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A true tale of love and transition told through the story of Pinocchio

Two performers: Ivor MacAskill (he/him) and Rosana Cade (they/them), interact on a dark stage, illuminated by a flash. Ivor is a white man with short hair and ginger stubble and Rosana is a white non-binary person with short hair. They both wear fake-wooden tracksuits and caps with real wooden appendages protruding from wooden sockets on their heads, noses, body parts. The performer on the right, stands upright, whilst the performer on the left is on the floor looking up.
The Making of Pinocchio, Cade & MacAskill. Photo credit Tiu Makkonnen

Set in a fictional film studio, you are invited to go behind the scenes of Cade & MacAskill’s creative process and their relationship, and question what it takes to tell your truth.

Artists and lovers Rosana Cade and Ivor MacAskill have been creating The Making of Pinocchio since 2018, alongside and in response to Ivor’s gender transition. In this ‘funny, clever and thoughtful two-hander, rich in playful imagery’ (The Guardian) their tender and complex autobiographical experience meets the magical story of the lying puppet who wants to be a ‘real boy’.

With an ingenious scenography designed by Tim Spooner, layered with sound by Yas Clarke, lights by Jo Palmer and cinematography from Kirstin McMahon and Jo Hellier, the show constantly shifts between fantasy and authenticity, humour and intimacy, on stage and on screen. 


This “ravishingly beautiful’ (The Arts Desk) show is for anyone seeking to explore the sheer joy and limitless potential of queer imagination. Audiences called it ‘unmissable’, ‘breath-taking’, ‘phenomenal’, ‘showstopping’ and ‘the queer love story of the year’.

Nominated for the Off West End Awards’ Best IDEA Production (IDEA: Innovative / Devised / Experiential / Atypical)

★★★★ ‘The wondrous trans tale of Pinocchio… A funny, clever and thoughtful two-hander, rich in playful imagery and direct-to-camera asides, about identity, definition and acceptance… The satire is gentle, but the politics are clear.

The Guardian

★★★★ ‘More than anything, The Making of Pinocchio testifies to an evolving, continually transforming love between partners, a love for making things and oneself.’ 

The Stage

‘The duo hold the audience with a brand of mischievous humour that’s provocative and reassuring in equal measure.’

Exuent

Cade & MacAskill are Rosana Cade (they/them) and Ivor MacAskill (he/him): renowned queer artists and facilitators based in Glasgow, Scotland. Their work, together and individually, straddles the worlds of experimental contemporary theatre, live art, queer cabaret, film, children’s performance, site specific, and socially engaged practices. 

Their collaboration is born from a shared love of subversive humour, experimentation with persona and text, playful theatricality, and the joy they find in improvising together. They also share a passion for LGBTQIA+ rights and culture. They create strange, full aesthetic worlds on stage, with unique sonic elements embedded into their work due to ongoing collaboration with sound artist and designer Yas Clarke.

They are both experienced facilitators and trained volunteers with LGBT Youth (Glasgow). They are currently in the process of setting up a co-operative to open a new LGBTQIA+ second hand shop / community space in Glasgow.

cademacaskill.com
@cademacaskill

Commissioned by Fierce Festival, Kampnagel, Tramway & Viernulvier with support from
Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts, Battersea Arts Centre, LIFT and Take Me
Somewhere
.
Produced by Artsadmin.
Funded by Creative Scotland, Arts Council England and Rudolf Augstein Stiftung with
development support from The Work Room/Diane Torr Bursary, Scottish Sculpture
Workshop, National Theatre of Scotland, Live Art Development Agency, Gessnerallee,
Mousonturm, Forest Fringe, West Kowloon Cultural District
& LGBT Health & Wellbeing
Scotland
.

Created by Rosana Cade & Ivor MacAskill
Performed by Rosana Cade, Ivor MacAskill, Jo Hellier & Ray Gammon
Set, Prop & Costume Designer: Tim Spooner
Sound Designer: Yas Clarke
Cameras: Jo Hellier
Lighting Designer: Jo Palmer
Cinematographer: Kirstin McMahon & Jo Hellier
Produced by Dr. Nora Laraki for Artsadmin
Creation produced by Mary Osborn for Artsadmin
Production Manager: Sorcha Stott-Strzala
Assistant Stage Manager: Ray Gammon
Outside Eye: Nic Green
Movement advisor: Eleanor Perry
Captioning: Collective Text, Rosana Cade, Ivor MacAskill & Jamie Rea
Caption Design: Yas Clarke & Daniel Hughes

  • The performance is 90 minutes long
  • There is no interval
  • All performances are captioned or subtitled
  • Further access information specific to the venue will be added here in due course

Date and time

10–11 May 2023
Various Times

Please note
This is now a past event.

Venue

Auawirleben Theaterfestival
Viktoriastrasse 70
Bern
3013
Switzerland
auawirleben Theaterfestival Bern

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