"La Strada" 2006

"la dolce vita"

compagnie jo bithume - (fr)

  What is La Strada? One of the most multi-faceted street and puppet theatre festivals in central Europe. But also perhaps Federico Fellini´s most beautiful film. Now the two became one: marking the opening, film and festival blend into a joyful and poetic evocation of art, enchanting the audience whatever the location - on the street, on the stage, in the cinema. To the music of Fellini´s Compadre Nino Rota, the opening event of "La Strada" transmuted into a film in which the audience played the lead role, and which emerged as the crowning glory at the conclusion of the evening.

"avec fraternité"

théâtre rouge - (fr)

  A weird, large family, a football team, a group of aliens who´ve lost their way? The ten comedians of Théâtre Rouge attracted attention not only due to their looks. Sphere-headed and weirdly dressed, they explored the city, analysing everything they find in terms of functionality and capacity - even the audience. Using subtile humour and without flashy effects, the ensemble of actors and puppeteers accompanied by a violin illustrated just how alien and bizarre well-known objects can be. Captivating, strange, wonderful.

"autrement dit"

délit de façade - (fr)

  The facade of a house became a stage as puppets dance between the floors: Upstairs the bourgeoisie, downstairs the underdogs - it comes as no surprise that this arrangement often goes haywire. From window to window there were arguments, love affairs, pregnancies - two generations who love, languish and laugh for the audience. Great effects and speedy puppet theatre. An affectionate, wry glanced behind the facades of the human being.

"anda la banda"

la guardia flamenca - (be)

  The "Flamenco guard" were in Graz to ensure that the Spanish dance of dances returns to where it belongs. Originally Flamenco was a harsh and gory affair of the streets and their inhabitants. Only later was it hailed as an art form for concert halls. 12 young Europeans showed how it is really done: fun, wild, ironic, full of life and feminine through and through. Rivalries are settled with a wink and sexiness, it turns out, is a game for masters well worth seeing. Caramba!

"das frühstücksmärchen"

ensemble materialtheater - (de)

  A must for those who don´t like mornings! A grumpy couple seduced each other into a conversation at the breakfast table, providing exquisite and amusing object theatre. Fresh gags emerged when the napkin turns into a tiny macho king and a knife and a roll are transformed into a proud steed. Our hero had to sail across the tablecloth ocean in his breadbasket boat in order to win the princess.

"wumm!"

studio percussion graz - (at)

  "Wumm!" is the programmatic title for the production, and STUDIO PERCUSSION graz led by Günter Meinhart has invented a new stage format for it: "Percussion Theatre". The equipment became sculpture, and the stage an installation. Because "Wumm!" is not just music but also a metaphor for everything that has a sudden impact upon us, every musical piece becomes an image generator: Video projection and costume changes, light and shadow all form part of a fast-paced production that debuted at the La Strada festival and is now on tour.

"the bizzarium: street aquarium"

les sages fous - (ca)

  The animal kingdom is full of creatures that have not yet been scientifically classified - nor will they ever be if they originate in the imagination of Canadian puppet artists Les Sages Fous: this time they dove deep into the ocean, and the city streets served as their springboard. Down we went, to fish falling in love and a mysterious mermaid, to sea horses and three-legged octopuses. So much wafting and bubbling was pure delight. Fast-moving street theatre, sparkling, funny and poetic.

"pop-up!"

slagman - (nl)

  A large luggage trunk was all the stage area these two great comics required for their exciting knockabout. King and jester, prince and princess, robber and policeman, hunter and hare got together for a mischievous trial of strength in which the thrilling duels went steadily from bad to worse. One fall lead to the next, perfect slapstick timing guaranteed unbridled awe and side-splitting laughter. Virtuoso daftness!

"das wunder von bamba"

ensemble materialtheater - (de)

  Toto the Good is an orphan growing up to be a friendly and helpful person in a world of outsiders and manqués. When their community is threatened from outside, a fairy gives Toto the gift of performing miracles. And suddenly everything changes. Based on Vittorio de Sica´s film "The Miracle of Milan", Ensemble Materialtheater developed the story into poetic, powerful drama, whose subtle humour was brought to life with object theatre, acting and body theatre. Grand theatre of inner worlds.

