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Nunah Physical Theatre Company

Nunah Physical Theatre Company

Confidence in Me, Myself and I

S T O P   P R E S S

The Nunah Physical Company do not seem to be having much luck lately. Their production Me, Myself and I was sadly, postponed before Christmas now they have, with great regret, had to cancel it – probably with no reprieve – due to an injury in the cast: Julian Humphries has broken his ribs. Artistic Director, Vicky Heath says “We have had to cancel the show…we are all absolutely gutted about it, as we were very proud of it. I have to focus on the show on the Pier for Hastings Pier Trust coming up in July, so we have to leave ‘Me Myself and I’ behind…..”

Sad news and I am sure they apologise to all who have supported them and bought tickets.

Me, Myself and I was sadly, postponed before Christmas due to concerns about the performance space. Now it’s back, having been reworked in a different venue, although otherwise essentially the same. Artistic Director, Vicky Heath said “we were really sorry if the cancellation caused any inconvenience to all the lovely people who had bought tickets and were planning on coming. The venue has now changed and the play has been reworked from a promenade performance to more of an intimate show. We are very close to the audience, so they will feel part of the show rather than just observers. Although I must add that we don’t make them do anything…its not after all an immersive theatre piece..!”

Nunah Physical Theatre Company is well known to Hastings. They last appeared as part of Stade Saturdays with The Arrival, a performance based on the theme of human migration through one man’s confusion and isolation. This time, they are addressing the subject of confidence. HOT’s Lauris Morgan-Griffiths gathered herself together to talk to Artistic Director, Victoria Heath, about, Me, Myself and I.

So what is confidence and how does it impact on our everyday lives? Confidence can vary and wobble; you can be confident in one area of your life and unconfident in another. Some people have oodles of it, others give a good impersonation of it when, in reality, it is only skin deep. Confidence can be temporarily enhanced with the use of drugs and alcohol – and it can explode off the the scale into Narcissistic Personal Disorder (NPD).

Big topic. However, Heath and the company makes it a light, vibrant, colourful, energetic, musical, sound experience – fun as well as thought-provoking.

Me,Myself and I

Me,Myself and I

Because of the way Nunah work, they can expose inner thoughts. “Through music as well as running those voice in our heads, we can portray quite complex emotions and thoughts. The running commentary we play – monologue-ing our inner turmoil: ‘everybody is looking at me’, ‘I’m not as good as I think I am.’”

That conversation continues as people present themselves in a particular way, while mannerisms can say something different. Nunah express all of this through body language, facial expression, inner thoughts and music. “We wanted a dance-y feel, underground, club house.” (Music comes from Prodigy, Peter Allen and Gazelle Twin.)

So how does Heath start the process? Surprisingly, it is not with the chosen subject, but with music. For Me, Myself and I, it began when Heath heard the song Bugatti by Tiga.

 “A girl comes up to me and says what car do you drive. And I said Bugatti.”

It was from that point she began to research the idea of confidence ­

Me, Myself and I involves four performers, Vicky Heath, Alison Cooper, Julian Humphries and Yoon-Ji Kim. It is not a straight narrative; it takes the audience on a journey as they morph into different characters and levels of confidence; sometimes acting small, at other times with exaggerated ideas of self importance.

Me, Myself and I is definitely upbeat. Vicky believes serious ideas and emotions can be communicated strongly with humour and a lightness of touch. She was trained at the City University of New York and has worked as a director/actor throughout the States and internationally.

A scene from The Arrival

A scene from The Arrival

And what is the origin of the name, Nunah? Laughing, she explains “It came from the name my partner used to call our cat.” Well, names have to come from somewhere and a cat is as good as any. Energetic, independent, playful, resourceful, creative, determined, obstinate. Sounds apt to me.

Nunah Physical Theatre Company can be seen next year performing a community piece with 200 young children from local schools on the reopened Hastings pier. Hoorah.

Me, Myself and I at The Printworks, 14 Claremont, Hastings, TN34 1HA has been cancelled.

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Posted 20:50 Monday, Jan 25, 2016 In: Performance

1 Comment

  1. Alison Cooper

    Hi Lauris

    great piece and thank you so much for this and your support. Just a little thing…it’s a bit confusing as at the ned of article is still advertises the show this weekend!!!

    cheers
    Alison

    Comment by Alison Cooper — Thursday, Jan 28, 2016 @ 08:06

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