Wonderfully weird, HotCat Collective combine dance, theatre, and text to create a performance intriguing from the first microwave PING!
Four troubled housemates. One an obsessive microwave dinner fan. Another, a barista decaying in steamed milk. The third, a scab hungry face picker. And the last, a reclusive leader of an ant colony. They fester together in mould, pain, and love. Spinning in the microwave, they create a captivating performance that has the potential to be a cult classic.
I have nothing but awe for the conceptual genius of Stop Playing Jacob’s Ladder With My Spine. The blend of dance, captioning, and theatre made for an artful performance so thought-provokingly weird I am sure it will infiltrate my dreams. And I am not complaining.
The visually stunning lines of the dancers, beautifully, yet horrifyingly in sync. Their extension and flexibility – even when moving amongst (and in!) tricky props and spaces – was stunning to watch. I felt the emotion of the spoken performance reflected in the dance segments. These components worked with each other seamlessly and were framed by the colourful captions projected behind them. Overwhelming in just the right way, these captions of audio descriptions, echos of speech, poetry, and google reviews followed the narrative, providing a unique insight into the characters. A window into their psyche. Not only did the creative captioning elevate the performance, it also provided a more accessible viewer experience, which I cannot help but commend.
While I found myself slightly confused in the first few minutes, I realised the absurd nature was part of its niche charm. Although not mainstream, Jacob’s Ladder was definitely for me. These performers deserve a larger venue to develop their highly unique style and to allow all performance aspects to reach their fullest potential. I encourage everyone to go and watch this show and help this happen!
Stop Playing Jacob’s Ladder With My Spine (@hotcatcollective) is running until 30 August (excluding 17 and 24) in Studio 82 at ZOO Southside. Buy tickets here.
Image credits to Freddie Houlahan @freddiehoulahan
