THE HAMLET APOCALYPSE

Transcription

1 PRESENTER INFORMATION & TECHNICAL RIDER THE HAMLET APOCALYPSE Director / Designer - Steven Mitchell Wright Lighting Design - Ben Hughes Sound Design - Dane Alexander Dramaturg - Chris Beckey team@dangerensemble.com

2 about THE DANGER ENSEMBLE about THE HAMLET APOCALYPSE acknowledgements Director/Designer - Steven Mitchell Wright Dramaturg - Chris Beckey Lighting Designer - Ben Hughes audience engagement / teaching program overview workshop program Performing Shakespeare: Hamlet Murder Most Foul: Hamlet and the Gothic This Quintessence of Dust: The Philosophy of Butoh and Hamlet Imagining the End: The Apocalypse, Hamlet, and Contemporary Theatre Fretted With Golden Fire: The Apocalypse, Hamlet, and Visual Dramaturgy for Contemporary Theatre marketing marketing copy short extended media quotes production images marketing materials content warnings sponsor and other acknowledgments teacher s resources teacher s notes workshop program production details touring party staging furniture / consumables lighting sound wardrobe dressing rooms sample production schedule contacts 2 of 17

3 about THE DANGER ENSEMBLE The Danger Ensemble is one of Australia's leading contemporary and experimental theatre companies. Having played across Europe, UK, USA, Canada and Australia since 2007, The Danger Ensemble are known for their highly visual and provocative work. The company is driven by Award-winning director Steven Mitchell Wright, lighting designer Ben Hughes and Actor/Writer Chris Beckey. Their work includes Who Killed Amanda Palmer (England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, The Netherlands, USA, Canada), The Hamlet Apocalypse (La Mama Melbourne, Adelaide Fringe, La Boite Theatre Company Brisbane), Loco Maricon Amor (Metro Arts), Sons of Sin (JWCOCA), CALIGULA (JWCOCA), The Wizard of Oz (La Boite Theatre Company Brisbane, Brisbane Festival, NORPA) and Children of War (La Boite Theatre Company). 3 of 17

4 about THE HAMLET APOCALYPSE The Hamlet Apocalypse is, very simply, a contemporary performance about a group of actors staging Shakespeare s Hamlet on the eve of the apocalypse. As the reality of the situation sinks in, the line between fiction and reality blurs: the actors, the characters and their worlds are distilled into the most base of human states. Hamlet is the perfect partner for this impending fiction. The broad plot arc is interwoven with the actors story and as the cast counts down to the apocalypse, their own fears, insecurities and personalities reveal some of Shakespeare s most existential texts concrete in their urgency. This work is a dystopia of the now generation, it is a silent party, a desperate plea and a rambunctious prayer. Above all, the work at its absolute heart is about humanity, the power of death and the value of life. 70 minutes with no interval Proscenium and/or black box venues acknowledgements originally produced and presented at La Mama with subsequent seasons at Adelaide Fringe and La Boite Theatre Company. Supported by PowerArts. Directed/Designed Steven Mitchell Wright Dramaturg Chris Beckey Lighting Design Ben Hughes Sound Design Dane Alexander creatives Director/Designer - Steven Mitchell Wright Steven is the Artistic Director of The Danger Ensemble, for which he has directed CALIGULA (Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts), The Wizard of Oz (La Boite and Brisbane Festival 2013), Sons of Sin (Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts), Loco Maricon Amor (Metro Arts, 2012), Children of War (La Boite Indie 2012), i war (Queensland Theatre Company and Brisbane Festival 2012), The Hamlet Apocalypse (La Boite Indie 2011, Adelaide Fringe 2010, La Mama 2009) (Winner of Best Production, Best Director and Outstanding Contribution to Innovation Theatre Practice 2011 Groundling Awards), Pennies and Beggars in the Street (Brisbane Cabaret Festival/Inhabit Fiesta 2010), Who Killed Amanda Palmer: World Tour (USA, UK, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, France, The Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Spain, Canada and Australia 2008/09), EdgeFest (Boston Pops Orchestra, Boston Symphony Hall, USA 4 of 17

