Scarabeus Aerial Theatre To Tour The UK

SCARABEUS AERIAL THEATRE has been producing enthralling site-specific aerial and abseiling productions since the company was co-founded in 1988 by Daniela Essart and Søren Nielsen. This autumn the company's new show, DEPTHS OF MY MIND, takes the company into new and daring physical theatre territory and will premiere at The BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon on September 23.

"We have a dream team of highly skilled cast of aerialists, actors and dancers for this tour," says Daniela Essart, Scarabeus' Artistic Director, who brings her formidable skills in aerial dance and physical theatre, stilt dancing and balance acrobatics and more to this truly exciting, mind expanding production. (Photo left: Antonio Harris by Mark Morreau).

Depths of my Mind will combine aerial skills with visual theatre: "We'll bring to life the latest developments in neuroscience and neuroimaging connected to the teenage brain to explore what it's like to be changing and searching for somewhere to belong," continues Daniela.

The set features cleverly designed transparent plexiglass platforms ranged seven metres above ground to enable audiences and artists to see each other. Four characters - each a teenager, each with his or her own developing characteristics - discover what it's like to grow and change, make friends, or not, feel isolated or loved, challenged or bored, stalked or ignored.

BRIT SCHOOL - 60 The Crescent, Croydon CR0 2HN
September 23rd 7.30pm
September 24th 3pm, 7.30pm
September 25th 1pm, 5pm
September 30th 3pm, 7.30pm (post-show discussion 8.45pm)
October 1st 3pm, 7.30pm
October 2nd 1pm, 5pm

FOREST ARTS CENTRE, WALSALL
October 13th 7.30pm
October 14th 2pm (workshop details here)
www.forestartscentre.co.uk

GULBENKIAN, CANTERBURY
November 13th 7.30pm
www.thegulbenkian.co.uk

"The platforms are movable," says Daniela, "to reflect the instability of teenagers' lives. And because they are see-through, it means the audience can gaze at the performers and vice versa. We have dream sequences onto which we project colourful, almost psychedelic images of the brain (see photo below by Mark Morreau) with different colours representing different chemicals inside the brain; during the production questions are vocalized and projected onto a screen in order to create a narrative. I expect there will be adults in the audience who will be reminded of their own teenage years."

'Depths of my Mind' has been choreographed by the highly acclaimed aerialist Lindsey Butcher: "We were delighted to get Lindsey on board for this project," says Daniela. "Her exceptional level of experience as a choreographer and performer of aerial suspensions combined perfectly with our strong track record of successful collaborations."

The piece has been created in consultation with youngsters aged 12-25 and benefits from the collaboration with the NeuroScience and Psychiatry Network at Cambridge University and its 5 year U-Change study, about the teenage experience of developmental brain changes, peer pressure, and social challenges. 'Depths of my Mind' is funded by the Wellcome Trust and Arts Council England.

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