Take Your Seats Performance Symposium

A day of arts activities, performances and talks on the theme of chairs and sitting featuring Northumbria University staff and students, Grand Gestures Dance Collective, Storiella vocal trio, dancers and performers. There will be opportunities to observe, listen, discuss, participate… and simply to sit.

The event includes:

11.00 Welcome by Liz Pavey, Talk by Sarah Morehead

• A talk by Sarah Morehead, Programme Leader of Performance Product Design at Northumbria University, about her research into the relationship between environment and the body.

11.15 Dance Performance (first improvisation)

• Contemporary dance performance by Grand Gestures Dance Collective and Northumbria University students directed by Dance Artists Liz Pavey and Paula Turner. Through movement and dance, they'll explore the body's relationship to seating, inviting the audience to reconsider the everyday.

11.45 Storiella Vocal Trio

• Contemporary folk singing by Storiella vocal trio. This informal group of singers usually gather in a living room, where they enjoy a comfy seat to sing from. They'll be sitting and standing in the gallery for this informal performance; drop in and enjoy refreshments while you watch.

12.30 Workshop with Liz Pavey

• A guided discovery of sitting with Liz Pavey, Senior Lecturer in Dance at Northumbria University. An opportunity to join in with an informal workshop and experience sitting through movement and relaxation. No prior experience needed

1.15 Talk by Sarah Morehead (repeat)

• See above

1.30 Dance Performance (second improvisation)

• See above

2.00 Storiella Vocal Trio

• See above

2.45 Performance/Talk by Jane Arnfield

• Actor & Reader in Arts at Northumbria University Jane Arnfield talking about the significance of the chair in her solo show 'The Tin Ring' by Zdenka Fantlova and performing excerpts of movement from the play.

3.15 Talk by Sarah Morehead (repeat)

• See above

3.30 Dance Performance (third improvisation)

• See above

Ongoing throughout the day:

Exhibition of chairs and other sitting devices by Northumbria School of Design.

Live installation

• Tim Rubidge and other artists in a performance of the human body sitting in quiet contemplation. Come and discover how watching other people simply sitting invites you to reflect on this action.
• Screening of short films showing the work of innovative chair designer Peter Opsvik and research by Dr. Erik Rietveld on ‘The End of Sitting’.

Please Note: Schedule subject to possible change.