Output details
35 - Music, Drama, Dance and Performing Arts
Leeds Beckett University
Listed LIDO for Listered Theatre
In April 2009 Listed Theatre began work to develop a performance piece exploring and celebrating the history of Broomhill Pool, a derelict lido in Ipswich, Suffolk, and the current campaign to save it. The company recorded interviews, gathering
memories and experiences from the community surrounding the Lido in Ipswich. All the material gathered was brought into rehearsal at The Woodmill, a studio and gallery complex in London Bridge, and from there developed into Listed Lido, written by Jennifer Granville.
In order to write a script that was relevant to the community surrounding the Lidos, where the play was to be performed, we contacted a wide variety of organizations that included youth groups, sporting groups and elderly people. The creative team interviewed these volunteers and recorded the interviews where they talked about their memories and experiences of the Lido, for use in the devising process for the production.
We then rehearsed and staged the production at four lidos throughout the UK, inviting community members who had participated in the research process to attend along with the wider audience. In the week following the performances, we created an exhibition with archival material at Tinside Lido, Plymouth – including testimonials and interviews we had recorded and materials that traced the development of the production from the rehearsal notes to props and production photos.
‘Listed Lido’ successfully enabled Listed Theatre to develop a new audience for site- specific devised theatre. Out of 131 audience members who completed questionnaires, 80 had never been to a site-specific theatre performance – and all confirmed that they had enjoyed it.
Performances:
Peterborough Lido June, 2010
Ilkley Lido June 2010
Crown Pools, Ipswich July 2010
Tooting Bec Lido July 2010
Documentation:
http://www.listedtheatre.com/Listed-Lido-10
“Listed Theatre Company’s exuberant production is a moving and humorously affectionate piece of documentary site-specific theatre”. Yorkshire Post, 02/07/2010.
