The Ball Room
Theatrical play for young and old-er
Poetic Statement
Play
We aim for continuous inquiry into the potential for play and risk taking in our work, through its development, rehearsal and presentation.
Facilitating playful experiences underpins our practice. Brian Boyd in On the Origin of Stories gives reason as to why this may be a worthy exercise, "The amount and intensity of play in different species correlate closely with the species' intelligence and flexibility of behaviour."
So, if art can act as a mechanism for social change, then our logic in initiating participatory acts of play is that we are creating opportunities for people and communities to gain social, emotional and cognitive skills.
That amidst the frivolity and in what at first appears as a nonsensical practice, we are co-ordinating an approach that supports the growth for more connected and compassionate communities.
With time we have realised that when a punter arrives asking “What happens here?” It doesn’t signify criticism but rather that we have successfully aroused their curiosity which is an optimum state for learning and an essential ingredient to spur on development.
Art (a process)
Sharing our passion for the creative process is integral and our works constantly evolve with those that engage with us.
We believe play to be an essential ingredient in all creative acts, hence our slogan 'in play we make art'.
The design, consisting of the space, objects and performers is given significant consideration during our development processes as a key component to arouse curiosity.
Our palette, to be able to equally engage children and adults, is a sensory one and one that draws inspiration from natural phenomena and environments. We often reference the beach as a space that offers play, risk and relaxation for a broad age range and it does so through all the senses.
Collaboration
We are driven by a strong collaborative process and strive to involve communities (audience and presenters) as fellow creative partners.
The collaboration that occurs with our audiences completes our creative process. Spontaneous interactions appear more poignant within our play design framework. There is attempt to pull focus on play as a form of art in life.
With each presentation we create a micro community. Families are encouraged to play together and with other participants.
The only rule that is vocalized is to take care of each other and the space.
We actively foster an inclusive artistic practice and marketing approach as we believe it enriches the work we create and offers people and communities a space to practice being together.
This is child’s play and simplicity is key. At the same time we also believe it to be short sighted to limit these playful opportunities to infancy. Reason being, the development potential these experiences offer individuals and community can be profound.