CNC 2018 VAULT Festival shows:
Becoming Shades (24th January – 18th March)
Chivaree Circus return to VAULT Festival with a brand new and extended version of Becoming Shades – a dark circus production which takes audiences on an immersive underworld journey in the long dark tunnels of Waterloo’s Vaults. Based on the classical myth of Persephone, Becoming Shades is a bold re-imagining that fuses together live music, physical theatre, aerial acrobatics, fire, dance and mime. Journey down the River Styx and join these lost souls in the underworld.
Monster (24th – 28th January)
Internationally acclaimed, Fringe First winning Worklight Theatre, present Joe Sellman-Leava’s one man show Monster – a dark but humorous exploration of gender and masculinity. With its examination of male attitudes towards women, and male role models celebrated in society, the play has gained new relevance since its Edinburgh debut in the wake of recent sexual assault allegations against a string of celebrities. Monsterimportantly sheds light on our perceptions of gender, violence and aggression.
Think of England (7th – 11th February)
Think of England is a moving tale of love, lust and swing dancing in wartime Waterloo. The war office has employed Bette and Vera to travel the country hosting tea dances to boost morale. But how will the RAF boys react when they discover the women’s real purpose: to send the young men off to fight having experienced all of life’s pleasures? Join the ladies for an unforgettable dance, a rousing song, and a real-life war time scandal that threatens to destroy the women’s lives, shame the community and tear apart one already splintered RCAF crew. Can you save the night?
Be Prepared (7th – 11th February)
Following its premiere at Edinburgh Fringe 2016, Ian Bonar and Rob Watt collaborate once again to bring the darkly comic one-man show, Be Prepared, to London audiences. This is a heart-breaking and moving yet hilarious play about one man struggling to remember while another finds himself unable to forget. Inspired by Ian Bonar’s own experiences of his father’s death and subsequently finding his grandad’s cherished memoires, Bonar uses his grandad’s words, some verbatim and some embellished to explore memory, grief and how we remember things.
If We Got Some More Cocaine I Could Show You How I Love You (14th – 25th February)
IARA winner and Offie-nominated If We Got Some More Cocaine I Could Show You How I Love You is a play of small dreams and big hopes. John O’Donovan’s romantic comedy explores the ways people find love and kindness, even when oppression kicks them from all angles. This raucous and unlikely drama looks at going down roads not laid for you, climbing ladders that weren’t set out for you, never asking permission, and trying not to end up so thick-skinned that you forget how to see the good in things.
Das Fest (28th February – 4th March)
Crossing between illusion and theatre, Philipp Oberlohr’s thrilling new production Das Fest is the surreal sequel to his interactive Das Spiel, which premiered at Ovalhouse and sold out at VAULT Festival in 2016 winning the People’s Choice Award. Das Fest is a mindreading experience, celebrating the past and the future of the attendees. Oberlohr could select anyone from the audience – he doesn’t know who will be chosen or what memories they will bring. It could be anybody. This mind-blowing production combines new methods of storytelling, live art, clowning, physical theatre and illusions in a way that will knock you off your feet.
Ok, Bye (7th – 11th March)
Following an award-winning run at VAULT Festival 2017, RedBellyBlack Theatre returns with the world premiere of OK, Bye – a fierce and fresh take on saying goodbye. Using their signature combination of physical theatre and dynamic storytelling, RedBellyBlack explores the very simple premise that saying ‘OK, Bye’ can mean thousands of different things: ‘I love you’, ‘I’m sorry’, ‘I never want to see your stupid face again’ or even just the end of a phone call. Using live music, lip syncing and puppetry, this production showcases raw, real-life stories from the general public.
Thirsty (14th – 18th March)
Direct from New York, this hilarious and critically acclaimed autobiographical cabaret is a shameless musical journey of slurred real-life stories, which passionately celebrate poor life choices… Named one of Time Out New York’s Top 10 Cabaret Artists, Tori Scott’s production is set to the music of Aretha Franklin, Judy Garland, Miley Cyrus and more.