Dwelling (2015)
Directed by Jessica Wilson
In a rich open-air theatre experience, Dwelling inhabited a custom-built house, temporarily relocated to a Footscray carpark, as the centre piece of Big West Festival’s 2015 opening.
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2015 Nominated, Design & Realisation in Contemporary Performance,
Green Room Awards. -
2015 Big West Festival
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DIRECTOR, DEVISOR, PRODUCER
Jessica WilsonVISUAL DESIGN & DEVISOR
Will HeathcoteANIMATION & DEVISORS
Van Sowerwine & Isobel KnowlesCOMPOSITION
Jethro WoodwardGUITAR FINALE COMPOSITION
Lucas MichailidisLIGHTING DESIGN
Jen HectorCOSTUME DESIGN
Matilda WoodroofePERFORMERS
Piper Huynh, Yana Taylor & Penny Baron with children Luey Kemp-Mykyta, Flynn Baron-Murphy,Gabe Havir, Madison Wei Qi LuPRODUCTION MANAGEMENT
David FarmerSTAGE MANAGEMENT
Alice Flemming with Christa Jonathan and Emma Louise LeggDocumentation Photography
Carla Gottgens
How would you react if someone started behaving inappropriately, or aggressively? Do you try to pretend it isn’t happening, or protest and take action?
As the participants find themselves forced into the role of attacker and victim, a live feed of each participant’s face is placed onto the animated characters, channeling the tensions brought forth as the social compact begins to collapse.
This is the question posed by It’s a jungle in here, an interactive installation that inserts two people into a simulated environment and has them respond to a series of increasingly unsettling encounters.
A tornado, a rainstorm, crocodiles and insects are harsh Australian elements that inhabited the inside of the house, as we journeyed with three women, and their children, seeking shelter.
Dwelling featured large scale imagery involving the integration of projected stop motion animation and performance, a guitar finale performed by 25 guitarists, performances by a chorus of 20 young people from Carolyn Chisholm Catholic College and shadow performances by women who have genuinely experienced homelessness. This large ensemble sat amidst three stunning performances by professional women performers, Penny Barron, Yana Taylor and Piper Huynh.
Dwelling was an large scale project which cracked a new language of open air theatre and which was grounded by strong thematics about women’s experiences of homelessness and violence. The experience was underpinned by the tangible reality of Big West Festival’s ambitious social enterprise project – the design and construction of a real house that is planned to be the beginning of social enterprise to provide affordable housing for women. Dwelling was nominated for a Green Room Award in the Contemporary Performance category.
