From Press Release
Fly with Arrowwood Theatre Co. at the Toronto premiere of ICARUS
For anyone who has ever had their heart broken, their dreams crushed, the wind knocked out of them; for anyone who has failed, fallen or just flubbed: this one’s for you.
As unavoidable as falling is, getting up, dusting off your wings and flying once again is never quite as easy as it seems. ICARUS, a new play by the Windsor, Ont.-based Arrowwood Theatre Co., looks at what it means to fail and what it means to try again. Flipping between a modern- day group of friends and the world of ancient Greece, ICARUS investigates the ways we get burned every day, but more importantly — the ways we pick each other up. The show takes a new look at the classic tale, viewing the story through fresh eyes and a modern perspective.
What began as a five-minute undergraduate project has since transformed into a full-fledged theatrical production. With the aid of several movement techniques, the show was collectively created by the cast of five actors tapping into their own experiences. The adaptation employs various physical and movement-based techniques, including Anne Bogart’s Viewpoints and Steve Paxton’s Contact Improvisation, a dance technique which has since been adapted for theatre.
These movement techniques are what brought Arrowwood Theatre Co. – a new theatre company with a major focus on physical theatre and the reimaging of classic folklore – together. It was created by five University students to challenge audiences with thought-provoking, yet accessible, movement theatre. Previously, two of the company’s founding members, Simone Matheson and Kiera Publicover, have had original devised work premier at the 2018 Dark Crop Theatre Festival in Belmont, Ont., respectively: Here and There (Seven Sisters Theatre Co.) and Barbra at the Beach (Basil + Time Theatre Co.). The company hopes that utilizing contact improv and the Viewpoints technique through the vehicle of the classic Greek story will encourage more appreciation of physical theatre and open doors to new theatre-goers.
“I do not necessarily know how / But that’s alright / I am ready to strap on my wings and try again.”
Arrowwood Theatre Company In association with The Toronto Fringe Festival presents: ICARUS Featuring: Simone Matheson, Haiden Lyle, Kiera Publicover, Cullen MacNaughton, Kyra Scarlet Stage Managed by: Shae-lynn Applegate
Opens July 4th-13th Al Green Theatre (750 Spadina Ave.)
Performances: July 4th, 10:30pm; July 6th, 7:30pm; July 7th, 5:00pm; July 9th, 1:00pm; July 11th, 3:30pm; July 12th, 9:45pm; July 13th, 5:45pm.
Please note that there is absolutely no latecomer seating.