5 2008), The Establishment (Rothbury Music Festival, USA 2008), In Your Shoes (large scale public promenade work, Brisbane 2007) and The Magic Tent Tour (Edinburgh Fringe Fest 2007). Steven was formerly the Associate Director of Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre and in that time directed, designed and choreographed Fa Hoi Fu Kwai (Hong Kong 2008), Dracula (Matilda Nomination Best Direction, The Old Museum, Brisbane 2007), The Lost Lords (Hong Kong 2007), An End to Dreaming (The Roundhouse Theatre, London 2007), Lady Macbeth (World Shakespeare Congress, Brisbane 2006), Sub Con Warrior 1 (Dell Arte Award Winner Best Direction, Co director with Lynne Bradley, co designer with Jonathon Oxlade, multi site specific promenade work, Brisbane 2006), those with Lucifer (Site Specific Promenade, Brisbane 2005), Romeo and Juliet (Queensland Arts Council, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Sydney, Melbourne ) and The Mayne Inheritance (Queensland Performing Arts Complex 2004). For Zen Zen Zo, Steven also choreographed for My Sublime Shadow (2010), Zeitgeist (Brisbane, Adelaide, New Zealand, Edinburgh ) and The Odyssey (Queensland Performing Arts Complex 2004). Steven s independent work includes directing La Boite and Brisbane Festival's A Doll's House (2014, Winner Best Direction Matilda Award and Gold Matilda Award), the artistic direction and curation of avant garde performance event Cross Stitch:Without Apology (!Metro Arts, Brisbane 2011), movement direction and chorus direction Kander and Ebb s Cabaret (American Repertory Theater 2010), direction of immersive dinner theatre experiment Once in Hell (American Repertory Theater 2010), curator of experimental performance space at Arcade Lane (winner of best new venue Adelaide Fringe 2010), directing In God We Trust (Groundling Award Winner Best Direction, Queensland Academy for Creative Industries 2010) and was one of six writers for Sex:Cubed (La Boite Theatre 2006). As a teacher Steven has taught on going training in the Suzuki Method of Actor Training and Butoh Dance Theatre. He has taught intensive training workshops in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Hong Kong, Boston and London. He has also taught for The American Repertory Theater, Harvard University (US), Moscow Arts Theatre, Queensland University of Technology and Griffith University in the areas of Acting, Movement, Somatic Actor Training Systems, Post Modern Characterisation, Physical Theatre and Devising Theatre. Dramaturg - Chris Beckey Chris Beckey has worked as an actor, director, writer, dramaturg and facilitator throughout Australia since Chris first collaborated with Steven Mitchell Wright in 2003, which led to their involvement with The Danger Ensemble. For The Danger Ensemble, Chris has thus far appeared as a performer in Caligula (Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts, 2014), The Wizard of Oz (co production with La Boite and Brisbane Festival, 2013), i war (Creative Development, QTC Greenhouse and Brisbane Festival 2013), and Loco Maricon Amor (Metro Independents, 2012). They also worked as the Associate Director and as one of the Assistant Stage Managers on Sons of Sin (Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts, 2013), wrote the text for Children of War (La Boite Indie, 2012), and worked as dramaturg on The Hamlet Apocalypse (La Boite Indie, 2011; Adelaide Fringe, 2010; Melbourne Fringe, 2009). Chris has worked with a number of theatre companies in Australia, including Queensland Theatre Company, La Boite Theatre, Playbox (now The Malthouse), Fractal Theatre, Zen 5 of 17

