ECHO World Premiere at London’s LIFT Festival: A Groundbreaking Theatrical Journey
Thirteen performers take to the stage performing a script they’ve never seen before in a surprising exploration of what it feels like to be an immigrant in time
London, UK – Why Not Theatre is thrilled to announce the world premiere of ECHO (Every Cold Hearted Oxygen) by playright Nassim Soleimanpour and director Omar Elerian, premiering at LIFT Festival in London, UK, July 13-17. The play is co-produced by Why Not Theatre, along with LIFT/The Royal Court Theatre, Staatstheater Mainz, Riksteatern, Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles/Le Lieu Unique and Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg, in association with The Shed and Canberra Theatre Centre.
In ECHO, Iranian playwright Nassim Soleimanpour (White Rabbit Red Rabbit, NASSIM) and Italian Palestinian director Omar Elerian (NASSIM, Misty, two Palestinians go dogging) push the boundaries of Soleimanpour’s signature unrehearsed cold reads to the next level.
A new performer takes to the stage at every show without having a clue of what is going to be asked of them. Unrehearsed and unprepared, the script becomes their guide as they journey through the story of the playwright, connected live from his flat in Berlin? Or is he? Can we really know where or when we are?
ECHO asks us to confront what it feels like to be an immigrant in time. Fusing technology with the oldest tricks in the book, ECHO is an experiment in concept touring for the age of climate crisis: an ambitious, magical and uncompromising production where no one travels yet everybody can be present.
LISTING
ECHO (Every Cold-Hearted Oxygen) – World Premiere
The Royal Court Theatre
13 July – 27 July 6.30pm/7pm/7:30pm
Matinee performances: Sat 20 July & 27 July, 1.30 & Thurs 25 July, 2.30
Press night: 17 July 7:00pm
Post show talk: 18 July
Captioned and Relaxed Performances – 18 July, 7:30pm & 27 July, 1:30pm
For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit: https://www.liftfestival.com/event/echo/
CREDITS
Writer Nassim Soleimanpour
Director Omar Elerian
Cast A new unrehearsed performer every show
Creative Technologist and Production Designer Derek Richards
Lighting Designer Jackie Shemesh
Dramaturgy Kirsty Housley, Immanuel Bartz
Script Editor Stewart Pringle
Creative Producer Immanuel Bartz
An NSP production, co-produced by LIFT (London) / The Royal Court Theatre (London), Staatstheater Mainz, Riksteatern (Sweden), Why Not Theatre (Toronto), Théâtre National Wallonie-Bruxelles (Brussels) / Le Lieu Unique (Nantes), Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg. In association with The Shed (New York City) and Canberra Theatre Centre.
A LIFT Concept Touring Commission.
Image Credit © NSP (Majid Kashani)
