Optimism was all about self image, the desire to be something other than yourself, and the need to be desired. All through the lens of a woman’s attempt to turn into a farm animal. Big on visuals, metaphors and silly jokes; this was where Uncanny began.
Credit- John Tudor
Creative Team:
Performers- Natalie Bellingham, Nikolai Calcoen, Matt Rogers
Technical Manager- Al Orange, Tina Bunck
You want to be loved. People love lambs, so…become a lamb. Most people know when they’ve made a wrong decision. But what happens when someone is convinced theirs is the right one? “OPTIMISM” is a twisted tale of desire and self worth told through the eyes of an idiot.
Blending dark clown with multimedia and unusual physicality, this production is both brutal and dreamlike, presenting a constant stream of unlikely characters, peculiar situations and striking visuals.
“Optimism’ by Uncanny Theatre is a total, if dark, delight that wryly fillets our notions of romantic love and the body beautiful. Clever in both it’s use of the physical and the emotional it is, in turns, hilarious and horrific without ever losing it’s sense of ‘fun’ and by that I mean genuine, childlike, fun that can at one time be ridiculous and deeply, deeply serious. An absolute joy of a first show by a new company.“ Iain Bloomfield, Two Tonne/ Theatre in the Mill
“Optimism, is a dark and twisted tale of desire and what happens when unrequited love crosses the border into something more sinister… the logic of a lovesick girl goes like this: I like this man, this man likes sheep, I’ll become a sheep. That kind of absurdity runs through a show which has flashes of inspired moments… in the moments when Bellingham is clowning and Calcoen playing her foil, Optimism soars – and gives reason to remain optimistic about the future of Yorkshire theatre.” Nick Ahad, Yorkshire Post
