Juxtaposed!

Well, Wednesday evening was memorable! Dressed in all our finery, Holly, Toby, Chris and I took to the streets of Cambridge - poor Jared had caught a chill from our first performance so was sensibly taking it easy at home. So the four of us strode out in character to make an impression.

And I think we did. Whilst Chris and I, as heroic Prince and Summer Queen, made our way to the Market Square to dance amidst the Christmas lights, Holly and Toby (aka Ice Henchwoman and the green Keeper)headed to Starbucks in Borders. Having ordered coffee silently with the use of a chalk and slate, the two sat down to a game of chess. We then met up in a bar to play a silent card game gambling with gem stones and trinkets. A fantasy world fully formed in some rather everyday locations. What a juxtaposition.


Hats off to Holly's innovative direction, we each had aninstruction to hold onto when our improv inspiration ran a little dry. Princely Chris searched on an old, sepia-toned map, Toby could 'block' any street with his impressive stature and I would look lovingly at red shoes in the shop windows.

Now I'm fascinated at people's reactions to what we're doing. During our daytime performances so far we've had young teenage girls applaud loudly, young teenage boys shout unmentionables at us, we've had little children stare in awe and wonder and parents smile broadly. Adults alone will usually either do their best to ignore us or smile in a confused but intrigued manner.


With Wednesday evening's frolics being past most children's bedtimes (and mine really in all honesty!) and with a sparser cast we really had nowhere to hide. As a performer it was heart-pounding but we soon found out we had to throw ourselves into it to see where it lead.

The more we engaged with people, the more they seemed to respond positively (a flyer explaining things seemed to help!). The more confidence with which we hold ourselves the stronger the impact. Sticking together as a team seemed to show it's a performance although seeing the reaction to a lone performer is fascinating as well. It is so rewarding to see any reaction on people's faces, positive, scared, confused, whatever: Cambridge has a reputation for being rather reserved so to get the people of the city responding in any way is exciting.

This project is something captivating, something absurd, something DIFFERENT. It's worth being excited about.