Adél Bálint, Alice Ortona Coles and Orla Hardie

Valley Fold by Adél Bálint

Do we truly care about one another or are we simply to be discarded?

Using origami, meditating and music, "Valley Fold" explores the use of well-being tools and calming activities to escape the noise, both from the world and our inner self. The piece also questions the idea of feeling used for the benefit of others around us.

By humanising paper structures, the performers are giving them a chance to express themselves and perhaps turn things around. Embark on a journey which is mysterious and funny with moments of deep reflection.

Too Much, Too Many, All the Time by Alice Ortona Coles

Too Much, Too Many, All the Time’ confronts feelings of overwhelm in our complex, fast-paced, politically-fraught world. Desperately trying to stay afloat, Alice seeks refuge in her imagination, dreaming up alternative existences through spoken word, costume, dance and song, exploring the intersection between our rich, internal worlds and lived realities. In this land of make-believe, she reconnects with reality by listing everything she hates, from the banal (losing her keys) to the deeply personal (not speaking to her brother). Alone in this performative world, she finally realises that what she hates most is isolation.

The play between the everyday and the creative imagination is comical, painful and true, but ultimately, she finds lightness in these human contradictions.

SKUMO by Orla Hardie

SKUMO is a double act that explores 'The Uncanny'. The duet looks at the incongruous balance of dark despair and comedic undertones that can sit side by side. It slips between darkness and light bringing waves of frantic intensity and fragile tenderness. The pairing and costumes hint at vaudeville theatre and clowns whilst being general enough to represent us all. Dynamic changes in the soundtrack alter the mood and tone. At times the beauty of slow strings music is at odds with the fast pace and energy of the movement. With influences of slapstick and dark humour, nonsensical pockets of narrative appear and disappear carving a window to the mangled unconscious.