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Norwich-based theatre company Limbik, to stage a large-scale, immersive event on Mousehold Heath, inspired by Kett’s Rebellion of 1549.

What is going on?
An extraordinary large-scale community theatre performance will be happening on Mousehold Heath in September. A walk in the woods with some wonderful surprises!

A new large-scale community theatre performance, inspired by the events of local history, will take place on Mousehold Heath this autumn. Spread over several weekends in September and October Limbik, a Norwich-based theatre company, will take audiences on a walk in the woods with some wonderful surprises as they retrace the steps of Kett’s Rebellion of 1549 in Rebel Rabble.

Rebel Rabble is part audio trail and part theatrical performance set across the sites of Kett’s original rebel camp where the cast will take an audience of up to 30 at a time. Each audience member will be given a pair of “silent disco” headphones, through which they will simultaneously hear the audio journey. As a group, they will be guided through the woods, listening to the fictional retelling of Kett’s Rebellion. Along the way, they will encounter actors playing the characters of Bernard, Sylvia and Hazel, as well as extraordinary visual performance brought to life by a community cast embodying the Rebels of 1549.

The production began as a series of Zoom workshops with an intergenerational group of participants from Norwich, during the Spring 2021 lockdown, who were encouraged to share their personal stories of rebellion and write new ones. Limbik’s Artistic Director Ben Samuels said, “Rebel Rabble has grown into a unique outdoor theatrical experience that we’re excited to share with audiences this September and October. As well as telling the tale of Kett’s Rebellion it also shares the very personal stories of rebellion that arose from our initial community workshops during the Spring 2021 Lockdown. We’re also delighted to be supported by Norwich Theatre as the inaugural performance for their fifth stage, Norwich Theatre Beyond.”

An audio-described version of the performance will be available for visually impaired audiences.

Rebel Rabble was created with the support of Norwich Theatre’s Artist Development Programme, which was launched in 2021 to support artists in the region to create new work and grow sustainable careers. The project is funded by Arts Council England.

We all have stories of rebellion. Bernard, Hazel and Sylvia are no different. All three fictional characters join a public audience for an outdoor audio tour of the history of Kett’s Rebellion, listening to a history of Kett’s rebel camp as they walk across Mousehold Heath. But for these three very different people, the unfolding story unearths memories of their own acts of rebellion, of the moments they too chose to take a stand. As the tour progresses, space and time blur. In unexpected and poignant ways, the politics of the past weave their way into the personal battles of the present

How it works
Rabble Rabble invites a collective audience of 30 people to a site-specific audio trail and promenade performance on Mousehold Heath. Each member of the audience is given a pair of “silent disco” headphones, through which they all simultaneously hear the audio journey. As a group, they are guided through the woods, listening to the fictional retelling of Kett’s Rebellion. Along the way, they encounter actors playing the characters of Bernard, Sylvia and Hazel, as well as extraordinary visual performance brought to life by a community cast embodying the Rebels of 1549.  The audio tour expands to include the thoughts of the three characters, music, and soundscape from the rebel camp and the heath itself.

More about the Project
“Rebel Rabble” began as a series of Zoom workshops with an intergenerational group of participants from Norwich, during the Spring 2021 lockdown, who were encouraged to share their personal stories of rebellion, and write new ones. These stories were shaped into an audio script, which combined the three fictional character journeys of Bernard, Hazel and Sylvia, with verbatim interviews with the participants, and a poetic retelling of Kett’s Rebellion, which swept Norwich in 1549.

The audio script was recorded by professional voice over actors, and blended with soundtrack and soundscape to create an immersive, 3D spatial audio experience. Limbik and the participants then developed staging ideas for an outdoor performance on Mousehold Heath, the site of Kett’s rebel camp. The moments of live performance complement the audio journey, as well as respond to the outdoor environment.

These public performances will be staged by a community cast, and feature a unique combination of immersive sound and landscape, punctuated by almost cinematic moments of live performance. An audio-described version of the performance will be available for visually impaired audiences.

Rebel Rabble has been created with the support of Norwich Theatre’s Artist Development Programme, which was launched in 2021 to support artists in the region to create new work and grow sustainable careers. The project is funded by Arts Council England.

Limbik is a theatre production company that explores the intersection of live performance and immersive digital technology. They have performed across the UK and internationally, and have been recognised for the past three years by the UK’s Creative Industries Council as a “Cretech One to Watch.”

Quotes from participants
“I loved this project – from zoom meetings in the Spring, to workshops in community centres and then onto rehearsals at Mousehold Heath…  Sarah and Ben ran the sessions brilliantly… What a learning curve! Thank you all so much!”
“I really enjoyed the process and development of the piece, it was such a challenge. To be involved with something so creative in the middle of lockdown probably saved the sanity of several of us, so thank you for the opportunity.”
“You know what? I had a lot of fun running around the woods performing and I’d like to do it again if I have the chance!”

Tickets for this unique event can be booked via Norwich Theatre at norwichtheatre.org/whats-on or via the box office on 01603 630 000.

Listing:
Saturday 17th, Sunday 18th, Saturday 24th, Saturday 25th September
Saturday 1st and Sunday 2nd October at 2pm and 5pm each day