Ep. 27: Actor & Director Adjoa Andoh; Norway’s Borealis Festival ft. Musician Juliana Huxtable, Artist Colin Self, Performance Project Last Yearz Interesting Negro + more

Richard II Cast - Photography by Ingrid Pollard

The Elizabethan vocabulary used in Shakespeare’s plays is often seen as difficult for modern audiences to digest and can often get in the way of appreciating the rich language, plots and characters. Shakespeare's Globe are showing the first ever production of Richard II with a powerful cast and crew made up entirely of women of colour.

Adjoa Andoh - Photography by Ingrid Pollard

Opening to rave reviews, Stance met with lead actor and co-director, Adjoa Andoh to find out more about how this groundbreaking show came together. Known for her lead roles at the National Theatre, Royal Court Theatre & Almeida Theatre, and is also a familiar face on TV with credits on award winning shows such as Doctor Who, Broadchurch and Line of Duty.

Phoebe Collings-James & Last Yearz Interesting Negro- Photography by Johanne Karlsrud/Borealis

For this months show, Stance are in Bergen, Norway's second largest city and the country’s cultural hub. We were invited to document the Borealis festival and were lucky enough to speak to Juliana Huxtable, Carmina Escobar, Colin Self, Last Yearz Interesting Negro and Phoebe Collings-James, Jenny Moore and B L A C K I E to find out more about their practice and their experiences of city of Bergen.

Sound as Weapon by Phoebe Collings-James & Last Yearz Interesting Negro- Photography by Johanne Karlsrud/Borealis

We catch Jamila Johnson Small aka Last Yearz Interesting Negro to find out more about her special commission she created alongside artist Phoebe Collings-James in Sound as Weapon, Sounds 4 Survival, an ensemble of solo and entwined bodies and cut up rnb and dub loops, combining dance, sound and sculpture.

Juliana Huxtable - Photography by Vitali Gelwich

Juliana Huxtable is an American artist, writer, performer, and musician exploring the intersections of race, gender, queerness, technology and identity.

Colin Self - Photography by Johanne Karlsrud/Borealis

Colin Self - The New York/Berlin composer and choreographer’s second album Siblings explores creative collaboration as a means of creating family, particularly within the context of queer liberation.

B L A C K I E - Photography by Johanne Karlsrud/Borealis

B L A C K I E aka Michael LaCour is from Houston, Texas. His music is an array of Folk, Jazz, Noise, Rap, and Hardcore Punk.

Jenny Moore is a Canadian artist-musician based in London whose practice is noisy and embodied, feeding on her roles as singer, conductor, composer, drummer, performance artist.

Carmina Escobar - Photography by Kegan McGurk

Experimental vocalist Carmina Escobar is a creative performer, interpreter of contemporary music, improviser, sound and intermedia artist from Mexico City.

Stance Cultural Shoutouts:

Books

The Book You Wish Your Parents Had Read (and your children will be glad that you did) Philippa Perry

Warrior Poet - A biography of Audre Lorde by Alexis DeVeaux

Film & TV

The Last Black Man in San Francisco

Damaged Goods

Scillian Ghost Story

Music

This is America Tour - Childish Gambino - Farewell to Music Tour

Toast - Koffee

Boasty - Wiley ft. Idris Elba,Sean Paul, Stefflon Don,