ZEPA - European Zone of Artistic Projects - Event reviews

Generik Vapeur at Out There Festival 2012

Sarah James — 2012-09-24T09:47:14Z

Standing like a silent guardian over the seafront, Generik Vapeur's Omni X was visible for literally miles as you approached Great Yarmouth and the performance site.

Over 9000 people crowded into St Nicholas car park with palpable excitement. As the giant iron figure's head rotated and a beacon illuminated the night sky; the crowd hushed and the show began. 50 minutes of awe inspiring spectacle and atmospheric music followed. With a live rock soundtrack, the stage was set for some astounding theatre. The spectacular aerial work, including the ethereal pterodactyl and mighty Titanic, brought the biggest response from the crowd. The beautifully rendered projections brought the iron figure to life and even the humble cardboard box was transformed into dramatic spectacle.

Half way through the show, as the band played ‘Tea for Two', twelve local participants got the chance to join the show, as they helped in the British tradition of serving tea.

An incredible pyrotechnic finale was received by a very appreciative crowd – a massive ‘thank you' to Generik Vapeur from the whole of Great Yarmouth!

Stickleback Plasticus at Out There Festival 2012

Richard Roberts — 2012-09-24T09:40:25Z

Oi! You at the back with your hands in your pockets! If you think this show is just for kids you'd better think again. Tom, our street-wise alley cat is on a mission to share his life-in-a-bin with everyone and might target his rough charm on you.

Together with Ella Bella Cinderella Creamcrackers Dentresangle, a pedigree moggie fallen on hard times and living in the bin next door, Tom philosophises and wise-cracks on cat-related issues whilst waiting for breakfast to fly onto the nearby bird-feeder. All of life is here: the daily quest for food, the mutual attraction of rough and smooth, the (off-stage) demise of Fat Bob, the birth of Ella's kittens and Tom's angst over their paternity. The climax of the show is a musical number by . . . Kat Bush. Purrfect!

Tom and Ella dress up on stage in the minutes before the show, gently metamorphosing into feline form so their appearance as giant cats does not alarm the younger members of the audience.

Les Studios De Cirque

Darren Cross — 2012-09-24T09:34:05Z

“Time is an illusion of control,” shouts one of Studio De Cirque's daredevil quartet in this show in three parts. Control is certainly what is demonstrated as the four artists turn the massive 10m wheel of death into a circus plaything.

Spinning inside, walking the outside, and suspended from within, they dazzled the crowds with exceptional synchronised control, astounding skill and several heart-in-mouth moments.

Through three shows, they move a loosely woven narrative on ‘time' from cavemen, through modern times, to some future period at the world's end.

With the finer nuances of the story perhaps lost in translation, it was the middle of the three shows which was received best. Set in a French cafe, and performed to the distinctive music of Edith Piaf, it had a delightful French flavour that made it one of the stand-out shows of Out There 2012.

Abigail Collins - Buttabing ! Buttaboom ! Buttafly ! at Out There 2012

Darren Cross — 2012-09-24T09:27:57Z

You don't mess with Abigail Collins! In this show, she performs as one of her alter-egos, the streetwise New Yorker, Angel Rodriguez.

With acrobatics, some impressive hula hooping and a little pole dancing Abigail leads the audience on a comedy life-story of the feisty Ms Rodriguez.

The show is part stand-up comedy, part circus, part tribute act. Throughout the audience interaction is constant. They almost become part of the story with the finale seeing Abigail/Angel bring together various participants as she performs a hip hop rendition of Madame Butterfly.

Abigail has mastery of the audience throughout as she cajoles them to do her bidding. The feisty attitude worked particularly well here at Out There, with lots of young people and women relating particularly to her strong character.

Les P'tits Bras at Out There Festival

Richard Roberts — 2012-09-24T09:24:24Z

Trapeze artists Chouchou and Zouzou take you back to the world of their grandparents, re-creating the show that “Mammi” and “Pappi” performed in 1937. They set the scene, with period costume, trad. Jazz, and an antique trapeze structure seven metres high.

