(Images and poster design by Oli Sones)

New devised work, made with the company while in residence at Above the Stag, for Contact Festival June/July 2021. Testing the boundaries of form, this work combined music, drama and video.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ‘ Solely performed by non-binary actors, it is a powerful piece that gives me goosebumps – and not only once…funny, emotional, and trailblazing piece about the search for gender identity that contemplates the question of who you are to yourself.’ - A Younger Theatre

A Younger TheatreCreated by Edwina Strobl, with Mais Robinson, Freddie Love and Mark Daniels

Welcome to Min’s performance anxiety dream. A flautist in training at a music college, Min’s final examined concert is looming terrifyingly in the very near future. This concert will be one of the first times they will present themself in an official way, as they want to be seen: as a non-binary adult, with their chosen name - Min. They will be playing a piece from The Magic Flute, which reminds them of their childhood and of their late father, who would play an animated version to them in times of worry.

But they haven’t invited their mother yet because she often misgenders them and calls them by their deadname. Should they invite her or should they just move on and avoid the pain it causes, as their best friend and housemate Patty keeps encouraging them to do? Is it asking too much to feel like their full self and keep their only remaining parent in their life as well? Can they regain resolve in being who they are, what their purpose is and find a way to bridge the gap between them and the rest of the world?

Mozart’s The Magic Flute is a fairytale set in a magical, supernatural world like so many other classic stories we know. It is underpinned by a purposefully binary philosophy, represented by the opposing sides of male/female, reason/emotion, good/evil. That was 1791 for you. Now in 2021, binary understandings of the world feel increasingly limited and restrictive. But how far have our stories actually come? How much further is there to go beyond the black and white, to bring nuance and colour to how we see the world and ourselves?

We started our short devising process for Contact Festival 2 weeks ago with a vague blueprint, many, many questions and the desire to stage a mini revolution by liberating the stories we love from the conservative restraints that their narratives are held captive within. We have found our way to the answers together, through dreams, sketches, improvisation and disco dancing. We repeat: THIS IS NOT THE MAGIC FLUTE. ‘The Magic Flute or the stories they tell’ is one person’s journey to find themself beyond the binary by recognising the truth of their craft - the art of music and storytelling.

Stories of all genres and forms (but preferably live performance please), shape us and inhabit our minds. They help us discover things we didn’t know existed inside ourselves and find the language for things that are invisible otherwise. Obsession with a story can lead you into stormy and muddled territory, but perhaps if you reimagine yourself into it then it can help you make sense of yourself. Let’s celebrate storys' power.

Creative Team:

Edwina Strobl - Creator, Director, Video Design

Mais Robinson - Creator, Performer

Freddie Love - Creator, Performer

Mark Daniels - Creator, Dramaturg

Special Thanks

Thank you to the sensational Matthew Baldwin for inviting us, encouraging us, inspiring us and eating all the jammie dodgers. Many thank you’s to Billy Rosenfield for his calm and insightful guidance in our whirlwind devising process. Thank you to the tech team at Above The Stag for their wizardry and the rest of the team for welcoming us as part of the Festival.

Thank you to Georgia Cooke for her words about what it is to be a flautist and performance of extracts from The Magic Flute that are woven throughout the show.

Thank you to Katinka Deecke at the Schauspielhaus Zürich for organising permission from Carolin Emcke and Ms. Vaginal Davis to use extracts from their hugely inspiring lockdown conversation ‘Tender Talk’ in the show.

Thank you to Oli Sones for photography, video, technical support and general support.