ACTORS being cast in multiple roles – to flesh out the story or give presence – is common in theatre. But to play out one of any nine roles for any given show, a show that continues to evolve according to perimeter?
Meet Brooke Miyasaki, one of the 14 performers in Argentinean theatrical production ‘Fuerza Bruta’, an aerialist who will soar to a harness in the sky here at Culture Factory, March 13 to 22.
Arts page caught up (sorry!) with her whilst still performing at London’s Round House where Fuerza Bruta – Spanish for brute force – has been the fastest selling show ever.
Watching the performers and on occasion the crew as they run, keel, swim, swing, swivel, fight and break through walls in this intense 75-minute show, the sheer skillset required of each is mesmerising.
“I trained as a contemporary dancer in New York and first worked with the director Dicqui James as an aerialist in another show, De La Guarda,” Brooke recalls. “She then asked me to work in Fuerza Bruta in 2007, having trained in harness you really have to understand where your centre is, the physical activity [required].
“You have to have a good awareness of where you are in your body as you turn and move”.
The women actors are trained in their various roles, as with the male actors in their five ever-changing parts. A different ‘track’ with a crazy boomboom soundtrack is run for each show – 6.30pm and/or 9pm for the Limerick venue off Plassey Road. “It keeps the show fresh for us, keeps our bodies more balanced and not prone to injury”.
A West Coast lady herself, married to cast member and mother to a new born, Brooke’s favourite is being in the pool of water that descends overhead.
We, the corralled audience, surround it, yearning to be nearer their celestial bliss, reaching for the open palms of these ethereal nymphs who frolic and splash in a childlike innocence. “It’s a part where you get a bit of both worlds, a way to reach out to the audience who are equally as involved as the actors”.
No other show comes close or indeed, as close to us as passive or active participants.
Book for remaining tickets at Culture Factory, the old Dell off Plassey Road, on www.limerickcityofculture.ie/events from March 13 to 22 (certain dates are sold out)
Each performance – over 8s – is preceded by and then followed by access to a covered village of food and beverage stalls and local performing bands such as Leading Armies. Parking is free.