6 Zen Zo Physical Theatre and Merrigong Theatre Company, and has performed in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Townsville, Wollongong and Singapore. Chris was a founding member of Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre and was nominated for a Matilda Award for Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role for the role of Krogstad in La Boite s 2014 production of A Doll s House, directed by Steven Mitchell Wright. Chris has a long history as a workshop facilitator. They regularly tutor for various theatre companies and youth arts programs and currently works as the Program Manager (Theatre) for Backbone Youth Arts. Chris has directed a number of works including Your Love is Killing Me (Zen Zen Zo and Redcliffe State High School, 2016), Of Mirrors and Angels (Vena Cava Productions and FAST Festival, 2015), The Death of Albatross (Moonburn Productions and Sydney Fringe Festival, 2011), Ghost Paths (with Lynne Bradley, University of Queensland, 1997), and The Maids (Queensland University of Technology, 1997). Chris has written a number of plays, including songs (La Boite NewBoards Festival, 2000), The Oracle (Brisbane Powerhouse, 2005) and Fury (Zen Zen Zo/Merrigong Theatre Company, Ruff: Works in Progress, 2009). Their 2010 collaboration with Steven Mitchell Wright and Queensland Academy for Creative Industries, In God We Trust, won the inaugural Groundling Award for Best New Play. Chris has trained in the Suzuki Method of Actor Training, Viewpoints, Butoh and various approaches to acting, voice, and text. Lighting Designer - Ben Hughes Ben is a freelance Lighting Designer; he is also Associate Artistic Director of The Danger Ensemble. As Lighting Designer Ben has credits across theatre, dance and opera including productions with Queensland Theatre Company, Sydney Theatre Company, Melbourne Theatre Company, Opera Queensland, Belvoir, La Boite Theatre Company, Queensland Ballet, Sydney Festival, Brisbane Festival, Expressions Dance Company, The Danger Ensemble, HotHouse Theatre, The Nest Ensemble, Zen Zen Zo Physical Theatre, JUTE Theatre, Stella Electrika, Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Queensland University of Technology, Phluxus2 Dance Collective, Collusion, Gold Coast Arts Centre, Woodford Folk Festival and Kooemba Jdarra. As Associate Lighting Designer his work includes productions with Meryl Tankard and Barrie Kosky. In 2013 Ben was Resident Lighting Designer and in 2011 and 2014 an Affiliate Artist with Queensland Theatre Company. Ben lectures in Lighting Design and Scenography at Queensland University of Technology, is a Professional Member of the Association of Lighting Designers, and holds accreditation with the Australian Production Design Guild. 6 of 17

7 audience engagement / teaching program overview The Danger Ensemble have a small team of specialist teachers with years of experience in pedagogy and a long history of working with young people across the world, having successfully worked within QCAA, HSC and IB environments (and are preparing for the incoming ACARA syllabus). Many members of the team also have experience teaching in tertiary and VET institutions. We offer custom workshops in Contemporary Performance, Post-Dramatic Theatre, Devising Theatre, Directing, the Suzuki Method of Actor Training, Butoh and 20th Century theatre movements, eg. Physical Theatre. The Danger Ensemble will be available while touring to teach custom-made workshops for community organizations and tertiary institutions. The workshop will be taught by a member of the cast from the show, the creative team, or The Danger Ensemble s artistic team. Please contact the company to make enquiries, discuss your requirements, and to receive a quote at education@dangerensemble.com Alternatively, a workshop from the following program designed for secondary school environments can be adapted for your needs. workshop program These following workshops are designed to enhance and extend the experience high school students take away from the productions, while linking each show with the drama curriculum. The workshops will be taught at your school by a member of the cast from the show, the creative team, or by The Danger Ensemble s artistic team. All workshops are designed to be taught over 2 hours (120 minutes). Compromises can be made in order to accommodate shorter class times (no less than 90 minutes); however, this is not optimal. Please advise at the time of enquiry should you require this. For further information on the following workshops please contact our education department at education@dangerensemble.com Performing Shakespeare: Hamlet Shakespeare s plays were written to be spoken on stage, and cannot be fully understood without experiencing this. This workshop promotes an embodied understanding of Hamlet and Shakespearean text. With one of the team from The Danger Ensemble s The Hamlet Apocalypse as their guide, students will explore the core principles of reading, 7 of 17

8 speaking and performing Shakespearean text, and then apply this knowledge to scenes from Hamlet. Linked together by the facilitator, these scenes will be performed in narrative order so as to illuminate the story of Hamlet.. An excellent introduction to performing Shakespeare and to the story of Hamlet, this workshop is particularly useful to students working towards both Making and Responding tasks. Keys: Shakespeare, Acting, English, Hamlet Running Time: 120 minutes Cost: $275 Murder Most Foul: Hamlet and the Gothic Hamlet abounds in plot devices and characters that could be described as Gothic: a mysterious death, a ghost, revenge, and a young woman driven mad. The Danger Ensemble s production of The Hamlet Apocalypse places these elements within an additional layer: the Apocalypse, the approaching end of all that is. This workshop, led by a member of The Hamlet Apocalypse team, will analyse and explore these elements, what they mean when placed in an Australian context, and how this can be brought to life on the stage. Using The Hamlet Apocalypse as a case study, this workshop provides students with an insight into the application of Australian Gothic Theatre conventions, particularly useful for those working towards Making and Responding tasks. Keys: Shakespeare, Hamlet, Australian Gothic Running Time: 120 minutes Cost: $275 This Quintessence of Dust: The Philosophy of Butoh and Hamlet The Danger Ensemble s production The Hamlet Apocalypse is underpinned by the philosophy of Butoh, a dance theatre form originally created in Japan in the 1950s. Students will be introduced to the philosophy underlying Butoh and how that is manifested in The Hamlet Apocalypse. Then, through physical and movement-based exercises, led by a member of The Hamlet Apocalypse team, students will experience Butoh and appreciate the ways in which the underpinning philosophy of Butoh lends itself to an exploration of those facing dire circumstances. This workshop builds the skills of students in identifying and analysing the use of physical theatre conventions outside of a typical physical theatre production and provides practical skills in a form of physical theatre. It is of great benefit to students working towards both Making and Responding tasks. Keys: Shakespeare, Physical Theatre, Butoh, Hamlet Running Time: 120 minutes Cost: $275 8 of 17

9 Imagining the End: The Apocalypse, Hamlet, and Contemporary Theatre The Danger Ensemble s The Hamlet Apocalypse began as an exploration of the Apocalypse, to which the text of Hamlet was added. As with much contemporary theatre, this central event means something unique and individual for each member of the cast; it is in the friction between these versions of and responses to the Apocalypse that the chaos of the work evolves. This workshop, led by a member of The Hamlet Apocalypse team, explores what the Apocalypse the end of life as we know it might mean for the participants and, using Hamlet, finds ways of staging those experiences. This workshop provides students with experience in identifying and analysing the use of contemporary theatre conventions. Students will also be required to undertake short writing tasks and to practically implement contemporary theatre conventions while staging extracts from a classical text. It is hugely beneficial to students working towards both Making and Responding tasks. Keys: Shakespeare, Contemporary Theatre, Devising Theatre, Writing for Contemporary Theatre, Hamlet Running Time: 120 minutes Cost: $275 Fretted With Golden Fire: The Apocalypse, Hamlet, and Visual Dramaturgy for Contemporary Theatre Shakespeare did not write literature; he wrote texts for a visual medium. In this workshop, students will analyse the visual world of The Hamlet Apocalypse and the tension between the fictional world of Hamlet and the urgency of the Apocalypse. Key motifs and moments in Hamlet that shape the world of the play will be examined and the ways in which this world can be visually realised on stage in ways that force a collision between the classical and the contemporary, between Hamlet and the Apocalypse, will be explored. This workshop focusses on visual dramaturgy that is of particular use to students undertaking Making tasks with a focus on creation, direction and design. Keys: Shakespeare, Visual Theatre, Design, Hamlet Running Time: 120 minutes Cost: $275 9 of 17

10 marketing marketing copy short This work is a dystopia of the now generation, it is a silent party, a desperate plea and a rambunctious prayer. Above all, the work at its absolute heart is about humanity, the power of death and the value of life. extended The Hamlet Apocalypse is, very simply, a contemporary performance about a group of actors staging Shakespeare s Hamlet on the eve of the apocalypse. As the reality of the situation sinks in, the line between fiction and reality blurs: the actors, the characters and their worlds are distilled into the most basic of human states. Hamlet is the perfect partner for this impending fiction. The broad plot arc is interwoven with the actors story and as the cast counts down to the apocalypse, their own fears, insecurities and personalities reveal some of Shakespeare s most existential texts concrete in their urgency. This work is a dystopia of the now generation, it is a silent party, a desperate plea and a rambunctious prayer. Above all, the work at its absolute heart is about humanity, the power of death and the value of life. media quotes This production is simply astounding, real, heart-wrenchingly real.. - Artshub The Danger Ensemble has created, in my opinion, a definitive homage to the tragic muse for its own generation. - RealTime 10 of 17

11 production images All images by Morgan Roberts 11 of 17

12 marketing materials Poster and Flyer content available. Example poster below. 12 of 17

13 content warnings Warnings: loud music, smoke effects and some coarse language. sponsor and other acknowledgments The Hamlet Apocalypse was developed with the support of Power Arts and La Mama Theatre Company. teacher s resources teacher s notes A comprehensive set of notes for teachers will be provided to any school attending the production. These notes will be prepared for the August 2017 production of the show and will include background information on the company, the production, and Shakespeare s Hamlet. The pack will also include suggested discussion points for classroom engagement with the production and practical exercises for students and teachers to undertake in the classroom environment. workshop program The Danger Ensemble have designed a suite of workshops specifically tailored for secondary education institutions to relate The Hamlet Apocalypse to curriculum units students are studying in the classroom, such as Shakespeare/Classical Theatre, Contemporary Theatre, Acting/Performance Skills, Australian Gothic, and Physical Theatre. Please refer to the workshop program section under audience engagement / teaching program above for details. 13 of 17

