Theatre / homelessness
Four Bristol women make a verbatim theatre show on homelessness
Suspension Theatre are company of four Bristol-based women dedicated to devising and producing socially relevant and impactful theatre for change.
They also aim to carve out opportunities for disadvantaged or isolated people to express themselves through access to drama.
“We believe having access to the arts and a medium for creativity is fundamental to happiness,” they say.
is needed now More than ever
Sugar? – photo: Suspension Theatre
“It can give you a sense of self worth, confidence, expression and belonging and everyone should have access to it regardless of age, class, background, race, or previous experience.”
Now, Zoe Vearncombe, Belinda Day, Lily Bearwish and Anne Mowbray are staging Sugar?, a verbatim piece of theatre that gives voice to the homeless community within Bristol, whose stories often go unheard.
The play has been performed at the Crofters Rights, Bristol Old Vic’s Open Stage event, and outdoors at Bedlam Fair in Bath, and is now set to preview at The Wardrobe Theatre for two nights, on June 16-17, ahead of the company’s debut run at the Edinburgh Fringe.
The process of creation involved extensive research and interviews with individuals experiencing homelessness, with the support of the homeless shelter, Bristol Methodist Centre, and charity 1625 Independent People.
Photo: Suspension Theatre
‘It’s the cold and the wet weather when they’re both mixed together. You try for hours and hours and hours to get the frost out of your bones’ (X, Interviewed, March 2019)
“The stories we received were humbling, unexpected, heartbreaking, hilarious and all the emotions in between,” recall Suspension, who went on to gather perspectives on homelessness from the charity sector, the council, Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees and the general public.
“Sugar? proved we are all a lot more similar than we think”.
Photo: Suspension Theatre
The result is a powerful, funny and emotionally affecting conflation of verbatim dialogue, physical theatre, original music and live and recorded sound that, it is hoped, will inspire audiences to take a more active role in supporting the increasing numbers of people experiencing homelessness in Bristol.
Through a number of endeavours including Sleep Out Bristol, revenue from ticket sales and a partnership with Billy Chip, Suspension have raised money for the various homelessness charities they have worked with on the project.
They currently have a crowdfunder to help them with the costs of taking Sugar? to the Fringe, as the quartet take turns to walk, swim and run the virtual distance of 373 miles from Bristol to Edinburgh.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CdEOK3EoY1w/
Sugar? (age recommendation 12+) is at The Wardrobe Theatre on June 16-17 at 7.30pm. Tickets are available at www.thewardrobetheatre.com.
Main photo: Suspension Theatre
Read more: New film shines a light on homelessness in Bristol
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