Show Production

One week to the opening night of Bound Feet Blues! Have you got your ticket yet?

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Yang-May Ooi’s astonishing one woman show Bound Feet Blues will open in one week’s time on Tuesday 24 November 2015 at Tristan Bates Theatre. Have you got your ticket yet?

Not yet? Don’t miss this extra-ordinary tour de force solo performance. You can still buy tickets via bit.ly/bfbtickets

Bound Feet Blues takes us back to ancient China to the inner chamber of a mother with bound feet as she describes and demonstrates the brutal practice of footbinding on her daughter. We may judge this in our modern times as cruel but if we were women living in that time, would we do the same out of love for our little girl?

We also see Yang-May as a tomboy aged 10 and as Continue reading →

Meet Papergang Theatre, Bound Feet Blues partner at Tristan Bates Theatre as part of the South East Asian Arts Festival

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We have invited Papergang Theatre to share our theatre space at Tristan Bates Theatre as both Bound Feet Blues and Papergang are taking part in the South East Asian Arts Festival (SEA Arts Fest). Papergang will be producing three Papergang matinees of play readings by East Asian playwrights during the Bound Feet Blues run – the Bound Feet Blues team are delighted to be able to support new East Asian writing in this way.

Papergang Theatre

Papergang webpage - screenshot

Papergang Theatre was formed by graduates of the Royal Court Unheard Voices programme, which develops writers from ethnic minorities. “Our mission is to create theatre work that reflects the multi-cultural society we live in, bringing contemporary voices from our community into the mainstream.

At Papergang, we know that a writer can only realise their full potential if their work is produced and has a life beyond the page. We are a theatre company led by a diverse range of Continue reading →

Meet Jessica Higgs, director of Bound Feet Blues

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Jessica Higgs was the first of the creative team to come on board the production after writer/ performer Yang-May Ooi, directing the showcase performance of Bound Feet Blues in Oct 2014. She is at the helm again taking the show to the next level for the 3 week run of the full production in a few weeks time, opening on 24 November.

JESSICA HIGGS – Director

Jessica Higgs was the founder and Artistic Director of In Tandem TC (2000-08) whose worked focused on difference and integration of difference in society, creating platforms for culturally diverse and unheard voices. For the company she directed an acclaimed Pinter double bill ofLandscape and Mountain Language, translated and performed entirely in British Sign Language by Deaf and hearing actors, and the British Premier of Canadian, Alex Blumer’s Smudge, both at Ovalhouse. Other directing work includes: Julie McNamara’sPigtales and Pig’s Sister (Jackson’s Lane, Ovalhouse, Theatre Workshop Edinburgh and internationally); Will Eno’s Lady Grey (Soho Theatre); Wesker’s Four Portraits – of Mothers(Bridewell Theatre). Jessica is also a voice coach working regularly at Central School of Speech & Drama, British-American Continue reading →

Meet Carol Alayne, costume designer for Bound Feet Blues

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Savile Row tailor Carol Alayne has designed a sleek tunic for writer/ performer Yang-May Ooi, picking up the Chinese theme of the show while creating a timeless feminine shape to sit on top a pair of rugged jeans. The simplicity of the design belies the powerful impact of the costume, in keeping with the minimalist principles underlying the creative vision for Bound Feet Blues.

CAROL ALAYNE, costume designer

Carol Alayne is master tailor, haute couture specialist and mentor with over 30 years professional experience in Savile Row and at a number of leading fashion houses. Her commissions include individually crafted garments for fashion collections, technical wear for top level sports competitors, business and formal attire for prominent executives, traditional safari and field sport outfits, and special items for international artists and musicians. www.tailoringforwomen.com

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You can buy tickets for Bound Feet Blues via bit.ly/bfbtickets

DETAILS

Tristan Bates Theatre
1A Tower St, Covent Garden WC2H 9NP

Tue 24 Nov – Sat 12 Dec, Tue – Sat at 7.30pm.
Tickets £16 / £12 concessions.
Q&As post-show, 27 Nov & 4 Dec.

Meet Claudia Rocha, videographer for Bound Feet Blues

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Claudia Rocha filmed Yang-May’s TEDx talk in 2013 and went on to film the scratch night performance of Bound Feet Blues in March 2014 at Conway Hall. She has stayed with the team ever since, capturing the showcase performance in Oct 2014 and is now going to be filming the show for two nights of the Bound Feet Blues full production run in Nov/ Dec this year.

Claudia Rocha, videographer

Claudia Rocha

Claudia Rocha is a freelance photographer and cinematographer, originally from Portugal, now based in London. She has worked on documentary films as well as photo shoots for Vogue Portugal, NY Mag and other magazines. http://byclaudiarocha.com/ 

 

Here is her highlights edit of the showcase performance of Bound Feet Blues:

Continue reading →

Bound Feet Blues is part of the South East Asian (SEA) Arts Festival 2015!

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The SEA Arts Fest or South East Asian Arts Festival has been a key supporter of Bound Feet Blues from the very beginning. One of the festival’s producers Annie Kwan saw writer/ performer Yang-May Ooi’s scratch night performance of the draft work in March 2014 at Conway Hall and invited Yang-May to bring it to the festival later that year.

