WILDWORKS propose to create a piece of work inspired by the myths of Babel and Labyrinth to celebrate the convergence of many different cultures in London in 2012. This would take the form of a performance involving the diverse communities of Cornwall and the South West. Through building labyrinths with local people and animating the paths with their stories, they would create a ‘theatre of experience’ where the audience will use all their senses to navigate their way in and out of the labyrinth. This form will adapt to unexpected spaces such as a multi-storey car park and will invent a form of storytelling that will transcend spoken language.
See the shortlisted entries for this region and read about the judging panel
Bill Mitchell is the Director of WILDWORKS, a company internationally renowned for its site-specific work where landscape and community become the focus and the source of large-scale theatre productions.
WILDWORKS productions have been sited in old quarries; derelict mines, working fishing quays, abandoned department stores, a Napoleonic citadel, the Green Line in Nicosia… We have worked with gospel choirs, drama groups, local artists, surfers, tea dance regulars, North African migrants, cake-makers, ex-miners, a young hip-hop group, abseilers and a Hell’s Angels chapter.
Distinctively Cornish, WILDWORKS draws on a wider and older European tradition. Drawing its power from community, it integrates music, dance and theatre. We use everything: food, stunning imagery, action, film, music and text to tell our story. Narrative is at the centre of our work. We bring the seeds of a story to a site and weave in the strands that tie people and place together.
As a company we are drawn to stories that are both epic and intimate, human stories that can touch and resonate with audiences across barriers of language, age and nationality. The strength of the work lies in the fusion of a strong sense of place, the power of people and the most distinct theatrical imagination. Audiences all over Europe have responded with delight and no small sense of awe to this work.
For more information on Bill Mitchell and WILDWORKS please go to
www.wildworks.biz