Grand creative ventures in Japan — the start of SAND
a new work in development
NORPA Associate Artist Caroline Dunphy has just returned from Japan — Tokyo and Yokohama.
It was the start of a collaboration with Idiot Savant Theatre Company, on a new work in development called Sand. Sand is being made with three collaborators from different countries — Australia (NORPA & Belloo Creative), Japan (Idiot Savant Theatre Company) and New Zealand (Daniel Belton).
During the three day creative development Sand director Caroline Dunphy and the Belloo Creative team were (albeit through a lot of interpretation!) able to explore, observe and discuss different physical theatre approaches to making work. And some of the themes of Sand…
“We like the theme of sand, because of the way sand buries things, but it also reveals them. Think beach gothic. What gets washed up on the beach? What secrets get revealed? What do the waves uncover? Those sorts of things. The story part of the show is about an Aboriginal sand miner, who’s working in the sand dunes, when he uncovers the body of a Japanese woman, who was washed away in the tsunami. She’s been carried all this way, and as he uncovers her, she starts to reanimate. The Idiot Savant group call what they do ‘thought movement’ which we don’t really have here. In Australia, we go towards more dance or circus style, but I fell in love with Japanese movement, which has a really dynamic presence on stage.”
‘We’re now making decisions and exploring opportunities around sharing collaborative space geographically and how to move through the next processes both together and apart. We are rejuvenated and ready to get going on the next big step of making a show from three countries and our central base at NORPA.’
Also joining the creative team is Daniel Belton from New Zealand (Good Company Arts). There were fruitful discussions with Daniel during the TPAM (Tokyo Performing Arts Meeting) and last week at APAM in Brisbane…
The week’s exploration is possibly best captured with the photos below:
