Bench

A woman sits on a bench and watches the world pass by….

Bench is a small and beautiful acrobatic performance about the everyday theatre and dance of life. Loneliness and happiness, bag-ladies and runaway brides, spell-binding moments mixed with the comic and ordinary – a reflection on who we are and how we connect with others.

‘A deceptively simple but highly skilled show [with] terrific moments. The acrobatics are performed with real grace and skill by the cast of three quick-change female artists in a wittily choreographed show that turns the limitation of public space into a virtue, and invites the audience’s complicity. It never takes itself too seriously and is all the better for it: small but very nifty.’  Lyn Gardner, The Guardian

The audience said:

‘Original, funny, poignant, breathtaking skill.’

‘Utterly charming!’

‘Awe-inspiring. Revelatory use of space and the brain and muscle power of three people. Poetry, humour, human emotion, and a moustache thrown in for free.’

‘Poetic and beautiful!’

‘It’s very touching. I feel like joining the journey of the lady on the bench. I can taste the loneliness and the happiness at the same time.’

‘Made me laugh & cry!’

‘You were fantastic, awesome, phenomenal!’

‘Absolutely spell binding! I was SO moved. I laughed and I also found it profoundly sad too. Beautiful acting, dance, humour, and acrobatics.’ 

Bench was first Performed on the 11th of April 2014 with its last performance on the 18th of September 2016.

To see where it toured check our Tour Archive.

Artistic Team
Artistic Director: Lina Johansson
Performers: Silvia Fratelli, Alcina Mendes, Rebecka Nord (2014), Martha Harrison (2015, 2016)
Set Designer: Michalis Kokkoliadis
Costume Designer: Kasper Hansen
Costume Maker: Sophie Bellin Hansen
Original Soundtrack: Ted Barnes
Guest choreographies by Natasha Khamjani and Anna Llombart

Bench was created in 2014.

Supported by Arts Council England and created with a Greenwich Dance & Trinity Laban Partnership Compass Commission.

Photography Credit: Lisette Venema, Eva Campos Suaerz, Steve Eggleton, Jamie Currey, Scott Marshall, Ludovic des Cognets