14 production details touring party The Hamlet Apocalypse has a touring party of nine (9). 7 Actors Stage Manager Tour/Production/Technical Manager staging The Hamlet Apocalypse has a set based around a semi-transparent wall of durable and flexible plastic film surrounding a painted floor made up of thin plywood. This allows for a reasonable variance in the size of the playing space. The minimum playing space is 6m deep x 8m wide. The plastic walls are suspended off timber battens of 25mm x 75mm in 2000mm widths. Ideally these are suspended at 7500mm from the stage floor. A false proscenium with header, legs, fascia and side masking in black wool or velour is to be supplied by the venue. The bottom of the proscenium header is ideally 7000mm from stage floor however this is flexible depending on sightlines. furniture / consumables The Hamlet Apocalypse travels with a selection of furniture including multiple chairs, a small wooden table and a number of ladders, the largest of which requires secure attachment to the stage floor. During the course of the production an amount of chalk dust and stage wine is used inside the performance area. lighting The Hamlet Apocalypse requires the following lighting equipment assuming a 6m x 8m performance area. All efforts will be made to use in house available lighting stock, however all changes from this technical schedule must be approved in advance with The Hamlet Apocalypse production manager. Conventional Fixtures 18 x 1kW Medium Zoom Profile (eg. Selecon Pacific 14/35, S4 15/30) Appropriate fixed beam angle profiles may be suitable. 6 x 650W Profile - able to be mounted on 2 small booms (eg. S4 or S4 Jnr) 14 of 17

15 9 x 1.2kW Fresnel w/ Barn Doors 7 x 1.2kW Fresnel - with H-Stands for floor mounting. 8 x 2kW Fresnel If not available then appropriate fixtures to achieve a similar light output eg. 16 x PAR64 MFL Arc lamp sources (either fixed or moving) are ideal and preferred for this if available in venue stock. Dimming and Control Sufficient power and dimming capability to control all fixtures. The Hamlet Apocalypse will tour an appropriate lighting control system with DMX512 output. Please advise if your venue requires a different protocol. sound The Hamlet Apocalypse travels with a computer based audio playback system with four (4) individual sends. All playback is via a QLab3 Macbook Pro system using a Focusrite Audio Interface with balanced TRS outputs. Send 1: FOH L with sub Standard Venue FOH system Send 2: FOH R with sub. Standard Venue FOH system Send 3: USL - situated upstage of the plastic set wall. 15 plus horn or similar Send 4: USR - situated upstage of the plastic set wall. 15 plus horn or similar The production requires significant volume levels so a sound system capable of high level undistorted audio is essential. Subwoofers may be run as a separate mono send if required, and an appropriate front fill and/or centre cluster should be configured to run from a mix of the FOH L+R sends if appropriate to the venue. If available/possible The Hamlet Apocalypse can make use of rear auditorium surround capability via an additional two sends. If these facilities are available please discuss with The Hamlet Apocalypse production manager. wardrobe The Hamlet Apocalypse requires access to basic wardrobe facilities (washer, dryer, iron and ironing board) on an ad hoc basis ie. not every performance. dressing rooms 2 x Dressing Rooms (1 x Male and 1 x Female) each able to accommodate 4 performers. A separate production office would be appreciated if available. 15 of 17

16 sample production schedule pre-arrival set of masking and basic staging elements venue crew as required Small LX pre-rig venue crew as required Set install 2 x venue MX Floor LX install / patch 1 x venue LX Sound install 1 x venue SND Lunch LX Focus 2 x LX LX & SND plot 1 x venue technican Dinner Cast induction and walk around 1 x venue technican 1830 Hour call Performance 1 x venue technican Bump out 1 x venue technican 2 x venue MX 16 of 17

17 contacts Producer / Marketing Steven Mitchell Wright steven@dangerensemble.com Education / Workshops Chris Beckey chris@dangerensemble.com Production / Technical Ben Hughes ben@dangerensemble.com 17 of 17