WINNER BEST PRODUCTION IRISH TIMES THEATRE AWARDS 2020/2021

VOLCANO was the winner of four awards: Best Production, Best Movement, Best Set and Best Lighting Design with three further nominations for Best Soundscape, Best New Play and Best Ensemble

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VOLCANO

A serialised, live performance miniseries, crossing the boundaries of experimental theatre, contemporary dance and psychological sci-fi thriller. Acclaimed director and choreographer Luke Murphy blurs the lines of form and expectation, reality and fiction in a brand new hybrid of live performance for a Netflix era, part theatre, part television series, part dance. Spanning four, forty five minute episodes audiences are invited to tailor their own viewing journey between live and online viewing, watching episodes consecutively or all at once for a truly unique audience experience.

Volcano premiered in Galway International Arts Festival at Nun’s Island Theatre: 30 August – 11 September 2021.

Performances:

Galway International Arts Festival Aug 30-Sept 11 2021 [Sold Out]

Galway International Arts Festival July 13-23 2023 [Sold Out]

Sounds for A Safe Harbour Festival presented by Firkin Crane Sept 8-9 2023 [Sold Out]

Dublin Theatre Festival Sept 28-Oct 1 2023 [Sold Out]

Under the Radar Festival presented by St Ann’s Warehouse in association with Irish Arts Centre Jan 10-21 2024 [Sold Out]

Brisbane Powerhouse, presented by Brisbane Festival Aug 30-Sept 14 2024.

*****- THe IRisH TIMES-

“Edge of your seat entertainment- Tense, troubling and touching- a new kind of storytelling in theatre to rival any other modern medium- It is not an overstatement to say that you will not have seen anything like this before.”-Sara Keating July 23 2023

-BEN BRANTLEY (THEATRE CRITIC NY TIMES)-

“So I Dreamed it all, right? Or did it dream me? Luke Murphy's ravishing Volcano at St Ann's Warehouse is a min warping, lost-in-space time capsule steeped in futurist nostalgia for a collective past. Nearly 4 molten hours; I could've stayed all night”- Ben Brantley Jan 12 2024

****- The Guardian-

“Think Sartre, Beckett or Enda Walsh, with more choreography. Memories of their lives prior to this mysterious co-dependency are played out in superbly inventive movement sequences – from tender duets to manic raves…For a work created during lockdown, this is unexpectedly exhilarating: its sci-fi premise being sufficiently expansive to encompass questions of what is really of value in life, what is worth saving – and what remains when habitual bonds have loosened.”- Helen Meany Sept 9 2021

-The New YOrk Times-

“Athletic, astonishingly expressive duets between Thompson and Murphy are the productions most electrifying sequences… breath-taking movement”- Naveen Kumar January 12 2024

*****- THe IRisH Examiner-

“Ballyturk meets Black Mirror- a scintillating assault on the senses-The meticulous attention to detail is evident across all aspects of this production — set, costume, sound and lighting design cohere to mesmerising effect. Murphy is a phenomenal talent.”- Marjorie Brennan Sept 10 2023

-New York Magazine-

“Ingeniously conceived…What’s wonderful about Volcano is that Murphy’s background — and immense skill as a dancer suffuses the piece with a distinctive, high-voltage theatricality…Implicit in (Volcano) is the question of what of us, if anything, will outlive us? And should anything?”- Sara Holdren Jan 25 2024

****-ARTS HUB AUSTRALIA-

Volcano is a near-flawless production…dense but never difficult, performed with precision and flair… Featuring exquisite sound and lighting design, and performances that shift effortlessly from acting to contemporary dance in order to embody closeness, drama and rising tension, Volcano is a fascinating work.- Richard Watts Aug 31 2024

*****- TheARTSREVIEW-

“A remarkable piece of durational dance theatre. Serving up existential inquiry wrapped in Sixties sci-fi, a dash of Beckett and a ton of theatrical ingenuity… In every respect, Volcano is a masterpiece. Its interplay of disciplines married in pitch perfect timing… Like a Tennyson epic, Volcano is poetry in motion.”- Chris O’Rourke Sept 30 2023

-Stage and cinema-

"A dance theatre production you will not forget. Created during the pandemic, it makes us feel the passing of time through the endlessness of their voyage, dark and unknown. It is also extremely funny when needed, to alleviate the gloom, and has an intriguing plot- something you will never expect from an already exceptional choreography. Luke Murphy is showing us a new way to integrate dance and theatre; we should pay attention”.-Paolo Bella, Jan 13 2024

-AUSTRALIAN ARTS REVIEW-

“A theatrical trailblazer, complex, cosmic, intellectual and very physical production, performed to perfection. The production obliterated the boundaries between genre classifications. It drew on various art and entertainment forms. It was multifaceted, multidimensional.”- Michael Rose-Boylan Sept 14 2024

-SLANT MAGAZINE-

“Murphy’s staging is spectacular. More so than anything else in the festival, Volcano feels startlingly sui generis. With its own theatrical genre, filtered through the physicality of dance and the structure of television, it’s calling out for a second season.”- Dan Rubbins Jan 20 2024

****- The STAGE-

“Murphy’s muscular choreography hints at unspoken tensions with routines ranging from a brilliantly funny disco dop to riveting sequences in which they throw themselves about in slow motion writhing with tremendous physical control”-Dave Fragnoli July 24 2023

-THIS WEEK In New YOrk-

“Luke Murphy’s Volcano is an eruption of ingenuity, a multimedia, multidisciplinary melding of past, present, and future bathed in mystery…Volcano is a technical marvel, mixing analog and digital in complex and humorous ways..as perplexing as it is riveting, with the added bonus of captivating choreography.”- Mark Rifkin Jan 19 2024

-THe Irish Times-

“An intense, thought provoking and exhilarating experience...Original, complex and skilful, it’s like an episode of Black Mirror on steroids, extended into a four-part mini-series, that’s also a sci-fi thriller with a philosophical bent…This is absorbing, exciting, creepy, clever. The tech and design are impressive. There’s also outstanding dancing, of all hues.”- Deirdre Falvey Sept 21 2021

-BACKSTREET BRISBANE-

“Everything you could want from a festival work – big on ambition and impact, flawlessly delivered, and resisting convention and easy categorization…Ambitious, articulate, and absorbing, Volcano is a unique performance piece that borrows from many genres and formats while refusing to be defined by one, and the strength, stamina, artistry, and attention to detail in this performance were awe-inspiring”. -Elise Larence Sept 16 2024

-NOTHING-EVER-HAPPENS-IN-BRISBANE-

“Every element of Volcano exquisitely crafted. The choreography, the dialogue, the set, the costume, the soundscapes, the performances, everything works together to provide viewers a rich and complete experience. Haunting, evocative, captivating: Volcano is utterly brilliant, utterly utterly brilliant.”- Triss Nemi Sept 3 2024

-STAGE BUZZ BRISBANE-

“Each episode unfolds like a chapter in a feverish dream, drawing the audience into a hypnotic exploration of memory, identity, and reality. Volcano is a testament to the power of live performance, blending theatre, dance, and multimedia into a thought-provoking experience. The immersive sound design, dynamic lighting, detailed set design, and exceptional artistry contribute to the unforgettable nature of the performance”.- Sept 23 2024

-IRISH TIMES THEATRE HIGHLIGHTS OF 2021

“Technical timing and physical precision were key to the stunning performances from Murphy and his fellow-dancer Will Thompson, which found disturbing but also consoling echoes with the themes of pandemic life.”- Sarah Keating Dec 11 2021