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Metamorphoses, by Mary Zimmerman | 
Set in a pool of water, Metamorphoses is a visual and aural feast.
Inspired by Ovid's mythological tales, this play is a tapestry of stories woven together with water, movement and music.
Body in Space draws on their physical theatre roots to create surprising images and under the musical direction of Roger Sanders, the group experiments with live music to create original backing music, soundscapes and featured pieces.
Body in Space thanks the Nelson Arts Festival, Creative Communities Nelson, the Suter Theatre and Fairfield House for all their help and support.
Cast
Daniel Allan
Doug Colling
Jeremy D'Urville
Laura Irish
Lisa Norriss
Bridget Sanders
Comfrey Sanders
Roger Sanders
Crew
Jeff Brooks (set)
Debbie Long (production)
Chris Mason (lights)
Rose Sanders (FOH)
Nikkie Whitehead (FOH)
Luke Walton
Festival Crew
Antony Hodgson
Andy Williams
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| REVIEW: Body in Space show inspires |  Review: Metamorphoses, produced by Body in Space, director Lisa Norriss. Suter Theatre, Saturday, October 22. Reviewed by Alison Arron.
I would happily see Metamorphoses more than once. This is a play of stories within stories, rich with emotional depth and visual surprise. Based on Greek and Roman myths, a series of tales are told by means of acting, choreographed movement, live music, song and narration.
My lasting impression is of the pictures and sounds made from white costumes and water. Eight actors, with a bare stage but for a sizeable square pool of water, create a visually striking theatre for action.
The stories carry the power of universal human concerns, dipped with the supernatural. They are wrought from interactions between mortals and gods and convey the play's central theme of the transformative power of change.
Characters change from human to animal, mineral or vegetable. Events cause them to be transformed, from proud to regretful, austere to voracious, happy to sad, abstemious to lusty.
Similarly, actors change roles, form and function from story to story. Sometimes in the lead, then in support, becoming a prop, then a musician.
Likewise, the pool is a bathing place, a wild ocean, the river Styx, a healing spring.
And a length of white cloth becomes a bed, a sail, a blindfold, and magically transforms a narrator into the prow of a ship.
From an apparent absence of colour and objects, multitudinous transformations flow. This is a clever echo, in theatrical means, of the central theme.
Not all performances were convincing or fully committed renditions of character, yet at some point, all on stage had their moment of radiance. Highlights for me were the performance by the actors who played Hunger and Myrrha, also the narration of the story of Eros and Psyche.
A confusing and unwelcome intrusion in the play was the sudden acknowledgement of poet Rainer Maria Rilkes. It broke my immersion in the story without any apparent purpose. Fortunately, once forgotten, the performance again became spellbinding.
Congratulations to Jeff Brooks for the pool design and to Antony Hodgson for clever lighting. The play deservedly attracted a nearly full house and warranted the enthusiastic response given by the audience.
It is pleasing to see Nelson give excited, unrestrained appreciation to a local theatre group. |
| ARTICLE: The festival continues, by Anna Pearson |  The Nelson Arts Festival always brings a flood of bands, theatre shows and creatives from across New Zealand to our backyard, but what about the talent right under our noses? Anna Pearson spoke to Laura Irish from Body in Space about the Nelson theatre company's contribution to this year's festival.
The cast of Metamorphoses will perform in and around a pool of water, while wearing white ... but don't worry – Body in Space company member Laura Irish insists they have "taken precautions" against possible wardrobe malfunctions.
The play, by Mary Zimmerman, Irish's favourite author, is a collection of eight Greek myths dealing with the theme of transformation.
Irish says just like the characters played by Metamorphoses' eight-strong cast, water can be "very changeable" – calm one second and rough the next.
The play weaves a tapestry of Greek stories together with water, music and original live music. The cast play numerous characters, like Hunger – a sinister creature played by Irish, who haunts a greedy man until he ends up destroying himself. Through the stories, Irish says the play hints at "what's really important for humanity".
"They're almost like cautionary tales.
"There's a lot of tragedy, but there are also some really funny bits as well." Irish hopes Nelsonians won't miss it to see only shows from out of town, because Body in Space won't be doing Metamorphoses again.
`This show is unique.
"It's a huge undertaking ... trying to figure out how to do a play in a pool," she says.
Set designer Jeff Brooks is building the pool and a deck using pallets donated by Bay Landscapes, which will be assembled "like a jigsaw", ready for the performance at the Suter Theatre.
Metamorphoses director and actor Lisa Norriss says Body in Space is thrilled to be performing as part of the Nelson Arts Festival.
Body in Space has been based in Nelson since the beginning of last year, after Norriss and her partner – Daniel Allan – moved here from Christchurch.
The hard-working company has since put on Alice in Wonderland, Robin Hood, Macbeth, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), The Twits and Terra Nova. It is also behind The Deep End, a regular improvised comedy show at the Theatre Royal. The cast of Metamorphoses includes high-school pupils Doug Colling and Comfrey Sanders, who Irish says have shown "remarkable theatrical ability" for their years.
Irish says Metamorphoses has been her dream for years, and it's "incredible" to be finally doing it. "But that's what Body in Space is about – taking each person's dreams about theatre and their creative career and catapulting it forward.
"Dan's dream was The Deep End and Terra Nova ... now I'm getting mine."
Metamorphoses, the Suter Theatre, 7pm October 22 and 23.
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