nervousystem

NEWS & PROJECTS

WEAVING THE CRY

based on

Riders to the Sea

by J.M. Synge

22 MARCH - 3 APRIL, 2010, 8PM
THE BACK LOFT @ LA CATHEDRAL STUDIOS
(7-11 St. Augustine Street, Dublin 8)
22/23 MARCH - LOW PRICE PREVIEWS €15
Tickets: €18. Booking: www.tickets.ie Ph:0871449993

ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE

Weaving the Cry is a journey through a dark wave toward a threshold that is both an end and a beginning. It explores our capacity for survival inside the rituals of living and dying.

This re-working confronts the scenario of Synge’s play, exposing a complex and eternal bond between mother and son concentrated in the relationship between Mauyra, the missing Michael, and Bartley, her only remaining son of six. On the crest of a wave of loss, with Michael’s absence and Bartley’s dangerous sea crossing the inevitable and its repercussions must be reconciled by those left behind, three women, a mother and her two daughters, Cathleen and Nora.

Directed by Aiden Condron and performed by Marián Araujo, Sophie Campbell, Joseph Moylan and Gemma Mc Gill with dramaturgical assistance from Jeffery Gormly, this performance, integrating traditional songs from Ireland and Galicia, sees the company weave it’s unique experience and approach to theatre-making into a stark re-imagining of one of the greatest dramatic works from the Irish literary canon.

THE VENUE

Weaving the Cry is a site specific work conceived especially for The Back Loft in collaboration with La Cathedral Studios. Formerly an old textile factory, this extraordinary space, minimally renovated, possesses a special raw quality working in dialogue with the building’s rich Victorian architecture. This venue is emerging as one of Dublin’s most exciting Arts spaces.

http://www.lacatedralstudios.org/index.htm

Open Worksessions

Dublin

for further details email

contact@nervousystem.net

ACTOR AS WRITER

Towards Artistic Autonomy

The much-respected Irish theatre tradition is built largely on the written word as dramatic literature where the writer reigns autonomous and ultimately supreme as the primary source for theatre making. Actor as Writer equates the actor’s work with the potency and power of that which is written and even that which is said by promoting that which is done through body and voice in action.

nervousystem has developed a comprehensive praxis for actor training as well as evolving techniques of composition inside the research domain Actor as Writer. This area of active research focuses on the performer, not only as interpretative but also as autonomous creative artist. Actor as Writer goes to the very heart of the actor’s craft by interrogating her creative core through the language of action, the actor’s mother tongue if you will, while simultaneously elaborating an objective dramaturgical vocabulary where spontaneity is counter pointed by the harnessing and sculpting of detailed and clear structural form, all exercised by the actor herself.

nervousystem will guide participants through a process that integrates individuals' physical and vocal capacity and potential while being placed at the heart of the creative act, mobilizing independent artistic expression where we are authors of our own work.

PREVIOUS WORKSESSIONS

Jan 5th-9th 2009

Special collaboration

with WATERDONKEY Galway

TESTIMONIALS

From individuals and groups who have attended nervousystem’s recent worksessions

“

……It's difficult to articulate what a profound effect the workshops have been on WATERDONKEY as a group, and on me as a person…….

…..a work incident two years threw my hips out of alignment. Since the work sessions I've had no need for osteopathy.……working with you has been a vital part of our development

….You both offered guidance, and most importantly, you pushed us to go further and test the limits of what we could achieve individually.

……We did alot in a week. This left me with a definite sense of achievement. I really got something out of it. Thank you for that……..

…..The vocal work we explored with you was very helpful…..Your approach to exploring song was, although challengingly different at first, very interesting and refreshing…..

….Your attitude of testing and challenging us to find something new in whatever we do is something that I really found useful

I feel better for the experience, I want this now. I want to be part of the group, and I want to perform, to challenge myself, and to explore what I can do. And I have you guys to thank for that

What was great about the course was that care was taken to ensure that we would be able to continue working in this way ourselves once the week had ended. The week suggested a set of goals and an array of tools with which to go about achieving those goals.

