SWERVE OF SHORE to bend of bay

An interview with one of Ireland’s leading theatre-makers, and her photographer by Chloe Hodge

this March at The Shed, performer, artistic director and writer Olwen Fouéré presents riverrun, her adaptation of the voice of the river in James Joyce’s Finnegans Wake. She speaks with us about new piece:

Why choose to work with Finnegans Wake?

I had only dipped into the book at random, but I was always fascinated by its form and the language; it is truly a ‘book of the night’, like a river of dream language flowing through the veins of the dreamer. I was compelled by the musicality of the language, and the multiple allusions including the Egyptian book of the dead, the dawn of time, the history of mankind and of Ireland, all delivered in such a wild multilingual form. Over eighty different languages can be identified, embedded in the Wake.

riverrun Olwen Fouere Colm Hogan

How did you, the lighting designer and composer bring the piece to the stage?

We worked slowly and collaboratively. My adaptation was always towards creating a performance, so I was developing the aural and visual ideas in tandem with the piece. I knew there should be no ‘set’ and that we should only work with fluid elements such as sound and light. The composer Alma Kelliher had a strong intuitive understanding of the work and of what I was after, and the piece continued to weave itself as other artists entered the process. In many ways, we were led by the river itself.

riverrun has been excellently received; what do you intend audience members to take from the performance?

I had done a number of public readings of the piece, some with the sound design and some without. Every version had a strong response and by the time we were heading into production I knew it was a work of great beauty. That said, it is based on a moment to moment communication of energy and lives only in its relationship with an audience. Every performance is therefore quite different, and works best when the audience surrenders any immediate need for narrative or ‘meaning’ and we can go on that exhilarating journey together.

Which aspects of solo performance do you prefer to working with a cast?

A solo performance allows a greater possibility of exploration and danger, especially if it has been self-created – such as performing one’s own adaptation. Very often solo performances can create a more symbiotic relationship with an audience, although the responsibility and demands of a solo performance are often immense.

What are your plans for the future?

After our London run I’ve been asked to play a very demanding main role in a feature film (lots of action and jumping into rivers!) It’s busy but good.

riverrun Olwen Fouere

Colm Hogan, photographer:

Having worked as the photographer for riverrun’s co- producer, Galway Arts Festival, for over ten years, it is Colm’s mesmerising shots that form the performance’s publicity shots.

Many of the shots are taken outdoors, why this particular location?

I knew it well, and the water was shallow so we could take shots of Olwen submerged as well. For these, I wanted her to wear a wetsuit under her clothes but she insisted that she would be fine without it. It was an incredibly cold evening, she must have been frozen but she endured the iciness.

How long have you been working with portraiture?

For over twenty years; I have photographed stars such as Anne Hathaway, Dame Maggie Smith, Sir Ian McKellen and many others but none has been more giving of their time than Olwen. She is incredibly talented and riverrun is one of the most powerful performances I have seen in years.

riverrun stage Olwen Fouere

riverrun runs at The Shed 11 – 22 March

The Shed
National Theatre
Southbank
SE1 9PX
t: 0207 452 3000
w: www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/riverrun

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