Here is my interview on Radio Verulam – click on the link below and a player will open up:
https://app.box.com/s/0n1njetp0eut0bv29dxg
It’s about 15 mins long. Enjoy!
performer
Performance photo – the most prized, smallest foot was “the golden lotus”
I perform Bound Feet Blues without any costumes or props – or even any shoes. My aim is to invite the audience to experience the show in the way that we have all experienced stories being told to us when we were children – that is, by co-creating the characters, events and landscapes in our imaginations.
I use my left hand to map the process of footbinding – it starts off as a normal “foot” and is steadily contorted and “broken” into the twisted shape that you see in the photo below. For comparison, I’ve also found a photo of an actual bound foot – also below.
This performance photo was taken at the scratch night in March at Conway Hall.
The most prized foot was called “the golden lotus” – it was Continue reading
What gorgeous barefoot sandals!
I had never heard of barefoot sandals before until my pal Vincent posted a photo on Facebook. As I am obsessing about feet and shoes and all things pedial these days due to Bound Feet Blues, I set off into the web universe to find out more.
There are some amazing and gorgeous foot adornments that can be found – here is an example. Isn’t it just gorgeous?
With this current rare heatwave in the UK, this summer might Continue reading
My vision for Bound Feet Blues is as a pure form of storytelling
I have added a page to my blog giving the background to the development of Bound Feet Blues.
My vision for the piece is as a pure form of storytelling with no costumes or props and minimal lighting and music or sound effects. As a child, I loved listening to the stories my mother and Continue reading
It’s the small things that make up some of the best stories [Bound Feet Blues]
We often think that stories need to be grand and on an epic scale to be compelling. We think that great stories involve heroic, larger than life characters. And so, we come to believe that our own stories mean very little because they happen on such a small scale compared to people who have been through war, disaster, terrible illnesses and events that seem “Worthy” of recognitiion.
I am of course not disrespecting the trauma and suffering of people who have been through those harsh and terrible experiences. Those stories are meaningful and need to be told.
Storytelling round a campfire
But other stories have their place too. Stories on a smaller, less epic Continue reading
Bound Feet Blues - A Life Told in Shoes 