Text by: Du Xinxi / 撰文:杜昕禧
‘Produce fresh work for adventurous people by inspiring artists.’
‘充滿靈感的藝術家為冒險者們所創作的新作品’
Fuel is a London based theatre producing company founded by Louise Blackwell and Kate McGrath in 2004, the company producing works in partnership with a lot of very exciting artists across the UK including Will Adamsdale, Clod Ensemble, not name but a few. To this date, many of their work are with various theatre productions, from actual proper theatre to street arts, and in all different kinds of place such as outdoor show, workshop and national tours both nationally in the UK and internationally. The artists working with Fuel usually have a very direct and playful relationship with their audiences as they challenge their audiences both intellectually and emotionally. Louise Blackwell and Kate McGrath choose the artists very carefully and usually support the artists to develop their own ideas, along with their carefully chosen projects.
Louise and Kate also believe in new talents, and let new talents to generate new ideas and develop experimental work that people would love. By the end of their 6th year, Fuel and their co-artists had over 250,000 audiences and 4349 people took parts in their related workshops. They have developed a good number of loyal audiences which is constantly growing on a daily basis from all over the world. The company believes that their work would be perfect for the audiences attracted to live performances who may not be hugely interested in traditional theatre.
“燃料”是由路易斯·布萊克韋爾(Louise Blackwell)和凱特·麥格拉思(Kate McGrath)於2004年在倫敦創辦的一家戲劇制作公司,一直以來與包括威爾·亞當斯戴爾(Will Adamsdale),克拉德·安森博( Clod Ensemble)等在內的眾多非常優秀而且令人激動的藝術家們合作並幫助他們制作作品。直至今日,“燃料”的作品覆蓋了各種不同的戲劇類型,從傳統的戲劇到街頭的藝術作品,以及許多戶外表演,也包括了工作坊以及在英國乃至世界範圍內的各種巡演。與“燃料”合作的藝術家們往往是直率而幽默的,他們從劇情以及情感上打動著觀眾。路易斯和凱特在藝術家和作品的選擇上非常謹慎,他們鼓勵並支持藝術家去發展和完善自己的想法,同時他們對有才華的青年藝術家抱有很大期望,路易斯和凱特經常為年輕的藝術家們提供場地,讓他們來大膽嘗試新的靈感和創作實驗性的先鋒作品。
在公司成立后的六年裡,與公司合作過的藝術家和觀眾人數就超過了25萬人次,其中參加其組織的工作坊的人數也超過了4000人次。“燃料”多年來培養了許多忠實的觀眾,而且這樣的觀眾人數還在全球範圍內不斷增長。“燃料”相信他們的作品很容易吸引那些不經常去傳統劇院看戲的觀眾。
Fuel Theatre is having their 10th year birthday this year, and had announced a brand new season of work to mark this anniversary in the summer. The programme included Requardt and Rosenberg’s Roof which was a part of Bristol’s Mayfest, and part of London for LIFT Festival. Also included Sound and Fury’s installation-based work Charlie Ward was also part of the new season, as well as their cross-platform work from Phenomenal People which was an event that celebrates inspiring women. Another project was Uninvited Guests’ The Last Tempest, which is a part-music part-theatre sequel to Shakespeare’s play The Tempest. There is also a sound installation which imagines the world in ten years’ time from the eyes of 10 years old children project named Ten Years from Now.
今年是“燃料”製作公司成立的十周年,為此他們特別在今年夏天策劃了一個全新的表演季,當中包括曾在布裏斯托和倫敦上演過的瑞夸爾德和羅森博格(Requardt & Rosenberg)的作品《屋頂(Roof)》, 同時還有聒噪藝術組合(Sound and Fury)創作的的裝置藝術作品《查理·沃德(Charlie Ward)》。另外還有“燃料”與女性組織“非凡之人(Phenomenal People)”的跨界合作──向偉大女性致敬的作品,以及與“不速之客”劇團(Uninvited Guests)合作的以半音樂半戲劇的形式續寫莎士比亞《暴風雨》的續集《最後的暴風雨(The Last Tempest)》。這次紀念十周年的表演季還包含了一件聲音裝置作品《十年後(Ten Years from Now)》,展現了在孩子眼中10年後的未來場景。
Some of Fuel’s work
部分作品
The Last Tempest
最後的暴風雨
The Last Tempest is a sequel to Shakespeare’s The Tempest, in which Caliban and Ariel are left alone on the island where Prospero sailed over with Miranda and Ferdinand. In this play, both of Prospero’s former servants are set free to tell their versions of the story in their own magical words that their master taught them and conjure-up their world.
This is a piece of collaborative and devised theatre work with Uninvited Guests and collaborated with Neil Johnson, the composer and musician, and filled the magical but yet familiar island with guitar and evocative sounds, it was part-theatre and part-gig, which attracted both theatre-goers who know Shakespeare’s work and those audiences who were new to his work.
《最後的暴風雨》是莎士比亞的悲喜劇《暴風雨(The Tempest)》的續集,故事講述了普洛斯彼羅的仆人卡力班和精靈愛麗兒被留在了小島上的故事, 在普洛斯彼羅揚帆離開了小島後他的這兩位仆人都自由了,於是他們用前任主人教給他們的語言去講述了自己眼中的故事,並用魔法召喚來了屬於他們自己的世界。
這是一出與“不速之客”劇團(Uninvited Guests)以及音樂作曲家尼爾·約翰遜(Neil Johnson)一起合作的多元化戲劇作品,讓莎士比亞筆下魔幻的小島充斥著悠揚的吉他聲與其他奇妙的聲響,整個作品既像是一部戲劇又像是一場音樂會,同時吸引了許多本來就熟知莎士比亞作品的觀眾和對莎士比亞作品不是很熟悉的觀眾。
Ten Years From Now is a work created by Gareth Fry, designed by Lizzie Watts and Pete Malkin, which is a sound installed invitation to imagine the world in a decade’s time through ten years old children played in an ice cream van, which is a magical place to children’s imagination. The ice cream vans can be seen everywhere in the UK, they send a message to all to come and meet friends and have a treat.
《十年後》是一部由加雷思·弗萊(Gareth Fry)創作,由莉茲·沃茨(Lizzie Watts)與皮特·馬爾金(Pete Malkin)合作設計的音效裝置作品。這是一張給所有觀眾去通過一群10歲孩子的眼睛來觀看未來十年后世界的邀請函,而表演場地則是在所有孩子心中最為誘人的地方之一: 冰激凌售賣車裡面。而作為演出場地的冰激淩車遍佈於整個英國,歡迎著所有觀眾的參與。
Love Letters Straight From Your Heart
來自內心深處的情書
Love Letters Straight From Your Heart is a forthcoming work in November by Uninvited Guests and Fuel which will be played 8 years after its first performance back in 2006. This work will be a mix of wedding, a wake, and a radio dedication to long lost loves and current lovers, to mums, to dads, and to absent friends.
Everyone is invited to share their all sorts of love stories with Fuel and let their love letter be part of the show, while witness other people’s romantic gesture or sign of friendship.
《來自內心深處的情書》是一出現在正在上演的作品, 這部由“燃料”製作公司和“不速之客”劇團一起合作的作品曾在2006年首演。這部作品是獻給一切愛人的情書,無論是現在的愛人,還是失去多年的愛人,或者是家人以及朋友。
在演出前“燃料”製作組一直在尋找故事,他們向許多人發出了邀請,希望大家成為“情書”的作者,同時也一起見證其他人的浪漫故事。
Find Out More: www.fueltheatre.com