of the worlds first mechanical computer.
The action, taking place in the pre-Victorian era, reveals the beginnings of artificial intelligence. Through the life of Ada Lovelace (daughter of the poet Lord Byron) and her encounter with Charles Babbage (inventor of the Analytical Engine), the play combines the discovery of infinity as a programming partner with the paradoxical limits of a biological body within the time frame of a human life.
« She wants the key, of that you can be sure. But if she then has the one key, what happens if she then discovers a myriad of doors? »
La pièce repose sur la conception du premier ordinateur mécanique au monde.
L'action, se déroule à l'époque pré-victorienne et révèle des prémices de l'intelligence artificielle.
À travers la vie d'Ada Lovelace (fille du poète Lord Byron) et de sa rencontre avec Charles Babbage (inventeur de la machine analytique), la pièce confronte la découverte de l'infini comme partenaire de programmation aux limites paradoxales d'un corps biologique dans le temps imparti d'une vie humaine.
« Elle veut la clé, ça, vous pouvez en être sûr. Mais si elle obtient enfin cette clé, que se passe-t-il si elle découvre ainsi une myriade de portes ? »
Directed by Stephen Bain
Research Devisers Stephen Bain, France Hervé, Jean-Yves Hervé
Written by John Downie
Set Design Steven Lloyd
Lights Natacha James
Video Matt D’Herville
Music Jeff Henderson
Actors Claire Waldron Ada
Jermaine Clement The Husband
Louis Solino The Mother, the Doctor
Daniel Batten The Scientist
Duration 90 mins
Premiere Studio 77 VUW
Wellington NZ
5 Avril 2001
The Machine's Muse was a performance given at the end of a 5 week research residency,
under the wings of FACTORY (Research facility of VUW Film & Theatre Dept).
With the support of Wellington Fringe Festival, Creative New Zealand and FACTORY
Publication:
"Virtual Astonishment. Ada, The Machine's Muse by Under Lili's Balcony".
Illusions Number 32. Winter 2001. 31 - 34. by Keren Smith.
SALTO
« What did I become me who thought I wasn’t even born yet? »
SALTO is an incisive comedy that confronts the perversion of war, the importance of human memory and the need to preserve it as our unique power.
Grey, an imprisoned man, dreams day after day of somewhere else behind the walls of his confinement. In search of an escape, he builds strategies and images of what lies beyond. And he succeeds... By entering the depths of N’Valin, a divided kingdom in which History and humanity have lost their way, Grey encounters four clans - self proclaimed races, determined to assert their supremacy like others.
The Hedonist, the Hunter, the Sedentary and the Uncertain are the heroes of this story revealing existential paradox as much as socio-political components that divide communities from age to age.
SALTO est une comédie incisive qui confronte la perversion de la guerre, l’importance de la mémoire humaine et la nécessité de la conserver comme notre pouvoir unique.
Grey, un homme emprisonné, rêve jour après jour d’un ailleurs au revers des murs de son confinement. Dans sa volonté d'évasion, il construit stratégies et images de ce qui se trouve au-delà, et il y parvient... En pénétrant dans les profondeurs de N’Valin, un royaume dans lequel l’histoire et l’humanité se sont égarées, Grey y rencontre quatre clans – se proclamant races, résolus d'affirmer leur suprématie à l'instar des autres.
L’hédoniste, le Chasseur, le Sédentaire et l'Incertain sont les héros de cette histoire, révélant des paradoxes existentiels, composantes socio-politiques, qui divisent les communautés d’âge en âge.
Direction France Hervé & Stephen Bain
Written by France Hervé
Devisers Actors of cast
Design, Set, Costumes, Props, Masks
Dorita Hannah & Performance Architecture Design Students
Lights Andrew Foster
Video Stephen Bain
Music Collections, France Hervé, Stephen Bain
Actors: Lyndee-Jane Rutherford
Reihana Haronga
France Hervé
Stephen Bain
Duration 130 mins
Premiere Old Dominium Museum
Wellington NZ
23 November 2002
14 December 2002
With the support of Creative New Zealand and Massey University of Wellington
SALTO is the result of a residency at Massey University, Wellington in collaboration with Associate Professor Dorita Hannah, creatively involving 13 Students from the outset of the creation.
SALTO est le résultat d'une résidence à l'Université Massey de Wellington en collaboration avec la professeure associée Dorita Hannah, impliquant 13 étudiants dès l'élaboration de la création.
REVIEW
“...’What did I become me who thought I wasn’t even born yet?’ mused Grey.
An impossibly portentous proposition, maybe this play, and yet given such tumultuous choric presence by Hervé and Bain, together with Lyndee-Jane Rutherford and Reihana Haronga, playing all the parts in and out of masks, on a set streaming towards the audience down inverted rolls of kinked and frozen linoleum lost in the shadowy shell of the Old Museum building, lit barely, and brutally with clumsy floods and creering projections, with only a couple of metal cupboards and the odd home-made trolley to construct these ever-shifting dimensions of travel, quest and endeavour, imaging and animating their way through the performance hours that stretched patience to breaking point, endurance becoming as much an issue for both the four species and the four actors carrying them on their shoulders as it was for the audience.
A piece of work possessing stature and aspiration, an extraordinary evening of risk, imagination, and performance craft, in which nothing, finally could surpass Hervé’s brilliant solo, as a bullying maitresse de table doubling as demented chef in “the Oblique Tavern”, frenetically manipulating a piece of pastry through a multitude of forms, “from a pie to a flag, a ring, a punchball, weapons...” before serving it as crepes to the astounded diners.”.