In October 2014, Yang-May showcased the completed version Bound Feet Blues for one night only as part of the SEA Arts Fest 2014 to a sold out audience and garnered 4+ star reviews.

This year SEA Arts Fest 2015 is championing Bound Feet Blues again, scheduling the full production as part of the festival.  We are grateful to festival director Hi Ching and his team for their ongoing support and enthusiasm for the show.

SEA Arts Fest 2015

SEA ArtsFest is the first Southeast Asian arts festival in the UK, championing and developing the work of the artists of Southeast Asia and those inspired by Southeast Asia. SEA ArtsFest brings together artists, practitioners, makers and thinkers to increase awareness of SEA Arts and its audience base, and is supported by Arts Council England.

The festival features an exciting range of work including film, theatre, music, traditional and heritage arts, outdoor performances, participatory workshops, digital media-based projects, roundtable discussions, and more, taking place across multiple locations in London and other parts of the UK. The inaugural festival took place between 1st October and 10th November 2013.

SEA ArtsFest 2015 will be taking place between 26th October and 13th December 2015.

 

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You can buy tickets for Bound Feet Blues via bit.ly/bfbtickets

DETAILS

Tristan Bates Theatre
1A Tower St, Covent Garden WC2H 9NP

Tue 24 Nov – Sat 12 Dec, Tue – Sat at 7.30pm.
Tickets £16 / £12 concessions.
Q&As post-show, 27 Nov & 4 Dec.

Meet Crin Claxton, production manager for Bound Feet Blues

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Crin Claxton will be running the show for each performance, taking care of all the technical and behind the scenes details as the production manager to make sure each night goes off without a hitch.

Crin Claxton, Production Manager

Crin Claxton is a highly experienced lighting, sound and AV technician, and lighting designer. She worked as venue technician (chief) and touring technician (LX, sound, stage) for multiple companies and has been production manager and Continue reading →

Meet Hua Tan, set and lighting designer for Bound Feet Blues

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Hua Tan travels between Shanghai and London, working on diverse productions from Chinese language dramas and operas to international collaborations like the National Theatre’s Chinese language production of War Horse. She has created an amazing set for Bound Feet Blues as well as complementing Yang-May’s performance with a nuanced and atmospheric lighting design.

HUA TAN – Theatre Designer

Hua TanHua Tan is an established creative lighting designer and scenographer based in London who works for theatre productions in the UK and China. Hua completed an MA in lighting design from The Central Academy of Drama in China, and an MA distinction in Scenography from The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. In her varied, successful career Hua has lit and designed for opera, drama, dance, and traditional Chinese operas. The highlights of her career to date include ‘Under The Hawthorn Tree’ (National Theatre of China), ‘Queen of coquetry’ (Shanghai Drama Art Centre) and ‘Open Country’ (Beijing Dance Academy). Her work has attracted awards and prizes including the ‘best lighting design’ at China Lotus Dance Festival, Shanghai Stage Art Society, Henan Theatre Festival, the ‘best set and Continue reading →

Bound Feet Blues featured in Nee Hau, the online magazine for British Chinese and East Asian Culture

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Yang-May Ooi, writer and performer of Bound Feet Blues, has been featured in Nee Hau, the online magazine for British Chinese and East Asian culture. You can read the full article by clicking on the image below.

neehau-screenshot

Here is an extract: “From internationally best-selling fiction author to performing her personal story, with a three-week run at Tristan Bates Theatre scheduled from November 24th to December 12th2015, Yang-May has evolved to become the confident storyteller she is today, shining in her 50s. The show is part of the South East Asian Arts Festival 2015 and funded by The Arts Council and The Housing Finance Corporation. Yang-May is supported by a team of experts including Jessica Higgs, creative director, Eldarin Yeong, producer and Hua Tan, theatre designer.” Read the full article..

 

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You can buy tickets for Bound Feet Blues via bit.ly/bfbtickets

DETAILS

Tristan Bates Theatre
1A Tower St, Covent Garden WC2H 9NP

Tue 24 Nov – Sat 12 Dec, Tue – Sat at 7.30pm.
Tickets £16 / £12 concessions.
Q&As post-show, 27 Nov & 4 Dec.

Introducing Tristan Bates Theatre where Bound Feet Blues will be playing for 3 weeks

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For a solo show like Bound Feet Blues where Yang-May is the sole performer and focus, holding the stage for an hour, Tristan Bate Theatre is the ideal venue. The theatre space is intimate, seating 60 people, and yet can seem vast as is appropriate for the epic quality of the story.

Tristan Bates Theatre

TBT_logoOpened in 1994, the Tristan Bates Theatre is dedicated to the memory of Tristan Bates, son of Actors Centre patron Sir Alan Bates, an aspiring actor who died at the age of 19. An intimate studio theatre, the TBT has an acclaimed history of showcasing and supporting the best new work in the heart of Covent Garden. Over the past two decades the theatre has Continue reading →