A bespoke performance commission for a theatrical Matrix production in Manchester, for International’s Free Your Mind
I was put forward to the production team at Factory International for their show Free Your Mind, a theatrical dance production based on The Matrix, performed in Manchester. A fellow cast member I have worked with in the past knew about our existing levitating wizard act and made the introduction.
The brief: bespoke levitating statue performances to feature during the interval of the show, depicting several iconic poses from the film.
The brief
Free Your Mind wanted three of the most recognisable poses from The Matrix recreated as levitating statues, ready for the audience to walk around and photograph during the interval.
I started by chatting through the vision with the production and suggested some easier routes to achieve a similar outcome, including suspending performers from rigging. The venue wasn’t equipped to take that approach in the way they wanted, so we needed a bespoke build from scratch.
Our approach
Confirming feasibility before signing
Before agreeing to take this on, I went straight to the industrial metalworkers I have used in the past to confirm availability and pressure-test the brief. They came back quickly with a rough delivery time and a price for the work.
I then went back to the production and was clear: the timeline was tight, and to commit to it I needed a firm contractual commitment and the deposit upfront to cover the metalwork. Taking this on meant dropping all other projects and giving the build my full focus. Contracts were signed quickly, the deposit landed, and we were a go.
Designing the frames
Three poses, each with their own challenges. The third was the most complex.
To work out where each frame needed to support the body, I personally held each pose for as long as I could and tracked which muscles gave out first. Wherever the body wanted to fail, the frame would carry the load. From those tests we designed mild steel frames small enough to hide under the costumes with light alterations, sturdy enough to hold a performer for the duration of the interval, and dismantleable for transport and storage.
The hardest of the three was the wall-kick pose. It needs real athleticism and flexibility from the performer, and puts them in contact with the wall, leaning out high up on the structure. Steel has a little natural flex in it, so we designed those frames to sit slightly leaning backwards, so they pulled vertical the moment they took a performer’s weight.
I stayed close to the metalworkers throughout the build, trying out the structures as they came together and making sure they struck the right balance between structural integrity and being small enough to hide inside the costume. They did excellent work and delivered on time.
On site in Manchester
I drove the finished frames up to Manchester myself to hand them over and brief the production team on safe set-up and use.
In that meeting it became clear that the production had planned to let members of the public use the frames during the interval, and had underestimated how much skilled work goes into dressing, setting up, performing in and dismounting from a piece like this. As soon as the team saw that the costuming and set decor built around the frames were intricate and integral to the finished outcome, they commissioned me to stay on and lead the team of costume designers, set designers and volunteers responsible for pulling the pieces together.
We disguised the floor plates of each frame with different bits of set work. The most ambitious of these was the wall-kick: we weighted the frame down, then built fake brickwork from wood for it to hide behind, because the venue is a listed building and we couldn’t affect the walls in any way.
From public participation to trained volunteer performers
Very early on we made the call not to have members of the public use the frames. There were significant safety concerns and physical limiting factors. Performers had to be briefed and trained before going up, which wasn’t realistic during an interval.
Instead, we set up a team of trained volunteer performers, ready before the interval began. Each team had a performer in costume and a minder trained in helping them in and out of the piece if anything came up mid-show. The volunteers really got into it, fully in character and bantering with guests while holding their poses for photos.
A clip from the run: https://www.instagram.com/p/DX4lKbSCEbt/
The outcome
The frames were delivered on time, the interval performances ran safely across the run, and the production got the bespoke visual installation it had set out to commission. A build that started as a phone call ended with a fully realised set and costume piece, on time, in a listed venue, with trained performers in character throughout.
Commission a bespoke act for your production
We design and deliver bespoke performance commissions for theatre productions, festivals, brand activations and high-end private events. If you have a creative vision that doesn’t quite fit an off-the-shelf act, we can:
- Scope the build and confirm feasibility before you commit
- Commission and manage bespoke metalwork, rigging and structural builds
- Test poses, structures and load-bearing requirements with real performers
- Lead on-site costume, set and volunteer teams to integrate the act into your production
- Deliver to tight timelines and inside the constraints of listed and protected venues