Salto by Under Lili's Balcony" Illusions Number 35. Winter 2003. 46 - 48. article by John Downie.
MY HEART IS A BEAST
Set of Protocoles for a Street performance event.
From dawn to dusk, this spatial exploration of urban spaces invites a mythical entity into the heart of the city. My Heart is a Beast is inspired by a major figure in the Celtic pantheon: Cernunnos, the god of Nature, guardian of lush forests with deer antlers, a symbol of his close connection with the animal world.
In the morning, hunting trophies surreptitiously returning to life, their group blend in with passersby on their way to work, to school or shopping. At night, their shadows invade office windows or deserted stores. Land art, improvised music emerging from street furniture, circular labyrinths drawn in chalk… My Heart is a Beast brings together a simplicity of archaic gestures addressed to the public infusing its dream of urbanity with the resistance of an ecological sensitivity to pursue.
De l'aube au crépuscule, cette exploration spatiale des lieux urbains invite une entité mythique au cœur de la ville. My Heart is a Beast s'inspire d'une figure majeure du panthéon celtique : Cernunnos, dieu de la Nature, gardien des forêts luxuriantes aux bois de cerf, symbole de son lien étroit avec le monde animal.
Trophées de chasse revenant subrepticement à la vie au matin, leur groupe se fond parmi les passants sur le chemin du travail, de l’école ou de leurs occupations citadines. La nuit, leurs ombres envahissent les vitrines des bureaux et des magasins désertés.
Land art, musique improvisée surgissant du mobilier urbain, labyrinthes circulaires dessinés à la craie… My Heart is a Beast rassemble une simplicité de gestes archaïques adressés au public, insufflant à son rêve d'urbanité, la résistance d’une sensibilité écologique à poursuivre.
Conception
Direction France Hervé, Stephen Bain
Season 1 Programmation The Living Room, Auckland City Public Performance Season May 2009
Performers: Joshua Rutter
Alexa Wilson
Geoff Maynard Gilson
France Hervé
Stephen Bain
Music Reccord music by Plan 9 (Janet Roddick, David Donaldson, Stephen Roche)
Video Stephen Bain
Supported by Winning Productions, Auckland City Council, Living Room Public Art Series
Season 2 Programmation in Christchurch Arts Festival, July 2009
Performers: Joshua Rutter
France Hervé
Tahi Mapp-Borren
Chris O’Connor
Lucien Johnson
Supported by Winning Productions, Christchurch Arts Festival
“… This performance causes us to reflect and realize that although we can easily wear a Celtic tattoo or use pagan designs on our clothes, we still have not achieved the ultimate goal: point from which we would be ready to renew a grateful relationship with Nature.
"My Heart is a Beast contains many fundamental characteristics of a performing ritual. This is an important piece of street theater in a society like ours, which is trying to find its place in a modern world threatened by both environmental and spiritual challenges. »
Anthropology Theses- Simon Daisley, 30 August 2009 Christchurch
Click on Video for installation Part III
Katherine Mansfield THE MENTON WRITERS' DAY
Literary Event/ Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington, NZ
Menton Writers' Day was held as part of the Festival Français, NZSO New Zealand Symphony orchestra in the year 1999, with the support of the Katherine Mansfield Fellowship.
Its organisation initiated by Alain Wasmes invited famous writers who had held the Katherine Mansfield Memorial Fellowship in Menton, France. A 4-hour live show along which more than 20 Mansfield fellows read aloud the letters they wrote to the iconic author. These letters were published in the 2000 book As Fair as New Zealand to Me.
L'évènement littéraire des " Écrivains de Menton" s'est tenue en 1999 dans le cadre du Festival Français, avec l'Orchestre Symphonique de Nouvelle-Zélande (NZSO), et grâce au soutien de la Bourse Katherine Mansfield.
Son organisation, initiée par Alain Wasmes, a réuni de célèbres écrivains néo-zélandais ayant bénéficié de la Bourse Katherine Mansfield Memorial à Menton, en France. Un spectacle de quatre heures qui a permis à plus de vingt lauréats de partager avec le public leurs propres écrits à l'attention de l'auteure emblématique. Ces lettres ont été publiées en 2000 dans l'ouvrage As Fair as New Zealand to Me.
Concept, Organisation : Alain Wasmes
Co-Organiser: Vincent O’ Sullivan
Artistic Direction: France Hervé, Stephen Bain
Writers: Margaret Scott, C.K Stead, James McNeish, Michael King, Spiro Zavos,
Philip Temple, Marilyn Duckworth, Lauris Edmond, Michael Jackson, Rowley Habib, Michael Gifkins, Luis Johnson, Michael Harlow, Russel Haley, Lloyd Jones, Lisa Greenwood, Nigel Cox, Maurice Gee, Vincent O’ Sullivan, Fiona Farell, Owen Marshall Roger Hall, Elisabeth Knox.
Performers : Gentiane Lupi, Kelson Henderson, Miranda Rivers, Bevin Linkhorn,
Claire Martin, Adam Gardiner, France Hervé, Stephen Bain
Additional performances: Cathy Downes, Lucien Johnson, Miranda Johnson
Projected photography: Karin Maucotel
6 March 1999
Renouf Foyer
Michael Fowler Centre
Wellington
With the Support of The French Embassy of New Zealand, Wellington City Council, Katherine Mansfield Fellowship Trust, New Zealand Symphony Orchestra,
National Library.
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