White Elephant
White Elephant collides three dancers and three actors in a ‘bastardised’ commedia/ clown/ mask performance.
Three bloated oligarchs enter a new world and set about making it their own. A chorus of masked Zanni (servants) attend to and perform for them. The use of art by the Zanni to communicate injustice prompts an examination of the relationship between art and power. The show investigates the fears and fascinations of the wealthy elite, and by proxy the middle class that keeps them in power.
White Elephant premiered at the Hannah Playhouse, Wellington in November 2014.