A trio of actors wait on stage for instructions that will issue forth from a swimming pool's tannoy system. They do everything they are told to do; they don't know what they are going to be told to do. Then suddenly, the world where folks in swimsuits run around receiving orders under bright stage lights is taken away and replaced with a thick, dreamlike world of signals and mayhem. The action flicks frantically between the two worlds, casting each state into doubt and disbelief - and the connection between the two starts to blur and muddle. A different trio of actors take part each night in Five In The Morning, Rotozaza's latest piece of experimental theatre and each night is promised to be a unique and original event.
" For the last three years Rotozaza’s theatre practice has centered around a unique strategy of giving instructions to unrehearsed guest performers, different every night. If recent work - OOFF, ROMCOM and DOUBLETHINK - explored what happens when you take away responsibility of ownership and awareness from an actor, FIVE IN THE MORNING turns this around and asks what exactly that job is, what pretending can mean and the different kinds of it we need."
Five In The Morning is a co-production with Hackney Empire and will be performed (though "performed" is rather loosly interpreted in this case) in the Empire's Bullion Theatre, a warehouse-type space at the back of the main building that is, apparently, perfect for experimental / mental theatre.
Opens tonight and runs until 12th March, evening shows only (7.30pm). For more information on the show and to book tickets, go to the Rotozaza website here.
