Starchitects - Motionhouse

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Fri 03 Feb 2023 - Sat 04 Feb 2023

A new show by internationally-renowned dance-circus company Motionhouse is promising to be out of this world. Starchitects, which comes to Birmingham Hippodrome on February 3-4 and Lichfield Garrick on April 5-6, features dance, aerial acrobatics and digital projections to tell the story of a group of children who embark on an adventure in outer space.

Created in partnership with Pembrokeshire-based Bluestone Park and National Resort, Starchitects was in residence at the park in early 2020 and proved to be so popular the company has now decided to take it on an international tour.



Co-founder and artistic director Kevin Finnan explains: "Bluestone had seen our work and wanted us to make a show for them which I thought would be really interesting but I was a bit unsure at first as we've never made a family show. But I then thought 'the secret to a show for families and audiences new to dance is that it has to appeal equally to adults and children'. So we set out to make a show as visually arresting and physically thrilling as the rest of our work and also to include an element that was really targeted at families. I'm delighted by it and, having now done it, I'm committed to doing more family shows - they're great fun."

Bluestone had asked that the show feature outer space but Kevin needed to give it an additional element that families would relate to. "Whenever I make a show, I ask myself 'what is the fundamental thing that I'm saying in this?' and my connection with making a show for families was the fact that what I do in the studio is play all the time. I play with ideas and I play with set and I play with the dancers.

And he adds: "Through this play, we try and work out what our piece is going to be and, just like with our company, an essential thing for children is play. It's a fundamental part of who we are and how we become creative. So I thought 'this show needs to revolve around play' and that gave me the key. Once we started making it with that idea in mind, we all had tremendous fun creating the show. It's a really popular show among the dancers as well as our audiences."

Starchitects features a group of children whose games see them travelling to other worlds. "There's this idea that the group of children are playing and they are observing the moon from their bedroom and the moon disappears," explains Kevin. "So they go in search of the moon and they build themselves a rocket and they go off and explore space because exploring is a great thing for young people. They land on a planet and it's fully mysterious and they meet strange creatures and have lots of adventures and then they make their way back home to celebrate the experience."

The show features well-known games such as hide and seek, Grandma's footsteps and the floor is lava – activities which are not only popular with children but also evoke nostalgic memories for adults. "The key to creating a show like this is that it's readable for a wide range of people," says Kevin. "The adults who come enjoy it as much as the children and, in some cases, I suspect even more! I had no idea how it was going to be received but I knew I had done a really good job making it and we were pleased with it. Once we got it going and saw the interaction with the audience it was very uplifting because the relationship with the audience has just been a real joy."

At Birmingham Hippodrome, there are a range of other activities connected to the show including a relaxed matinee on February 3, a curtain raiser by Birmingham Hippodrome Education Network on the evening of February 3 and a curtain raiser by Motionhouse Youth on February 4.

Plus there is the opportunity for families to take part in activities. "We've added some features to the experience so after the show you can meet the performers and you can stay and play with the ever-transformable cardboard boxes that we have," explains Kevin. "It's that experience of having the spark of imagination and then making and re-making. It's just pleasure and fun."



Although the show was devised for families, Kevin says it will appeal to people of all ages. "In the same way for the work I make for outdoors and the main stage or the big touring shows then it doesn't matter how old you are. If the show contains visual spectacle and amazing things that the dancers are doing and high skilled dance and aerial work and interaction with film, then all of those elements mean that it works for everyone. The magic and mystery of that kind of show appeals on a visceral level from the very youngest children to the 80-year-olds. So at Birmingham Hippodrome we've got a couple of matinees and an evening performance where we're hoping older children and adults will come because if you like our work then you'll enjoy this show."

Kevin and the company have close links with Birmingham. Motionhouse is a Birmingham Hippodrome Associate Company and in 2012 collaborated with the theatre and Australian theatre company Legs on the Wall to produce The Voyage which launched the London 2012 Festival in the Midlands, celebrating the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Last spring Motionhouse launched the Birmingham 2022 Festival which accompanied the Commonwealth Games with a new work Wondrous Stories in Centenary Square. "We had a really great reception to Wondrous Stories," says Kevin. "It was the ten-year anniversary since we'd done The Voyage and to come back and do Wondrous Stories in 2022 was a real gift. We were really excited about doing it and we were very pleased with the results."

And he is now hoping audiences in the city and beyond will become fans of Starchitects. "This is a show which the whole family can enjoy. The show reaches out to the audience and plays with the audience and engages with the audience. For me there has always got to be something at the core of a show which is meaningful and I think that it is really good for us all to remind ourselves that being playful is an important part of our lives - it nourishes and fulfils us and we should celebrate it."

Motionhouse Starchitects is on stage at Birmingham Hippodrome Feb 3-4, see www.birminghamhippodrome.com/ and Lichfield Garrick on April 5-6, see www.lichfieldgarrick.com/

#february
#central_birmingham
#dancing
#family
#space
#theatre
!date 03/02/2023 -- 04/02/2023
%wnbirmingham