Award-Winning Theatre Ad Infinitum Bring Exciting New Show To The Lowry Direct From Edinburgh Fringe
PRESS RELEASE | BILL ELMS ASSOCIATES on behalf of THE LOWRY
9 August 2011
Award-Winning Theatre Ad Infinitum Bring Exciting New Show
To The Lowry Direct From Edinburgh Fringe
That, being dead, we rise,
Dream and so create
Translunar Paradise.
The multi-award-winning Theatre Ad Infinitum are to bring their latest production Translunar Paradise straight from the Edinburgh Fringe to The Lowry Studio, from Thu 8 – Sat 10 September.
Exquisitely created, Translunar Paradise is told entirely without words and in their place are movement, haunting music and masks. This is a powerful and emotional tale of an old man who is confronted with solitude, but comforted by a rich tapestry of memories.
George Mann is writer, director and co-performer of this piece, which deals with the complex emotions surrounding love, loss and ‘moving on’. It’s a haunting journey through life, death and enduring love. After his wife passes away, William escapes to a paradise of fantasy and past memories, a place far from his grief. In this ‘Translunar Paradise’, William invents his own reality and lives as though beloved wife is still alive. Returning from beyond the grave, Rose revisits her widowed companion to perform one last act of love: to help him let go…
Says George about the new play:
“My own experiences have taught me that death is very much a part of life, and aside from being sad and extremely difficult to deal with, it is also a wonderful gift. Translunar Paradise was inspired by these experiences and celebrates the beauty of love and companionship that exist both in life and in death.”
Translunar Paradise is an exciting new departure from traditional physical theatre; Theatre Ad Infinitum has broken the mould. Says George; ‘This production is different in that we combine mask-work with puppetry. We tell this complex story using action and hand-held masks, switching between young and elderly personas and creating the effect of ‘time travel’. I had the idea for this great new way of working whilst watching a play that used Bunraku-style puppets, as seen in Japan.’
Partly inspired by life, and partly by the W. B. Yeats poem ‘The Tower’ this tale of love and loss and love reaffirmed again is adding to the repertoire of a company regarded as 'excellent…something special’ (The Observer on The Big Smoke) and has already garnered a considerable praise.
Theatre Ad Infinitum have also been busy amassing an impressive array of awards – most recently an Argus Angel (for one of the most outstanding performances at the Brighton Fringe for The Big Smoke), and The Small Scene Theatre Festival Audience Award in Croatia for Odyssey. The company has also won a Stage Award, the BE Festival Development Award, was Mervin Stutter’s Pick of the Fringe 2008-10 and was nominated for a Total Theatre Award 2010. It has recently been awarded an Arts Council England grant for help with the creation and touring of Translunar Paradise Autumn 2011.
Translunar Paradise is part of The Lowry’s commitment to developing artistic talent which sees the Theatre investing in exciting new works from talented, up and coming companies in order that their work be showcased in the North West. The production is also supported by the Ustinov, Bath, BE Festival, MAC Birmingham and Redbridge Drama Centre.
PERFORMANCE DETAILS
Translunar Paradise
The Lowry, Salford Quays
Thu 8 – Sat 10 September
Times Thu – Sat 8pm, Sat 3pm
Tickets £10 (Limited number of £5 tickets available)
How to Book In person from The Lowry, Pier 8, Salford Quays, M50 3AZ, call 0843 208 6005 or go online www.thelowry.com
ENDS
For further information, images and interview requests please contact John Bridge at Bill Elms Associates on 0151 245 0136 | 07792463135| email john@billelms.com | website www.billelms.com
Press Performance: Thu 8 September, 8pm
For images, please go to The Lowry’s image library www.thelowryimages.com. New users need to register by clicking on ‘register’ on the left hand side of the page, fill in the required information (which includes creating your own password) and click ‘create account’. You will then have access to images via the log-in page by clicking on Images Available > Theatres >Studio> Translunar Paradise
Notes to Editors:
Credits
Directed and conceived by George Mann, Devised and performed by Kim Heron, George Mann, Deborah Pugh, Music by Kim Heron & George Mann, Costume by Clare Amos, Set by Francesco Gorni, Lighting Designer Peter Harrison, Photos by Alex Brenner, Masks by Victoria Beaton, Publicity design by Helen Stewart.
