New show by Lyric's resident community arts group
AMICI Dance
Theatre Company in collaboration with Improbable are to present 'Stars
Are Out Tonight" at the Lyric a performance devised by Wolfgang Stange,
Amici, Julian Crouch & Lee Simpson.
Stars Are Out Tonight by Amici Dance Theatre Company in collaboration
with Improbable is an uplifting and celebratory new theatre production
marking Amici’s 25th anniversary.
Pius Hickey attended rehearsals for productions by AMICI Dance Theatre
Company every Wednesday and Saturday for over 20 years. In a mixed group
of professional and amateur performers he became a talented actor and
comedian as he worked in over 40 productions. And he kept a journal.
Now, as part of AMICI's 25th Anniversary Celebrations, his journals form the basis of their latest production, Stars Are Out Tonight. In a mix of dance, mask work, spoken word and live music, Pius's record of the productions, the development of the company and his own personal development are told as a spectacular journey in search of truth.
AMICI is a unique dance theatre company which integrates people with learning difficulties, physical disabilities and sensory impairment with able-bodied dancers, actors and musicians, all led by pioneer of inclusive arts Wolfgang Stange. Stange has been a trailblazer in the field of inclusive arts, in which people with and without disabilities work creatively together. He has been a dedicated promoter of inclusive teaching methods around the world and has an outstanding international reputation. AMICI has worked in Japan, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Poland and Germany, and are the Resident Community Arts Organisation at the Lyric Hammersmith.
For Stars Are Out Tonight a team of Improbable artists, spearheaded by Julian Crouch, who is making over 40 of his extraordinary masks for the production. Julian Crouch has worked with Wolfgang Stange in Ireland and Sri Lanka and found his teaching methods and their result inspirational, not solely in the sphere of inclusive arts, but as applicable to all forms of theatre and performance.
To celebrate their 25th anniversary, AMICI will bring together, for the first time, the integrated performance groups and leaders in the disability arts field from Japan, Egypt, Scotland and around England. The Festival will run from June 10-18, 2005 at the Lyric Hammersmith. The heart of the Festival will be the original performances by delegate companies and the rich education and outreach programme offered to local area schools and dancers.
Fusion is a unique opportunity to celebrate the power of inclusive arts - a forum for artistic exchange and enrichment for all who participate. As each of the participating groups perform to a highly professional standard, the festival will also challenge conventional attitudes about disability and the arts.
May 29, 2005
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