BY CURIOUS

CAN YOU EVER SAY ALL THE THINGS THAT NEED TO BE SAID BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE?

Curious have been thinking about language and love. Now, in this darkly comic solo performance, Helen Paris navigates a minefield of the unspoken with only some cryptic crossword clues, the Hokey Cokey, and the BBC football scores to guide her. Charting a path by the night stars (or are they sugar cubes?) and carrying a loved one uphill in a large upholstered armchair whilst wearing high heels doesn’t make things any easier. Can you ever say all the things that need to be said before it’s too late and everything is past its sell by date?

Best Before End is written and performed by Helen Paris and directed by Leslie Hill with music by Graeme Miller and lighting design by Marty Langthorne. The show was commissioned by Colchester Arts Centre and Escalator Live Art with thanks to Chelsea Theatre. Supported using public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England, produced and managed by Artsadmin.

Place: Project Arts Centre
Date: April 30
Time: 8.15pm
Tickets: €15/13

BOOK | HERE

Curious will also host an artist salon/workshop titled ‘Inside Story’ – on Fri 1 May limited places available get them fast.

There are a limited number of festival passes available that will grant you access to all 3 nights double bills for just €33. Contact Project Arts Centre Box Office on +353 1 8819 613 to avail of this offer.

PRAISE FOR BEST BEFORE END

Like all the best poetry Best Before End is at once elegantly simple in its stylistic economy and yet exceptionally dense in terms of its potential import…Paris is a gifted and intelligent physical performer… In Best Before End she is at the height of her powers, using her body to weave complex images that are sculptural, sinuous, playful and painfully contorted. – Drama Queen Review

The entire piece is elegantly carved… Best Before end is a touching rendition of what it means to grow older – Aesthetica Magazine

Curious are that rare and beautiful thing in the performance world. They make rich and textured work, full of depth and discovery, but with a simple beauty that makes their work a joy for everyone. – Anthony Roberts, Colchester Arts Centre

MORE ABOUT CURIOUS

Helen Paris and Leslie Hill have been working together as Curious for the past fourteen years. In that time they have made nearly forty projects in a range of disciplines including performance, installation, publication and film. The work is global and domestic: sometimes large, sometimes small in scale. Intimacy and a shared sense of encounter with an audience is always an important element.
Helen and Leslie called their company Curious because what drives them as artists is an intense curiosity about the world in which they live. Each of the projects starts with a question; What smell reminds you of home (On the Scent)? What do you long for and where do you belong ((be)longing)? What is lost and what is found in places undergoing rapid regeneration and change (Lost & Found)? What are gut feelings (Autobiology)?

Curious engage as honestly as they can with these questions in their work as writers and performers and the subsequent investigations involve personal journeys alongside public research and enquiry. The resulting work is frequently edgy, often humorous and always authentic.