We The Aliens | Ela Bartilomo and Cecilia Martin
We the Aliens is a new physical theatre production by Ela Bartilomo and Cecilia Martin which explores our proximity to what we think is foreign to us.
The production was presented for the first time on Saturday 24th of November at Sideshow, West End, which offered their entire venue for the creation of an immersive environment that included guts and other organs hanging from the ceiling and spooky pictures of human body wrapped in ivy. The new Sideshow venue has the benefit of having large windows facing Vulture Street from which guests could observe the disturbing view of a caged human with a blank stare convulsing and contorting. Next to his glass cage there were tables featuring the weirdest witchcraft delicacies like a roasted turkey holding dry flowers, a reversed bike with fluffy wheels, and a speared human heart. I commend the producers and designers for the quality of these decorations which pulled me in some sort of horror film between Frankenstein and Blade Runner.
Image + cover image: Billie Wilson-Coffey
The show featured acrobatic and circus acts performed by a talented crew, most of whom have worked with internationally famous Circa Contemporary Circus. I found Jarrod Takle’s performance on canes and Elise Jaworoswki on straps to be the most impressive acts of the night. Tackle’s was both a physical feats and a conceptually rich act which ended with him fitting a respirator attached to a small glass nursery protecting a few young plants. What a dystopian vision of the future that was!
As I was watching We the Aliens, I kept on think about who are the aliens and how do we relate to them. Etymologically, alien means foreign, strange. It is the “Other” to which we cannot relate. And yet, we do have a relation with the alien, albeit in negative terms. The alien is that which we negate from ourselves, that we make foreign to us, and that we perceived as strange and threatening. The body of acrobats and contortionists is a good representation of this concept and also an entry point to reflect on it. Their bodies look human like anyone else, but their movements can be impossible to comprehend and imitate. They look so familiar, and yet feel so foreign. They are so close, yet so far from us, and when we go to acrobatic shows, this discrepancy is what we want to experience.
In the long tradition of horror films and novels, We the Aliens showed how familiar the alien is on an emotional level. For example, one of Mayu Muto’s act was of her holding a giant squid in her arms, just like a human mother would do with her baby. Empathy was evoked by the motherly acts of lulling and patting the squid, not by the squid itself which looked so foreign, unrelatable, and even threatening in its appearance. The lesson of this act seemed almost obvious to me in its invitation to judge with our feelings rather than our brain or eyes.
There was a half promise by the Creative Producer David Carberry that We the Aliens will be repeated in the near future. Many missed out the opportunity to enjoy this show, and the artists will benefit from opportunities to improve their tricks.
