Brighton Festival 2010 preview
Finally, a glimpse of Spring and Summer entertainment that's coming to Brighton. Can't wait to see the back of Winter. Both the Brighton Festival and Fringe websites have gone live with this year's events. Brian Eno is the big name for the festival but I'm struggling to find anything accessible that's not up its own arse. The Brighton Festival Fringe website is completely useless as you have to search by date or category with no real idea of the highlights. Getting the printed brochure this weekend will be one of my priorities.
Here are some Festival events that appeal to me at the moment:
Electric Hotel - 14 and 15 May
Described as:
Electric Hotel is a bizarre and beautiful outdoor spectacle; a uniquely designed, fly-by-night residence brought to life through dance and sound. Sitting on the outside looking in, you snatch glimpses of the do-not-disturb lives unfolding behind the floor-to-ceiling windows. Wearing headphones to eavesdrop on the internal spaces of the building, you witness the residents in their private rooms: their natural habits, unnatural fantasies and housekeeping of wildly varied quality. Electric Hotel is conceived and delivered by an ensemble team: director and co-founder of Shunt David Rosenberg; choreographer Frauke Requardt (Pictures from an Exhibition at Sadler's Wells/Young Vic); and designer Börkur Jónsson (Woyzeck at Barbican; Metamorphosis at Lyric Hammersmith).
How Do You Like My Landscape - 17 - 19 May
Described as:
And God felt great and powerful and He thought some animation would be cute and He ordered little animals.'
(Genesis). In How do you like my landscape? Manah Depauw and Bernard van Eeghem use sharp imagination, miniature topography and fake plastic animals to redefine the role of the human body within the history of the earth. This four-episode spectacle plays out across a time and terrain where apparent tranquility only serves to camouflage the terrible beast of desire within. Produced by Margarita Productions, Brussels
Best Before - 19 - 24 May
Described as:
Last year Rimini Protokoll made its UK debut at Brighton Festival with the première of Breaking News. Now, the ground-breaking German collective presents its latest slice of 'reality theatre'. Best Before pulls the multi-player video game out of the virtual realm and plugs it into an intimate theatre setting. A simulated city evolves on a giant screen as each of 200 spectators adds their personal touch, game controller in hand. At first you are an anonymous avatar but then you take on human dimensions as audience members clash, collaborate and negotiate the forces that define reality in the third millennium. A gamer's dream, this thrillingly inventive production asks you to help shape the future ... before it's too late! Rimini Protokoll has blurred the line between reality and fiction in over 20 immersive theatre experiences, putting 'experts in daily life' at the heart of its bold new vision.
Lali Puna, John Hopkins - 20 May
Described as:
In their only UK date this year, cult German quartet Lali Puna join forces with fellow electronica artist and producer Jon Hopkins. Lali Puna have helped map out the musical landscape for modern, experimentally minded electro pop. Originally conceived as a solo project by Valerie Trebeljahr, the Weilheim outfit have produced four beautifully crafted albums of vibrant electro riffs and jubilant pop hooks. Jon Hopkins is a musical shapeshifter. His soundworlds - bold, euphoric and often unsettling - have seduced the likes of Brian Eno, Herbie Hancock and David Holmes. Here he presents a live audiovisual encounter with VJ Myogenic.
Here are some Festival events that appeal to me at the moment:
Electric Hotel - 14 and 15 May
Described as:
Electric Hotel is a bizarre and beautiful outdoor spectacle; a uniquely designed, fly-by-night residence brought to life through dance and sound. Sitting on the outside looking in, you snatch glimpses of the do-not-disturb lives unfolding behind the floor-to-ceiling windows. Wearing headphones to eavesdrop on the internal spaces of the building, you witness the residents in their private rooms: their natural habits, unnatural fantasies and housekeeping of wildly varied quality. Electric Hotel is conceived and delivered by an ensemble team: director and co-founder of Shunt David Rosenberg; choreographer Frauke Requardt (Pictures from an Exhibition at Sadler's Wells/Young Vic); and designer Börkur Jónsson (Woyzeck at Barbican; Metamorphosis at Lyric Hammersmith).
How Do You Like My Landscape - 17 - 19 May
Described as:
And God felt great and powerful and He thought some animation would be cute and He ordered little animals.'
(Genesis). In How do you like my landscape? Manah Depauw and Bernard van Eeghem use sharp imagination, miniature topography and fake plastic animals to redefine the role of the human body within the history of the earth. This four-episode spectacle plays out across a time and terrain where apparent tranquility only serves to camouflage the terrible beast of desire within. Produced by Margarita Productions, Brussels
Best Before - 19 - 24 May
Described as:
Last year Rimini Protokoll made its UK debut at Brighton Festival with the première of Breaking News. Now, the ground-breaking German collective presents its latest slice of 'reality theatre'. Best Before pulls the multi-player video game out of the virtual realm and plugs it into an intimate theatre setting. A simulated city evolves on a giant screen as each of 200 spectators adds their personal touch, game controller in hand. At first you are an anonymous avatar but then you take on human dimensions as audience members clash, collaborate and negotiate the forces that define reality in the third millennium. A gamer's dream, this thrillingly inventive production asks you to help shape the future ... before it's too late! Rimini Protokoll has blurred the line between reality and fiction in over 20 immersive theatre experiences, putting 'experts in daily life' at the heart of its bold new vision.
Lali Puna, John Hopkins - 20 May
Described as:
In their only UK date this year, cult German quartet Lali Puna join forces with fellow electronica artist and producer Jon Hopkins. Lali Puna have helped map out the musical landscape for modern, experimentally minded electro pop. Originally conceived as a solo project by Valerie Trebeljahr, the Weilheim outfit have produced four beautifully crafted albums of vibrant electro riffs and jubilant pop hooks. Jon Hopkins is a musical shapeshifter. His soundworlds - bold, euphoric and often unsettling - have seduced the likes of Brian Eno, Herbie Hancock and David Holmes. Here he presents a live audiovisual encounter with VJ Myogenic.
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