Having previous explored territory that spills from physical theatre into art installation, The Other Way Works’ latest production, Mayfly, finds the group straying into the realms of guerilla theatre with a short, sharp intervention that combines music and light projection with physical performance.
Uniquely, Mayfly has actually been conceived for large festival campsites, where the five-minute outdoor piece will be performed at unannounced times in random locations. Shock and surprise are key as an anonymous two-person tent suddenly comes alive with light projections and contorting shadows, accompanied by an unsettling electro-acoustic score by composer Nuri Fontanals-Simmons. Inside the tent, The Other Way Works founders Katie Day and Jane Packman writhe, casting shadows on the interior.
Mayfly is perhaps less ambitious than the troupe’s touring autumn show, Homing Instinct, a complex interactive performance/installation that explores the universal longing for home, yet both underline the Birmingham company’s commitment to producing challenging shows.
METRO Birmingham