A Little About Theatre Ad Infinitum
Theatre Ad Infinitum is a Lecoq-trained international ensemble based in London that develops new and original theatre for a multi-cultural audience. The company is led by two Artistic Directors, Nir Paldi (Israel) and George Mann (UK), who work together and independently to create new and high quality theatre. Additionally, Theatre Ad Infinitum have recently created a base in Canada led by Artistic Director Amy Nostbakken who is working with the UK team. The company has won critical acclaim and stunning reviews for its recent productions.
George Mann (Director and actor) is a practitioner, actor, writer and director. George trained for two years at the École Internationale de Théatre Jacques Lecoq in Paris 2006 and graduated from Royal Holloway University of London with a degree in Theatre Studies in 2004. He formed Theatre Ad Infinitum in 2006, creating Behind the Mirror for a London run at Blue Elephant Theatre in 2007 and at the Pleasance in Edinburgh’s Festival Fringe 2008, which went on to receive critical acclaim, and Arts Council funding for a spring 2009 tour in the UK. Odyssey, the company’s second piece was a sell-out hit, George received The Stage Best Solo Performer Award for his one-man performance of Homer’s classic tale directed by Nir Paldi. His latest production, Translunar Paradise picked up the BE Festival Development Award and was granted Arts Council funding for the completion and touring of this new devised piece that he is directing and performing in. His experience includes co-directing Peer Gynt with Ahuris Theatre in Japan; Musical Director, Composer, and Actor with Compagnie Act Theatre in France; running workshops for the National Youth Theatre, many schools and universities, and he is also a Visiting Acting Tutor at Rose Bruford Drama College. George has performed with Compagnie Le Jacquerie and Plateform Théatre in Paris, France, and worked with Gardzienice Theatre Company lead by Wlodzimierz Staniewski in Poland.
Deborah Pugh (UK – Performer) is a performer and movement practitioner graduated from Ecole Internationale de Theatre Jacques Lecoq, Paris. She joined Theatre Ad infinitum In 2007 and with them has devised and performed in the critically acclaimed Behind the Mirror and War Project. Other recent theatre credits include work with Two Tomorrows Theatre Co. with support from The Young Vic, and Ragroof Theatre Co. in their production of Gloves On, a site specific exploration of Boxing and its place in the British psyche which required her to spend six months retraining as a boxer. In the New Year Deborah will be devising new work with Theatre Sans Frontieres. The piece, which is based around Caribbean Tales will be performed in French and aimed at 8-12 yrs olds, is set to tour the UK in early 2011. In addition Deborah continues to work as a movement director and practitioner having worked regularly with The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, Glasgow inputting Lecoq technique and forging links between themselves and the Lecoq School.
Kim Heron (UK – Performer/Musician) is trained in circus skills and worked as a cabaret performer before completing her two-year actor training at London International School of Performing Arts (LISPA) in 2008. Since graduating from LISPA Kim has toured internationally as an actor-musician with London-based Temple Theatre Company in their critically acclaimed ‘Out of Chaos’. She has recently been working with The Invisible Circus and Pif Paf Street Theatre Company. Kim also works with puppetry and set design. She is a professional accordionist and vocalist.
For further information, please visit www.theatreadinfinitum.co.uk
Excerpt from the poem ‘The Tower’ by W.B.Yeats
Death and life were not
Till man made up the whole,
Made lock, stock and barrel
Out of his bitter soul,
Aye, sun and moon and star, all,
And further add to that
That, being dead, we rise,
Dream and so create
Translunar paradise.
A little about The Lowry
The Lowry opened on 28th April 2000, bringing together a wide variety of performing and visual arts under one roof, opening its doors to the best in entertainment and education in the arts.
The Lowry works to present the very best in the performing and visual arts in a local, regional, national and international sense and with a strong emphasis on learning, inclusion and diversity.
Set in a magnificent waterside location at the heart of the redeveloped Salford Quays in Greater Manchester, The Lowry is an architectural flagship with a unique and dynamic identity. Rising from the regenerated docklands, it is a welcoming building, designed to reflect the surrounding landscapes and flourishing waterways, in its glass and metallic surfaces.
Posted on Thursday, 11 August 2011 under News Press Theatre Press