Extant And Yellow Earth Theatre Present FLIGHT PATHS

Two of Britain's leading theatre companies, Extant and Yellow Earth have joined forces to present an ambitious exciting new play called Flight Paths. The production will tour the UK in spring 2019, from Tuesday 5 February starting at Harlow Playhouse Theatre and ending on Tuesday 5 March at The Arena, Wolverhampton. The Press Night is Friday 8 February, 7pm at Stratford Circus, Theatre Square, London, E15 1BX.

Flight Paths features four blind performers and is inspired by the tradition of the Japanese Goze - where blind female performers travelled around medieval Japan making a living from telling epic tales.

Moving between tradition and modernity the blind performers weave together personal stories of themselves as artists from Japan, Nigeria, USA and Australia.

Flight Paths is a multi-media, story-telling circus production that combines aerial, music, narrative and creative audio description that uses new sound technology.

'Extant Theatre has a deserved reputation for adventurous experimentation' BBC Radio 4

Extant are proud to be the first theatre company to integrate access into aerial silk performance. Flight Paths will showcase outstanding aerial and physical theatre.

Glen Neath is an award winning novelist and theatre maker whose work has been staged throughout the UK, on BBC Radio 4 and internationally. His work includes Séance (2016), The Arabian Nights (2015) and The Long Count (2012).

Flight Paths brings together two pioneering theatre companies. Founded in 1997 by Artistic Director Maria Oshodi, Extant is the leading performing arts company and charity in the UK managed for and by visually impaired professional arts practitioners.

The company won the annual Arts and Business Award and Maria Oshodi was hailed as one of the Cultural Leadership Programme's 'Women to Watch.'

Yellow Earth Theatre was formed in 1995 by five British East Asian (BEA) actors: Kwong Loke, Kumiko Mendl, Veronica Needa, David KS Tse and Tom Wu.

'This is the perfect piece of theatre' Whatsonstage (on a Yellow Earth Theatre production)

Kumiko Mendl became Artistic Director in 2011 and set out to engage audiences in participatory and immersive work in new spaces with an ambition to produce fresh, vibrant work that reflects the British East Asian experience.

'Yellow Earth and Extant are delighted to be working alongside each other to bring our five year collaboration on this production to fruition. Like so much of our company's previous work, Flight Paths has proven to be not just an ambitious and thrilling piece of theatre, but a catalyst for real inclusive and representational change.' Co-Directors Kumiko Mendl and Maria Oshodi

Vicki Amedume, Artistic Director of Upswing has worked on the movement and aerial performances for this production.

Flight Paths UK TOUR 2019 Listings Information

Harlow Playhouse Theatre Tuesday 5 February, 7.30pm, Playhouse Square, Box Office: 01279-431945 Pay what you can. www.harlowplayhouse.co.uk

Stratford Circus, Friday 8, 7pm & Saturday 9, 2pm & 7pm February, Theatre Square, London E15 1BX Box office: 020 8279 1080 £15, £13 conc. www.stratford-circus.com

Theatr Clwyd, Friday 15 February, 7.45pm, Sat 16 February, 2.45 & 7.45pm, Raikes Lane, Mold, CH7 1YA, Box Office: 01352 701521 From £10 www.theatrclwyd.com

The Curve, Wednesday 19 & 20 February, 7.45pm, Rutland Street, Leicester, LE1 1SB Box office 0116 242 3595 From £10, www.curveonline.co.uk

The Albany, Friday 1, 7.30pm, 2 March, 2pm & 7.30pm, Douglas Way, Deptford, Box office 020 8692 4446, London SE8 4AG, www.thealbany.org.uk

The Arena Wolverhampton, Tuesday 5 March, 7.30pm, Wulfruna Street ,West Midlands, WV1 1SE Box Office 01902 321 321, £12 (£10) www.wlv.ac.uk/arena-theatre

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