Lockdown rules are sorely testing our limits, but amid our frustrations it’s worth sparing a thought for a theatre company who rely almost entirely on the power of touch to drive what they do.
Sensorium Theatre is a Perth-based company who create immersive live performances for young audiences – in particular those living with a disability. Through their highly inclusive, often participatory shows, Sensorium has, since 2010, delivered a rich variety of imaginative experiences for thousands of young people across the country and around the globe. Recent international tours include a season at the Lincoln Center in New York as part of The Big Umbrella Festival for audiences with autism, as well as shows at The Artground in Singapore.
While the COVID-19 crisis has paused any future performance plans, Sensorium co-Artistic Director Francis Italiano reveals how the sudden changes have in fact ignited new directions.
‘Actually, I think what these uncertain times are demanding of everyone are things artists have always done,’ he said.
‘Artists have always been resourceful, we’ve always had to innovate and find creative solutions… So in that way, it’s no different. However, for us as a company who are focused on intimate, often one-to-one performances, it goes to the core of what we do – or rather, what we can’t do at the moment.’
Italiano and co-Artistic Director Michelle Hovane have built the company’s ethos around ideas of physical proximity, eye contact and non-verbal interactions, which they recognise as fundamental ways to engage their audiences.
‘Our work is so much about one-to-one contact,’ Italiano explained.
‘We often know something about the individuals within our audiences too – we have extended relationships with them and their carers, and it’s all about that connection.
‘So we’re obviously very sad to temporarily lose those vital elements. And in the short term, one of our major national tours [planned for April 2020] has been postponed [until 2021], and our in-school programs planned for term two can’t happen. But now we’re asking ourselves, how can we make the work from here? And we’re actually excited about those possibilities.’
FLIPPING THE SCRIPT
Italiano explained that Sensorium is developing a series of web-based experiences that flips their standard working model on its head.
‘We’ve always been very active in the digital space. But now, instead of having that [screen-based] element of our work as an auxiliary… we need to foreground it.’
And while the company’s online presence will grow significantly in coming months, the artists have found clever ways to keep the tactile, sensory aspects of their work in sharp focus.
‘We’re creating what we’re calling ‘sensory packs’ that we can send to our audiences by post,’ Italiano said.
‘These packs will contain certain sensory building block items for participants to work with. We’ll include some recipes to help them put it all together, so it will be a highly interactive and creative experience that families can share while they continue to tune in to our work online.’
‘We keep thinking about the lived experiences of this health crisis. For us, it’s all about those human connections with our audiences, and we want to keep feeding those relationships through our work,’ he says.
NEW BENEFITS FOR HOMESCHOOLING
Amity Culver is a teacher and creative sensory specialist at Kenwick School in Perth, and has followed Sensorium’s shows and in-school programs for many years. She says the company’s innovate interim solutions could encourage highly beneficial new opportunities for homeschooling scenarios.
‘The upside is that there’s going to be more access for parents and teachers to Sensorium’s work, and there will be more opportunities for the adults to facilitate these experiences and open new ways for them to interact with their children and students,’ Culver says.
‘The other side of that is families who don’t have ready access to the internet, and who may not have computers in their homes. They won’t be able to receive the materials online, and some will already be feeling overwhelmed by the current situation, so won’t be able to engage. But that lack of online access for some families is an issue that all educators are facing in these times – so in that way, Sensorium’s new platforms are part of that larger picture.’
‘It’s early days for us in this new world,’ Italiano admitted, ‘and in the same way as we do for any of our new works, we’ll trial things with some members of our target audiences for feedback before we launch it.’
‘But there are so many possibilities for us to explore. We are very lucky, and we feel energised to keep going.’
