Engaging theatre at its best, Bubonic Tourist’s newest presentation of innovative theatre encompasses movement, images and a soundscape.
A Calgary-based group, they have taken their experiences at the University of Calgary and incorporated what they felt was a needed outlet for this type of theatre. Their newest production, Loss, Growth, Renewal, in the City, features the body as a landscape, examining how our bodies go through the stages of loss, growth and renewal. This show was inspired recently from the troupe’s own dealings with death this year.
"This piece is about the architecture of the body in transition," explains actor Eric Moschopedis. "We deal very heavily with the city and with the past piece Nude in Fusion, the city had its own character. In this piece we put the human body on trial."
He says the play poses important questions about the body interacting with its surroundings.
"What happens when the frame becomes empty," he asks. "What happens when someone moves out of a building in relation to the human body?"
Bubonic Tourist is an innovative theatre experience. This particular performance is unique for the group because it has no spoken text. However, it conveys a strong narrative through images, sound and dance, pushing the group to discover their own voice. Through this, they hope to push the medium of performance theatre to an engaging new level.
"We hope that maybe people look differently at that piece of sidewalk they tripped on when they first came in," says Moschopedis.