A solo circus-theatre work, celebrating the ways we can feel powerful, even in an uncertain world.
POWER is a new work that combines circus physicality, voice-over soundtrack and verbal storytelling to ask how we can feel powerful, even in an uncertain world. It is optimistic, uplifting, funny, physical and at times moving. POWER is created for theatres, but is easily adaptable for rural touring and outdoor performances.
As a circus artist, I am a Strong Lady. I have spent most of the last twenty years touring outdoor arts festivals internationally, performing feats-of-strength with my signature mix of muscle, comedy and elegance. With POWER, my first solo theatre show, I have developed a new style in my work that integrates verbal and physical storytelling.
POWER was born from interviews I recorded with real people, about their experiences of feeling powerful. These people’s stories are the heart of the work, told with a mix of verbal storytelling, voice over from interviews, and physical storytelling through circus vocabulary. Their stories intersect with the autobiography of a Strong Lady wrestling with uncertainty.
From trying to feel powerful by controlling the mess (or at least being strong enough not to be touched by it), the show finds its way to accepting the mess of uncertainty and finding strength in places where we wobble. It celebrates the power we have, to choose the next step through the mess, trading invincibility for resilience. My aim is that audiences leave the show energised and hopeful, thinking about what story of power they would have told if I had interviewed them – or better yet, to start telling it.
The initial research and development of POWER was part of a Developing Your Creative Practice project, funded by Arts Council England. It featured mentorship from collaborators including Complicite, Ockham’s Razor and Spy Monkey, who have heavily influenced the style of the show. POWER has been created with an amazing creative team: Emma Bernard (Director), Matt Eaton (Sound Designer), Sophie Postlethwaite (Stage Manager, Lighting & Set Designer), Charlotte Mooney of Ockham’s Razor (Creative Mentor), Ali King of Turtle Key Arts (Production Mentor).
At performances of work in progress, audiences have found the mix of comedy, storytelling, circus physicality and voiceover from interviews to be “uplifting”, “inspiring”, “hilarious” and “empowering”.
Send an email if you’d like to receive an info pack or media release about POWER: A solo circus-theatre work for theatres and rural touring venues. Touring from September 2020 – with an outdoor arts festival version in the pipeline for 2021…