"la fanfare"

compagnie jo bithume - (fr)

  Their fast and furious street music and theatre show "La Fanfare" had the town resonating for days, 18 comedian musicians paraded the streets, and whoever couldn´t until now imagine what Led Zeppelin or Jimi Hendrix might sound like played on the tuba was cordially invited to widen their life experience. And to learn, for instance, that great art can also be great fun.

"calle obrapia #4"

ex nihilo - (fr)

  When this group sets out to make the street its stage, it really means it: pavement edges, bicycle stands, doors, doorsteps and windowsills all became the setting for a very physical and intense dance performance, closely exploring both architecture and the human musculoskeletal system. Three women and two men intertwined and untwirled in the air. A production of pervasive physical experience and high musicality that beated time intoxicatingly, with or without sound. Intelligence with its feet on the ground.

"le chariot"

baro d´evel - (fr)

  A rare mixture: street circus that also takes the street as its theme. Those things you saw in the background, sometimes left behind you, became the incidental playthings of the French virtuosi. A nice cup of tea, barely sipped, was just as important as matches or a Violoncello, also ideal for juggling. Whatever happens, the most important thing is to keep moving!

"vampyr"

stuffed puppet theatre - (nl)

"1er round"

tango sumo - (fr)

  The strongest and fastest heroes of a boxing ring are often said to move almost like dancers. Most likely inspired by this pas-de-deux of fighters, Tango Sumo beckoned to the dance of contraries in a stylised boxing ring. In perfect choreography, relationship patterns, aggression and territorial behaviour were exercised by three dancers, supported by a ´referee´ with an accordion. A human comedy, on the borderline between dance and movement theatre, playful and serious, friendship and enmity.

"bechtout"

baro d´evel - (fr)

  Will the circus survive? Yes! So say those who have seen this production. The way these sometimes very young graduates of the famous "Ecole Nationale des Arts du Cirque / Rosny-sous-Bois" exercised their acrobatic skills, handled their props and equipment and presented their theatrical and musical talents here was simply exhilarating. Circus that tells stories whilst, at the same time, not forgetting itself. Small miracles against an everyday backdrop, enormous skill and matching delight awaited the audience whose experience includes an additional joy, namely the fact that they haven´t lost their sense of wonder.

"the seas of organillo"

stephen mottram - (gb)

  The ocean of Organillo: is it the ancient sea? Or perhaps a mother´s womb? A man and a woman cross the water whilst, at the same time, a variety of strange creatures burst into life all around - is that an octopus over there, or perhaps a female fallopian tube? Stephen Mottram told the story of the origin of life elegantly, sexily and very deeply; possibly at the same time the story of a human conception. Life´s most ancient truths made theatre: no-one watching can break away from its magical rhythm.

"expedition paddock"

tango sumo - (fr)

  Five men in a dormitory. What does their environment look like? And what brought them here? It doesn´t really matter - in their daydreams and nightmares the world has no doors and life is an endless journey full of beauty and fear. Stories of relationships around machismo and male sensitivity elegantly sliped with great choreography and acrobatics into furiously spinning movement theatre in which beds turn into trampolines and towers: There is a child in each man, playing here with zero gravity.

"in suspension"

stephen mottram - (gb)

  Perhaps one of the most discreet puppet artists in the world, certainly one of the greatest virtuosi of this art. Stephen Mottram has developed a completely original form of animation theatre; here on an open stage he gave away the secrets as to how it works. Somehow it sounded a bit thin technically, and yet "In Suspension" evolved into a magical performance as Mottram disappeared behind his puppets right before the audience´s eyes. A theatrical masterpiece for adults and children.

"don quijote"

les alamas givrés - (fr)

  Alamas Givrés´ world rotated at least twice as quickly - and this time about the travelling heroes Don Quijote and Sancho Panza. Any similarities to characters from literature were pure coincidence - if anyone really knew what was happening on the high-speed carousel stage then it was the horse and the donkey. Barock´n´Roll, a blazing delight!

"victor frankenstein"

compagnie jo bithume - (fr)

  A shipwreck frozen in ice for perpetuity. An old man dragging himself aboard, followed by an enormous shadow. Instead of sinking, the boat falls apart, transforming into a mountain, a laboratory, a mansion ... Powerfully visual and full of lyrical impetus, the story of the inventor and his creation was unravelled once more. The grandiose production "Victor Frankenstein" lead the festival into its finale: "The End", eerily beautiful. With effects from silent film and gags that could have been pinched from the "Addams Family". Acrobatic, lyrical, comical. A big show for a big audience.