…..There are so many ideas sparked by the workshop that are of potential benefit not only to performers but also to directors and writers

Respect for the work space, the space that is kept for work and creativity was one of the main things that I took from the workshop

I was challenged physically and creatively all at once, that is there was no separation from the play and the work. This was so freeing as a performer but also for myself. What was so amazing was the contact that you both encouraged us to keep with each other and how it was so necessary to us as performers to look outside of ourselves for inspiration. The workshop was so inspiring and freeing and thank you so much for opening us all up to this work

”

PERFORMANCE

October 15th 2008

Marián Araújo, (nervousystem) presents her solo work The Myth and The Flesh at Kent University, in Canterbury, England .

This is an open presentation and talk to students as part of the British Grotowski Project and supported by The Arts & Humanities Research Council.

For more information go to the Myth & The Flesh page on this site (click repetoire in the menu-left) or visit

www.themythandtheflesh.weebly.com

Marián also performed in Dublin at The Back Loft in La Catedral last September 25th to 27th where the performance was vey well attended and received.

We were very pleased to present The Myth and The Flesh in Ireland after a number of performances this year in Poland, Italy and Spain.

The Myth and The Flesh is a solo piece created as part of an ongoing solitary research process. It explores meanings of reality and the nature of identity; referencing cultural symbols, religion and sexuality

M&F kent2

____________________

nervousystem were invited to Lamezia, Italy as special guests to participate in Linea Trasversale an intercultural theatre exchange twinned with the 15th University of Eurasian Theatre in June 2007. We were the first theatre company ever to represent Ireland at this prestigious international event led by world renowned director Eugenio Barba (Odin Teatret, Denmark) and hosted by Teatro Proskenion (Italy). The company gave several talks and presented work demonstrations to participants from Europe, South America, and the U.S. Mr. Barba paid special tribute to nervousystem and highlighted the importance of our presence this year and our significant contribution to the Theatre Research endeavor at large.

This event led to the forging of relations with Teatro Proskenion. We have just returned from Calabria, Italy where the ensemble continued work on The Myth and The Flesh and started preliminary work on a new project: The Resurrection. nervousystem also hosted a six day workshop led by Singaporian actress Gey Pin Ang (formerly of the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards). The company also invited Irish musicians Eoin Dillon (Uilleann pipe player with well known Irish band Kíla) and Frank Tate to engage in a cultural exchange with local musicians in the area which culminated in a live concert. To see some footage click www.youtube.com and search for "Irish music in Calabria".All of these activities were housed in Donna Luna an artists workcentre where we were were facilitated and hosted as special guests by Teatro Proskenion for the month of November. Nervousystem was awarded funding by Culture Ireland to facilitate this project. We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Teatro Proskenion for their inexhaustable generosity in hosting us and to all those who made these activities possible.

Development and presentation of Project Solo: a piece composed and performed by Marián Araújo and directed by Aiden Condron. This performance was presented with the working-title The Myth and the Flesh in Project Upstairs, Dublin in September of this year. Nervousystem has been invited to present this work in Valladolid, Spain in March 2008

An extended period of free worksessions led by nervousystem at DCC’s The Lab from March to July 2007. Theses worksessions served to facilitate training and research within a safe concentrated laboratory environment and were open to emerging and experienced Dublin-based Irish theatre artists. These sessions proved a huge success and, owing to a high demand, the company aims to offer more worksessions in 2008

Irish actor Joseph Moylan joins the ensemble. We are delighted to welcome Joe who was chosen out of number of actors who participated in a rigorous selection session conducted by the nervousystem in August '07.

