The performance fuses carnival arts with street theatre, facilitates new partnerships and creates experimental new work. Produced by Festive Road’s Director Jessica Rost and co directed by Sian Thomas and Manuela Benini, with musical direction by Daniel Clark, this blend of talent will reach and infuse the parts that other blends just can’t refresh."
I wonder if any other outdoor theatre piece has ever developed via such a windy journey, as Brewing Up has done over the last three years?Three years of Arts Council investment, three years of collaboration and partnership work with artists, funders, producers and venues across the South East and most importantly ...three years of artistic development for Festive Road
Once upon a time we were a small community carnival company but nowadays I look around me and see that we seem to have become a fully fledged street theatre/outdoor arts production company. The core family of creatives, which we've collected along the way, all have one thing in common; they can't be squeezed into any box that's been invented yet!
Our journey is captured in this short video. But the final shape of Brewing Up ended up being a professional, tour able out door theatre piece ...of course we had to try out everything in between from installations to parades and having got to that 'professional, tour able outdoor theatre piece' there are inevitably more questions than answers...
This 2012 production was directed by Sian Thomas, who co-directed, or rather mentored, the show last year. The show became a fixed 20 minute performance in the round with original music directed by Daniel Marcus Clark and with Manuela Benini once again leading the choreography.
With the development of the show spanning over two years, it was understandable that we'd attract some interest when it came to auditioning for paid performers, we already had a following. All the previous work had been with community groups and volunteers and we found that we were in the very lucky position to have a huge number of applications from a range of very talented people; physical performers, musicians, dancers, actors...who applied from Nottingham to Brighton. Out of the 40 odd who we shortlisted for audition, eight were taken on initially.
Due to commitments elsewhere, I was unable to both project manage and co-direct as I had done before. So we recruited Helen Wright as tour manager and I became a producer as well as lead designer. This was the best possible scenario for me as I was at last able to concentrate on the creative side of the production; working closely with Sian, Manuela and Daniel to develop the narrative and in response to the work at rehearsals created the designs for the costumes and set.
This was a new way of working for our company -when the visual design responds to a pre-developed narrative and devised performance, although probably the conventional way round to do things in the world of theatre. Our leadership very much springs from our visual arts background; we are used to devising around the visual design and I for one, found the performative lead challenging at times.
The lead artists/directors of the company had been disposed to being mere prop builders...but this is what we had invited people into the company to do, it was the only way to find out what kind of company Festive Road can become.
Brewing up is now a finished production (as finished as any production ever is). It is ready to tour and looking for bookings for next year at arts festivals and events around the country so please spread the word.
