Hannah Nicklin

Theatre Work

I wasn’t sure what to call this bit… theatre work? Well, I suppose that will have to do. I think what I do is theatre, in fact I’m writing a whole PhD to argue that point. But some people might disagree. Let’s agree to do that, shall we?

The theatre experiences I currently make vary from light-minded pervasive games, solo storytelling, snippets of live art, to what has so-far been my main body of work; soundwalks. Soundwalks are audio tracks that you download and listen to in specific locations/situations, following their instructions and walking your way through a story. Kind of like audio augmented reality.

I’m really interested in performance and play that happens in cities, in particular. And hope to continue to develop my practice with more and more ambitious projects. I’d like to see how far I can push that.

2012

Performance in the Pub logo

Performance in the Pub – a semi-regular night of solo and DIY performance put on by me. Some of the UK’s best, most exciting performance brought to a room in a pub in Leicester. Pay-what-you-can nights out for people who don’t really ‘do’ theatre. An antidote to my ongoing complaints about the lack of a small-scale performance community in Leicester

http://performanceinthepub.co.uk

The Umbrella Project EP - a project between Umbrella Project musician Simon Goff and I following all of the amazing music and stories that came out of the main Umbrella Project. The plan is to put out an EP on bandcamp with shorter versions of the instrumental tracks made for each soundwalk, plus 3 shorter, newly written stories inspired by the soundwalk content. Link as soon as we’ve done it!

Story Map – Really pleased to have become part of the regular team for Third Angel’s Story Map. Story Map is “An attempt to map the entire world, alphabetically, in a day. To name every country in its own language, and to collect a story for every country, and to place it, correctly, on the map, from memory. Using cardboard, paper, pens and post-it notes, and with the help of the audience, Third Angel and mala voadora build a portrait of the world, as it was, as it is now, and as it might be in the future.” – it’s a 12 hour durational piece where we map the world using true stories of fake things. A story for each country. My role is somewhere between researcher and dramaturg, according to Alex. Which sounds a lot better than how I would have put it. Touring throughout 2012 alongside the theatre piece What I Heard About the World

A Conversation with My Father promo image

A Conversation With My Father – An early version of this has been performed at the Little Festival of Everything, and an EMTAC scratch night in Nottingham. The piece is a solo work in progress born out of a conversation between an ex-policeman and his protestor daughter. A conversation about fear, grey areas, them and us, duty, and standing up to protect what you think matters. This is not a piece about which side you should take, and it is not addressed at the police, or protestors specifically, rather it’s a conversation between a daughter and father, who is proud of her, which also happens to expose the problems with the idea of ‘sides’ in the first place. Available for development and touring!

2011

#Dust - A collaboration with technologist and artist Nikki Pugh commissioned by MADE in Birmingham. There were two main components to #Dust, first the Dust Balls, and secondly the Dust Motes. The Dust Balls were large fragments of the city. They are formed out of open source electronics, clay, hope and optimism. They begin by introducing themselves to the listeners, and instruct them to point the device in different directions in order to ‘pick up’ stories of individuals in the areas surrounding them. Depending on the timing and direction in which you are facing, different stories will be heard.

A crushed #dust mote

The Dust Motes are small fragments of the city. Memories, secrets, and moments lost, dropped, found, discovered, gifted, stolen and spread throughout the city. All are from Real People. These motes were spread around the area surrounding the carpark where the first section happened. Groups of 3 went out to collect Motes, which they were then asked to look after carefully. At the end of the walk back to MADE’s office, they were asked to make a decision. Keep it, or crush it and see if anything was inside. More here.

The Umbrella Project - a city-wide pervasive story telling project. In association with Pilot Theatre and Loughborough University, and supported by the FuturEverything accelerator programe and Arts Council England, and with music from Simon Goff. See http://umbrellaproject.co.uk for more information.

The Umbrella Project Test - the test run of a story-collection and retelling system to be used for the full project. Stories will be collected in July, and wrought into a soundwalk for any damp urban space in early August. Website to follow.

Zero Hour Bus Tours - A sound experience recreating an apocalypse atop a night bus in London. For the In Transit Festival with Forest Fringe. May or may not involve 22 performers.

Twitterbug – a piece with Catherine Edwards, Alexander Kelly, and  North West Playwrights exploring the storytelling potential of Twitter. Blogged here.

2010

Home. A short piece for Fierce’s Interrobang! Season, a Stoke Newington Airport Live Art Speed Date. A simple one-to-one piece about the idea of never being able to return to the landscape that to you, is home. (Lincolnshire, which will be underwater come just 2m sea-level rise). Blogged here.

Hibernate! - a pervasive game for Manchester-based Larkin’ About’s Autumn festival. You play teams of small creatures who must find hidden food and bring it back to base in order to be the most successful species. Communication only in the form of squeaks and ‘scent’ (glow sticks). Enjoyed this very much, must make more games. Force my writerly control out a bit… Blogged here.

Nightwalk, York - Made for Illuminating York and the Take Over Festival – a soundwalk exploring Dark York; the changes that happen to our cities at night. With original music from Lantern Music. Watch the video taster, and download and listen over at nightwalkyork.tumblr.com

The Smell of Rain Reminds Me of You – a soundwalk made for up to 100 people for Hazard Festival, made in response to stories collected about kissing in the rain, and sort of about those liminal spaces in our teenage year, which when we’re adults end up as corridors. You can watch a video taster at rainreminds.tumblr.com, or see the original stories at rainonmy.tumblr.com

Walk With Me - my first experiment in soundwalk. Still online over at walkwith.tumblr.com