Now Booking: Isaac Newton's Little Apple Circus
A unique blend of CIRCUS and SCIENCE!
This 50 minute program – designed for schools, libraries, museums or community centers -- is equal parts performance, workshop, and comic demonstration. ARTFARM circus artists Dic Wheeler and Allison McDermott playfully embody Sir Isaac Newton and the 18th century French physicist and feminist Emilie du Chatelet. These two giants of science present a series of circus skills such as juggling, plate spinning, partner acrobatics, diabolo, and the balancing of all kinds of objects (including peacock feathers, long poles, chairs, and one another). The real fun begins as members of the audience are brought on stage to help demonstrate the principles of Newtonian Mechanics.
Isaac Newton’s Little Apple Circus introduces Newton's fundamental Laws of Motion -- the foundation of Classical Mechanics -- as well as the discoveries of Galileo which preceded them. Concepts introduced and explored in this fun and interactive experience include inertia, gravity, force, mass, energy, static and kinetic friction, velocity, gyroscopic stability and centripetal force. This feast of polysyllabic concepts will, however, leave not even the most restless young person bored or confused, but the hands-on spectacle of circus arts and comic acting will excite every participant to learn more about the forces in our universe that effect “everything from the flight of juggling balls to the movement of planets.”
The presentation is affordable and flexible, presentable in gyms, auditoriums, or just about any space with a 13 foot ceiling and a flat floor. For more information, or to book Isaac Newton’s Little Apple Circus , email info@art-farm.org or call (860) 346-4390.
Little Apple Circus rehearsal photos by Lauren Sitz.
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Also booking now -- limited dates are available for the Spring Tour of our Teen Traveling Circus --
CIRCOPHONY --
This gifted group of young performers annually tours a 45 minute circus performance to area schools, clubs, churches and art centers. Circophony is a collaboration between ARTFARM and Oddfellows Playhouse.
Each Fall ARTFARM circus teaching artists offer rigorous circus training to young people ages 12 - 18. In January members of the training program audition to be selected for the Traveling Company. Traveling Company members create a new circus which premieres in April.
The show is only available to tour in May and June, 2017!
Last year's Circus of Joy performance thrilled audiences throughout Central Connecticut, and tour dates filled up quickly. Contact ARTFARM now to make sure that you can bring the 2017 Tour to your venue!
A fast-paced
introduction to Shakespeare for high school or college students. Four
comic contemporary characters argue about what makes Shakespeare
timeless. The Professor insists that it is the language and the metrical structure; the Producer claims it is the
theatricality-the costumes, swords and special effects; the Actor says it is
simply
the characters; and the Groundling- who represents the voice of the
audience- is only interested if it is authentic and entertaining. The players use selections from As
You Like It, Macbeth, Henry V, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Hamlet, Romeo
and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing, Measure for Measure,
Julius Caesar, and The Tempest to illustrate their points.
WOMAN'S WILL
Woman's
Will is a dynamic hour-long journey into the riches of Shakespeare's
world through the eyes of some of his most fascinating women. This
character driven collection is executed with textual accuracy and
emotional depth by ARTFARM Ensemble Company members Marcella Trowbridge
(ARTFARM Artistic Director) and Jackie Coleman (also Coordinator of the Arts for the Hartford Public Schools).
The piece, while containing
some well-known passages, presents lesser known scenes and monologues
from a dozen different plays in a journey which is at times playful, at
times dark and heart-wrenching, but always challenging and entertaining.
Circus for a Fragile Planet: SUBMERGED! uses the magic, fun and artistry of
circus to convey an environmental message about water that is both compelling and
necessary. Built around key elements of the grades 6 through 10 core earth
science curriculum, Circus for a Fragile
Planet addresses critical issues such as runoff from homes and
farms, water pollution, overfishing, access to drinkable water, the
effects of climate change and
individual responsibility in a way that is accessible and upbeat. Filled
with
clowning, juggling, acrobatics, stilt-dancing, unicycling, slapstick and
other
circus skills and spectacle, the show accentuates the positive choices
each
individual or community can make to help build a better future for the
planet.
IN THE THROES: THE ONE WOMAN SHOW
In the Throes is
a groundbreaking performance for mature audiences tackling issues
particularly important to women and adolescent girls including fear,
abandonment, sexual abuse, and the unearthing of personal strength. In The Throes chronicles the life of one woman from childhood to motherhood through text,
choreography
and song.
The Residency**:
3-5 days of workshops culling and developing material from
students' own life perspectives
(including historical and literary resources). The group will select a theme and transfer this material onto the stage.
- safe structured environment
- writing
- psycho-physical work
- breath and body work
- development of emotional accessibility
- individual and ensemble
- improvisation
- effective stage presentation
COMMEDIA AMERICANA: THE ONE MAN SHOW
Introduces
the history, style and characters of traditional Italian Commedia dell'
Arte and provides a basic contemporary context.
The Residency**:
A 3-5 day residency which extracts the archetypes from the characters
of 16th century Commedia dell' Arte and finds their modern
manifestations. T he process first introduces the characters and comic
style of traditional Commedia, then allows the students to re-interpret
the stock characters, creating their own 'Commedia Americana'.
**All Residencies can culminate in a shared presentation