January 2007: Dublin City Council awards nervousystem a Seeder Grant for Myth and the Flesh (Project Solo)

The completion of the final phase of Theatre Haiku Project, for which the company was awarded an Arts Council Project grant in 2005. This final phase led to a public, open-air performance: Park Action. We presented this work in Phoenix Park, Dublin and also in Malta where we were invited to do an exchange with two other companies; Icarus Project (Malta) and C.I.R.T. Centro Indipendente Ricerca Teatrale (Italy). In Malta the piece was adapted for a site specific space on the outskirts of the city of Valletta and re-named Malta Action.

nervousystem perform a work in progress selection from Aversion; a reworking of the original with the new title AVERSION THE I - EYE. This was performed as part of OFFSIDE II: a new Live Art event at the Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin, hosted by Pallas Studios and curated by Fergus Byrne.

Marián Araújo receives a personal invitation from Thomas Richards of The Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards to participate in their month long Intervention in Moscow as part of Tracing Roads Across. This invite was extended on the basis of video footage of AVERSION seen by Richards. This is a great tribute to the quality of Marian's work and that of nervousystem.

_________

AVERSION DEVELOPMENT: nervousystem will continue to expand the performance practice evolved during initial rehearsal for this innovative piece of work and develop its mise en scene, strengthening its place in our repertoire.
THEATRE HAIKU: An ongoing project creating small pieces of theatre based on the structure and aesthetic of the traditional form of the haiku poem. This project will allow the company to develop its dramaturgical skills, will incorporate the writer fully, and give the artistic staff opportunities to diversify from their own disciplines into directing for stage. The fruits of the project will provide the company with material to develop a more informal platform for the presentation of their work to diverse audiences.
.
WORKSHOPS FOR ACTORS & THEATRE PRACTITIONERS: An opportunity for the company to share the practices of our Performance Research and Development to date, and develop further the pedagogical aspect of our work. Through these workshops we hope to continually refresh the ensemble, both through contact with new and upcoming practitioners from our own and other artistic disciplines, and as a recruiting process for the company.
TOURING: We intend to develop this dimension of our work. It is important to our artistic and financial health to bring our work to audiences, national and international, and facilitate creative exchange with other companies and artists and institutions.

