Luca Silvestrini's Protein Presents MAY CONTAIN FOOD - MAY CONTAIN YOU

Luca Silvestrini's Protein is to tour a refashioned version of their witty dance and music production May Contain Food to village halls and theatre venues around the country this Spring. May Contain Food - May Contain You encourages audiences to think about the sensory, cultural and social implications of food.

This special adaptation is a duet for dancers Sonya Cullingford and Matthew Winston who both appeared in the original production which toured the UK in 2016. Sat around themed circular tables designed by Yann Seabra, the audience will be served a playful performance, accompanied by songs by acclaimed composer and published home cook Orlando Gough.

Audiences are invited to join in by bringing and sharing homemade dishes and locally sourced or homegrown food for table picnics. In this informal, immersive cabaret-style show, audiences will be encouraged to share their own stories, memories and anecdotes associated with food, as well as helping the performers bake a sticky ginger pudding live on stage. Protein will also be bringing this sense of community and camaraderie to older and vulnerable people by taking a specially adapted version, May Contain You, into seventeen care homes alongside their national tour.

Speaking about the tour Luca Silvestrini said: "We understand that for a small community what's happening in their town or village hall is much more than a show, and I want May Contain Food, May Contain You to be an event which reflects this quite simple but beautiful concept. We all know that food is not just a way to keep us going, but instead a more complex system of habits and patterns intimately connected to who we are and how we feel. It has been fascinating to explore this subject and discover how intricate, and often disturbed, our relationship to eating can be; and how easily food becomes a substitute for something we miss, have lost or need."

One of the most distinctive voices in British dance theatre, Protein creates extraordinary dance from ordinary life. Its socially relevant material connects theatrical experiences with the everyday and real-life stories. Protein's Border Tales, which peels back stereotypes about multicultural Britain, recently toured following a critically-acclaimed run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe where it was nominated for the prestigious Carol Tambor Best of Edinburgh Award. Protein was awarded the Critic's Circle National Dance Award for Best Independent Dance Company 2011, and was nominated again in 2016.

Luca Silvestrini completed his dance training at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. Since then Luca has worked with Maxine Doyle's First Person, Catherine Seymour Dance Company, Lea Anderson and The Featherstonehaughs, Rose's Thoughts, Bock & Vincenzi, Sarah Rubidge, Joanna Portolou, Ruth Segalis and Aletta Collins. His choreography dates from 1997 when he co-founded Protein. As Artistic Director he is known for idiosyncratic dance theatre work provoked by its deep connections with the everyday.

Orlando Gough is one of the UK's leading composers, celebrated for his compositions for contemporary dance, ballet and theatre. Recently, he has worked on the critically acclaimed Mr Burns (Almeida Theatre) and the community opera Imago (Glyndebourne), which won a Royal Philharmonic Society Award in 2014. He is an associate artist for the Royal Opera House and published a book of his favourite recipes in 2012.

@proteindance | #MayContainFood | www.proteindance.co.uk

Running Time: 90 mins | Suitable for ages 12 + (contains mild swearing)

Company Information

Conceived and created by Luca Silvestrini and Orlando Gough

Performed by Sonya Cullingford & Matthew Winston

Directed by Luca Silvestrini

Music by Orlando Gough

Designed by Yann Seabra

Lighting by Jackie Shemesh

Additional material devised by Jeremy Avis, Sara Black, Martin George, Jonathan Glew, Antonia Grove, Carl Harrison, Michael Henry, Saara Hurme, Donna Lennard, Sally Marie, Melanie Pappenheim, Louise Sofield, Peter Willcock and Jonathan Williams.

Sonya Cullingford is a London based dancer, actor and musician. She made her West End debut as 'Mole' in Will Tuckett's The Wind in the Willows, and was original cast in Punchdrunk's The Drowned Man, where she performed multiple roles. She appeared in Tom Hooper's The Danish Girl starring Eddie Redmayne in 2016. Sonya has recently released her debut album with Folk/Pop duo The Greeners, featured by Tom Robinson on Radio 6. Sonya has worked with Luca Silvestrini's Protein, performing in the company's stage show May Contain Food.

Matthew Winston: Since graduating, Matthew has worked with Bare Bones Dance Company, Matthew Bourne's New Adventures, and was a founding member of Ben Wright's company, bgroup. He has also worked with Liam Steele and Robert Tannion in their company Stan Won't Dance. Having completed his MA at London Contemporary Dance School, Matthew has been working with Luca Silvestrini's Protein, performing in (In)visible Dancing and most recently, May Contain Food.

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