Dazzling acrobatics and trapeze routines are centre stage, but Zouzou has brought her hapless, over-enthusiastic brother Alfred along to help. With Chaplinesque characterisation and timing, Alfred is often to be found dangling precariously from the structure by one leg and in need of rescue just before, or during, Zouzou and Chouchou's trapeze double acts.

Suspended from a giant bungee cord, Zouzou makes an exceptionally graceful and aerobatic Odette in a short excerpt from Swan Lake, whilst Chouchou vies with Alfred (now on a unicycle) to be her partner. But family tensions soon come to the surface, and it's not long before Zouzou is swinging out of control and knocking the boys down like skittles. They take their revenge by catapulting her high above the audience, then leaving her dangling like a broken puppet whilst they take a bow.

The comedy is only put on hold for the climax of the show, when Zouzou performs some truly breath-taking aerial tricks and transfers on the high trapeze. Nail-biting stuff, all flawlessly executed.

Pete Sweet - Meet Pete Sweet at Out There 2012

Darren Cross — 2012-09-12T15:02:29Z

The delightful Pete Sweet, all the way from San Francisco, enchanted audiences at Out There with his genteel show ‘Meet Pete Sweet'.

Pete's west coast charm and relaxed performance style was just right on an afternoon when the weather in Great Yarmouth was more akin to his native California.

The show begins with an introduction to Pete – a geeky, blazer-clad clown with a fondness for jazz. As it progressed, Pete demonstrates some wonderful old fashioned clowning, sight gags and clever improvisation, all neatly interwoven with technically excellent slack rope and juggling work.

The finale sees some hilarious slackrope slapstick and impressive unicycle work – all while singing Minnie the Moocher.

Great Yarmouth community gives Générik Vapeur's “Waterlitz” a warm welcome

Claude Morizur — 2012-09-09T20:52:45Z

Waterlitz enthrilled thousand of UK spectactors last Saturday in the most Eastern town of our European Zone of Artistic Projects. This monumental spectacle ended [the 5th Out There Festival and] the first ZEPA project. It crowns the determination and the amazing work achieved by Joe Mackintosh and the SeaChange team in what was a challenging area!

Many of us know how hard it has been to get there, to fulfill the dream. Hats off to the ZEPA partners and Générik Vapeur in particular.
To the goosebumps triggered from the final piece of Waterlitz succeeded the feeling of a lump in our throat: in the Garden of the righteous, under Great Yarmouth's starry sky, there was an air of freedom, brotherhood and eternity.

SeaSaw from Tilted Productions at Brighton Festival 2012

Cécile Babin — 2012-08-10T12:33:01Z

On Sunday 20th May 2012, SeaSaw was staged on Brighton Seafront next to the Marina. The best possible location for the piece, according to Maresa Van Stockert, artistic director of the company as Brighton Seafront “is a brilliant mixture of rough wasteland and beautiful pebble beach” (see article “Go with the flow” published in The Argus on the 18th May 2012).

Photos: Liz Johnson Artur

Wet Picnic at Hat Fair

Cécile Babin — 2012-07-31T10:59:48Z

Matt Feerick and his Wet Picnic's partners performed their new creation The Birthday Party on Sunday 8th July.

Photos : Vincent Le Goascoz

Les Apprentis de la rue in Amiens

Maria Xavier (Translation Cécile Babin) — 2012-07-25T13:22:52Z

A research and training street arts project is growing with the universities based within the European Zone of Artistic Projects. In this context, Le Hangar – Fabrique des arts de la rue d'Amiens carried out an initiative untitled « Les Apprentis de la rue » this year.

This initiative resulted in the involvement of emerging companies from the Zepa-based universities of Amiens and Winchester in the 35th edition of the festival La Rue est à Amiens - Fête dans la Ville.

On 23th and 24th June, the festival-goers discovered four companies “Apprentis dans la rue” .
The company Les Pétards Mouillés and their show Mercutio.

Les Chevaliers pillards aux portes de Munich from CaBaret GraBuge .

Le collectif des Galériens and their first performance T'es qui toi ?

The English company Hotch Potch from Winchester with Ka-dunk-a-junk.