who we are history artistic manifesto structures links biographies contact what we do repertoire The Myth & The Flesh Park Action / Malta Action Aversion-The I-Eye AVERSION Fire Face news & projects research archive press training & workshops image gallery www.nervousystem.net NEWS & PROJECTS WEAVING THE CRY based on Riders to the Sea by J.M. Synge 22 MARCH - 3 APRIL, 2010, 8PM THE BACK LOFT @ LA CATHEDRAL STUDIOS (7-11 St. Augustine Street, Dublin 8) 22/23 MARCH - LOW PRICE PREVIEWS €15 Tickets: €18. Booking: www.tickets.ie Ph:0871449993 ABOUT THE PERFORMANCE Weaving the Cry is a journey through a dark wave toward a threshold that is both an end and a beginning. It explores our capacity for survival inside the rituals of living and dying. This re-working confronts the scenario of Synge’s play, exposing a complex and eternal bond between mother and son concentrated in the relationship between Mauyra, the missing Michael, and Bartley, her only remaining son of six. On the crest of a wave of loss, with Michael’s absence and Bartley’s dangerous sea crossing the inevitable and its repercussions must be reconciled by those left behind, three women, a mother and her two daughters, Cathleen and Nora. Directed by Aiden Condron and performed by Marián Araujo, Sophie Campbell, Joseph Moylan and Gemma Mc Gill with dramaturgical assistance from Jeffery Gormly, this performance, integrating traditional songs from Ireland and Galicia, sees the company weave it’s unique experience and approach to theatre-making into a stark re-imagining of one of the greatest dramatic works from the Irish literary canon. THE VENUE Weaving the Cry is a site specific work conceived especially for The Back Loft in collaboration with La Cathedral Studios. Formerly an old textile factory, this extraordinary space, minimally renovated, possesses a special raw quality working in dialogue with the building’s rich Victorian architecture. This venue is emerging as one of Dublin’s most exciting Arts spaces. http://www.lacatedralstudios.org/index.htm Open Worksessions Dublin for further details email contact@nervousystem.net ACTOR AS WRITER Towards Artistic Autonomy The much-respected Irish theatre tradition is built largely on the written word as dramatic literature where the writer reigns autonomous and ultimately supreme as the primary source for theatre making. Actor as Writer equates the actor’s work with the potency and power of that which is written and even that which is said by promoting that which is done through body and voice in action. *nervousystem* has developed a comprehensive praxis for actor training as well as evolving techniques of composition inside the research domain Actor as Writer. This area of active research focuses on the performer, not only as interpretative but also as autonomous creative artist. Actor as Writer goes to the very heart of the actor’s craft by interrogating her creative core through the language of action, the actor’s mother tongue if you will, while simultaneously elaborating an objective dramaturgical vocabulary where spontaneity is counter pointed by the harnessing and sculpting of detailed and clear structural form, all exercised by the actor herself. *nervousystem* will guide participants through a process that integrates individuals' physical and vocal capacity and potential while being placed at the heart of the creative act, mobilizing independent artistic expression where we are authors of our own work. PREVIOUS WORKSESSIONS Jan 5th-9th 2009 Special collaboration with WATERDONKEY Galway TESTIMONIALS From individuals and groups who have attended nervousystem’s recent worksessions “ ……It's difficult to articulate what a profound effect the workshops have been on WATERDONKEY as a group, and on me as a person……. …..a work incident two years threw my hips out of alignment. Since the work sessions I've had no need for osteopathy.……working with you has been a vital part of our development ….You both offered guidance, and most importantly, you pushed us to go further and test the limits of what we could achieve individually. ……We did alot in a week. This left me with a definite sense of achievement. I really got something out of it. Thank you for that…….. …..The vocal work we explored with you was very helpful…..Your approach to exploring song was, although challengingly different at first, very interesting and refreshing….. ….Your attitude of testing and challenging us to find something new in whatever we do is something that I really found useful I feel better for the experience, I want this now. I want to be part of the group, and I want to perform, to challenge myself, and to explore what I can do. And I have you guys to thank for that What was great about the course was that care was taken to ensure that we would be able to continue working in this way ourselves once the week had ended. The week suggested a set of goals and an array of tools with which to go about achieving those goals. …..There are so many ideas sparked by the workshop that are of potential benefit not only to performers but also to directors and writers Respect for the work space, the space that is kept for work and creativity was one of the main things that I took from the workshop I was challenged physically and creatively all at once, that is there was no separation from the play and the work. This was so freeing as a performer but also for myself. What was so amazing was the contact that you both encouraged us to keep with each other and how it was so necessary to us as performers to look outside of ourselves for inspiration. The workshop was so inspiring and freeing and thank you so much for opening us all up to this work ” PERFORMANCE October 15th 2008 Marián Araújo, (nervousystem) presents her solo work The Myth and The Flesh at Kent University, in Canterbury, England . This is an open presentation and talk to students as part of the British Grotowski Project and supported by The Arts & Humanities Research Council. For more information go to the Myth & The Flesh page on this site (click repetoire in the menu-left) or visit www.themythandtheflesh.weebly.com Marián