Created by performance maker Louise White, this was an off-site promenade production exploring community activism in all its mundane and uplifting glory.
Made for the 2015 Dublin Fringe Festival, it was performed in a large disused commercial unit built in Dublin’s Smithfield during the height of the economic boom and never filled. The work was centred on the stories of a community action group who successfully lobbied to stop the destruction of a local bogland in Abbeyleix – now available to everyone as a beautiful natural amenity.
When our original venue for the performance fell through, Louise and I continued to develop ideas around three key locations of engagement with the audience under the headings of Industry, Learning and Congregation. As we only were able to confirm a venue two weeks before opening the show, there was an understandable scramble to get to work up and running. As a result, I feel that the final production design was closer to a sketch of the ideas we had worked through.
Director: Louise White
Set: Lian Bell
Costumes: Ana Novacic
Sound: Alma Kelliher
Lighting: Kevin Smith
Photos: Emilia Krysztofiak, Rua Photography