PARASOL was devised at Vienna English Theatre Academy over a period of four weeks with an ensemble of fifteen performers who are currently in their first year of training.
The idea for PARASOL was born during a family holiday in Croatia. I started to take pictures of all the different parasols I encountered along the beach, but also at cafes and restaurants.
A parasol provides a location, a situation, a scene. A place for protection, a place to gather, a place to rest, a place to be. But it also poses questions. How do we deal with sharing space? How do we deal with the potential uncomfortable closeness with another person? What conversations come up while innocently relaxing under a parasol together?
Moreover what places of shelter will be essential for our survival, as planet earth is rapidly warming up. What do we offer as humans, what is our function in the universe? Isn’t it true that when we are engaged in acts of love, we humans are at our best and most resilient?
Asking questions such as the above, we started to research topics that sparked our interest and created our first moments of material for the show. We explored, developed, and evolved the material that we generated and eventually created the play you are about to see. It might feel a little bit like you opened up a ‘Wimmelbuch’ (picture book), depicting a beach scene richly detailed with humans, objects and encounters.
We’d love to find out what you discovered and what characters, movements or encounters you felt most drawn to?
Performers Aimee St., Anna H., Bella K., Constantin C., Lisa la C., Liz M., Lukas M., Sanja B., Toni S., Mattia C., Tahzara W., Nicolas K., Jules N., Eilis O’Sullivan (understudy for Alex K.) Director Stefanie Sommer Light Karl Boerner Stage Manager Eilis O’Sullivan Organisation Helen Russell & Monika Volk as part of VETA Vienna English Theatre Academy
Photographs taken by Raffaela Pretting for VETA