also performed in Dublin at The Back Loft in La Catedral last September 25th to 27th where the performance was vey well attended and received. We were very pleased to present The Myth and The Flesh in Ireland after a number of performances this year in Poland, Italy and Spain. The Myth and The Flesh is a solo piece created as part of an ongoing solitary research process. It explores meanings of reality and the nature of identity; referencing cultural symbols, religion and sexuality ____________________ *nervousystem* were invited to Lamezia, Italy as special guests to participate in Linea Trasversale an intercultural theatre exchange twinned with the 15th University of Eurasian Theatre in June 2007. We were the first theatre company ever to represent Ireland at this prestigious international event led by world renowned director Eugenio Barba (Odin Teatret, Denmark) and hosted by Teatro Proskenion (Italy). The company gave several talks and presented work demonstrations to participants from Europe, South America, and the U.S. Mr. Barba paid special tribute to *nervousystem* and highlighted the importance of our presence this year and our significant contribution to the Theatre Research endeavor at large. This event led to the forging of relations with Teatro Proskenion. We have just returned from Calabria, Italy where the ensemble continued work on The Myth and The Flesh and started preliminary work on a new project: The Resurrection. nervousystem also hosted a six day workshop led by Singaporian actress Gey Pin Ang (formerly of the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards). The company also invited Irish musicians Eoin Dillon (Uilleann pipe player with well known Irish band Kíla) and Frank Tate to engage in a cultural exchange with local musicians in the area which culminated in a live concert. To see some footage click www.youtube.com and search for "Irish music in Calabria".All of these activities were housed in Donna Luna an artists workcentre where we were were facilitated and hosted as special guests by Teatro Proskenion for the month of November. *Nervousystem* was awarded funding by Culture Ireland to facilitate this project. We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Teatro Proskenion for their inexhaustable generosity in hosting us and to all those who made these activities possible. Development and presentation of Project Solo: a piece composed and performed by Marián Araújo and directed by Aiden Condron. This performance was presented with the working-title The Myth and the Flesh in Project Upstairs, Dublin in September of this year. *Nervousystem* has been invited to present this work in Valladolid, Spain in March 2008 An extended period of free worksessions led by *nervousystem* at DCC’s The Lab from March to July 2007. Theses worksessions served to facilitate training and research within a safe concentrated laboratory environment and were open to emerging and experienced Dublin-based Irish theatre artists. These sessions proved a huge success and, owing to a high demand, the company aims to offer more worksessions in 2008 Irish actor Joseph Moylan joins the ensemble. We are delighted to welcome Joe who was chosen out of number of actors who participated in a rigorous selection session conducted by the *nervousystem* in August '07. January 2007: Dublin City Council awards nervousystem a Seeder Grant for Myth and the Flesh (Project Solo) The completion of the final phase of Theatre Haiku Project, for which the company was awarded an Arts Council Project grant in 2005. This final phase led to a public, open-air performance: Park Action. We presented this work in Phoenix Park, Dublin and also in Malta where we were invited to do an exchange with two other companies; Icarus Project (Malta) and C.I.R.T. Centro Indipendente Ricerca Teatrale (Italy). In Malta the piece was adapted for a site specific space on the outskirts of the city of Valletta and re-named Malta Action. nervousystem perform a work in progress selection from Aversion; a reworking of the original with the new title AVERSION THE I - EYE. This was performed as part of OFFSIDE II: a new Live Art event at the Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin, hosted by Pallas Studios and curated by Fergus Byrne. Marián Araújo receives a personal invitation from Thomas Richards of The Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards to participate in their month long Intervention in Moscow as part of Tracing Roads Across. This invite was extended on the basis of video footage of AVERSION seen by Richards. This is a great tribute to the quality of Marian's work and that of nervousystem. _________ AVERSION DEVELOPMENT: nervousystem will continue to expand the performance practice evolved during initial rehearsal for this innovative piece of work and develop its mise en scene, strengthening its place in our repertoire. THEATRE HAIKU: An ongoing project creating small pieces of theatre based on the structure and aesthetic of the traditional form of the haiku poem. This project will allow the company to develop its dramaturgical skills, will incorporate the writer fully, and give the artistic staff opportunities to diversify from their own disciplines into directing for stage. The fruits of the project will provide the company with material to develop a more informal platform for the presentation of their work to diverse audiences. . WORKSHOPS FOR ACTORS & THEATRE PRACTITIONERS: An opportunity for the company to share the practices of our Performance Research and Development to date, and develop further the pedagogical aspect of our work. Through these workshops we hope to continually refresh the ensemble, both through contact with new and upcoming practitioners from our own and other artistic disciplines, and as a recruiting process for the company. TOURING: We intend to develop this dimension of our work. It is important to our artistic and financial health to bring our work to audiences, national and international, and facilitate creative exchange with other companies and artists and institutions. . Video Trailer

NEWS & PROJECTS

Video Trailer