Performance: The Whole Routine by Edward Thomasson
The Whole Routine is a new musical performance about control and longing by Edward Thomasson. This ambitious work uses song and dance to explore how patterns of behaviour develop to manage the discomfort of vulnerability. Harmonies falter, gestures fall flat, and routines fall out of time but the group keeps trying, and imperfect connections form. Developed over three years through weekend workshops and public presentations, The Whole Routine describes attempts at breaking the numb repetitions of conventional interaction and the sometimes alarming awkwardness of trying to feel things differently.
The ensemble brings a range of experiences to the work: some have formal training; others sing in community choirs or perform in more informal settings. Each performer finds their own distinct way through the song and dance sequences. They perform side by side, together but separate.
The piece is performed imperfectly: slippage, mistakes and false starts are hoped for. Performers are encouraged to follow each other if they get lost at any point, but it’s not a mistake to get lost. The intention of the piece is to gently hold these various approaches and incoherencies together.
Book, Lyrics & Choreography
Edward Thomasson
Music
Robbie Ellen
Charlotte Harding
Performers
Adrian Quinton
Andrew Kerton
Clara Andersson
Edward Thomasson
Penelope Granycome
Simon Tipping
Yasmine Holness-Dove
Dramaturgy
Bendix Feserfeldt
Production Manager
Carolina Ongaro
Somatic Facilitation
Andrew Kerton
Viewpoints Facilitation
Valerie McCann
Commissioned by
London Performance Studios
Touring
Fri 29 & Sat 30 May, London Performance Studios, London
Sat 4 July, Nottingham Contemporary, Nottingham
Date TBC, Chapter, Cardiff
Date TBC, HOME, Manchester
Edward Thomasson makes performances, plays, videos and paintings. His work explores social and sexual interaction through song, dance, and enactment. He writes text and lyrics which are brought to life through collaborations with composers, performers, musicians and friends. His work has been presented internationally in museums, galleries and community spaces including Tate Britain, Glass House Community Centre, Studio Voltaire (all London), KW Institute for Contemporary Art (Berlin), Migros Museum of Contemporary Art, Zurich (Zurich) and West Space (Melbourne), among others. From 2007 to 2017, he collaborated with Lucy Beech on performance projects, including presentations at Tate Britain and the Barbican Theatre.
Charlotte Harding is an award-winning composer and saxophonist. Her works include the Ivors Composer Award - winning ‘Convo’ for massed ensemble (Royal Albert Hall) and the Ivors Composer Award - nominated ‘Them’ for contemporary dance company Ballet boyz (Sadler’s Wells/Edinburgh Festival/Vaudeville Theatre, West End). Charlotte and Edward have collaborated on performances since 2020.
Robbie Ellen is a song writer living in Kent. As ‘Personnel” he has released records with feature vocalists, a computer game soundtrack and compositions for artists’ videos and performances. Vocalists include Luki, Poisonous Relationship, Douglas Dare and Isabel Muñoz-Newsome among others. He has written music for a pantomime and line dancing. He is interested in the transformative effects and magical properties of song. Robbie and Edward have collaborated on performance projects since 2022.
Bendix Fesefeldt is a theatre maker and dramaturg. Working in renowned institutions such as Residenztheater München and Schauspielhaus Zürich, he knows the intersection of production conditions and artistic aesthetics intimately. Keen on keeping a diversity to his practice, he also engaged frequently in working in independent productions where he used this knowledge to hold spaces for artistic explorations as a dramaturg. His collaboration with Edward is one of these productions.
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This event will be held in The Space.
This event is wheelchair accessible.
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