ARE YOU READY TO LISTEN?

Permission To Speak by Chamber Made is a work about communication. But beware! It does not mean that you will be guided through the story step by step. Instead a symphony of sounds and vocal fireworks enhanced by the actors’ exceptional theatre craft will take you on a journey through the spoken, the unspeakable, and the held-back.

The disorientating voices seem to bounce off the walls, echoing and disappearing as others take their place. Four performers use their voices to submerge us into a world of inexpressible. As the show begins, the audience is faced with a flood of interjections, reflecting the hesitation that each one of us experiences in conversation. Umm… But… I guess I wanted to… Well… It’s just that… Pfft..! I want to say it. But maybe I shouldn’t.

This is a sensory experience, utilising the vocal skills of the performers to their full potential. Perfectly in tune with one another, they seem to feel each other’s presence and rhythm. The choreographed movements, perfectly coordinated with the choreographed sounds, provide the visual context, accentuating the persistent need to communicate.

Symbolism permeates the staging elements. The performers use simple objects to make strongest impressions: masking tape, cutlery, four simple stools can mean a lot in the hands of those who now to use them! With this simplicity the audience is able to indulge in the experience on a very fundamental level. Permission To Speak is about balance: two men, two women; square stage, four stools, symmetry of movement. Yet words and sounds continually push against this balance, challenging our comfort zones and questioning whether we truly have the permission to step over our boundaries.