Women & Climate: Shoreditch Town Hall Series

This Autumn, Shoreditch Town Hall presents a trio of new productions that encourage conversations around embodiment, mental health and intergenerational change. From a solo  work examining the politics of visibility, to a response to everyday chaos and a family drama  rooted in the realities of rural Britain, these shows offer unique perspectives on how we  navigate the tensions of contemporary life through art and performance.

Brand new production, Anatomy of Survival(11th – 12th September) explores a seemingly  ordinary encounter of a woman having a meltdown in a coffee shop and spirals it into a multi sensory investigation of perception and panic. From award-winning playwright Vivienne  Franzmann (The Snow Queen, Bristol Old Vic; Bodies, The Royal Court), choreographer Frauke  Requardt (Mothers, 2017; Future Cargo, 2021), and co-produced by The Place, this darkly comic  show fuses dance, music and science, to dissect the ancient workings of our nervous systems as  they struggle to keep up with contemporary life. Set to premiere at Shoreditch Town Hall before  showing at The Place, this commission by The Place, The Royal Court Theatre and The Royal  Philharmonic Society investigates how close we all live to the edge and how fragile our shared  reality can be when survival mode kicks in.

Created and performed by Cypriot artist Elena Antoniou, LANDSCAPE(24th – 25th October) presents a fiercely personal piece around vulnerability and desire. In collaboration with Dance  Umbrella who are returning to Shoreditch Town after last partnering in 2018, this one-woman  show invites audiences to witness self-objectification as defiance, balancing trauma and  eroticism in a performance that confronts the notion of looking and being looked at. Having

worked with international institutions including the Marina Abramović Institute and Onassis  Stegi, Antoniou brings her acclaimed choreographic skills to Shoreditch Town Hall with this  intimate and bold work.

Also returning to Shoreditch Town Hall will be curious directive with Black Sheep(24th October – 1st November). Opening the production up to public debate, this rich family drama that  showcases the hidden pressures shaping rural Britain is set to take place in the Council  Chamber. Following three generations of the Carter family, this poignant new play tackles  succession, sustainability and the often-overlooked crisis of mental health in farming  communities. Developed in collaboration with twelve Norfolk farmers and with support from the National Theatre Generate Programme, Black Sheepoffers a rare, female-led portrait of a  sector at breaking point. As farmers navigate food insecurity, climate change and political  uncertainty, this deeply moving six-hander gives voice to the people behind farming land and  what they stand to lose.

Ellie Browning, Head of Cultural Programme, comments, This season we’re excited to partner  with leading venues, festivals and companies who bring bold artists and rich ideas to Shoreditch  Town Hall. It’s a joy to see the building animated in such different ways – from the intimacy of a  solo performance in our main space to the charged energy of shared debate in the Council  Chamber. 

We’re delighted to shareAnatomy of Survival with The Place, an experimental collaboration  between writer and choreographer that plays with form, blending humour, movement and  science. Our commitment to platforming women and our experiences continues with Elena  Antoniou’sLANDSCAPE – a powerful, uncompromising solo work that places her at the centre of  our grand Assembly Hall. And we welcome back curious directive, inviting London audiences to  reflect on how the systems we rely on are shifting in the face of climate change.  

More to come from Shoreditch Town Hall’s season will be announced soon.

Main Image: Shoreditch Town Hall

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