CALL for PERFORMERS
For our epic upcoming 60s-themed music-centred extravaganza, Summer of Love on Friday 23rd June, we invite proposals from a wide range of performers, actors & dancers to help create a wild, provocative, deeply sensual and immersive feast of an experience.
If you might be interested to join us, please read the thorough briefing document at the button below as well as this page.
We love art & intensity, shock & surprise, beauty & spirituality, surrender & transcendence.
We are not looking for entertainment or distraction.
We are looking for unforgettable artistic moments that touch our soul.
Surprising moments that take your breath away.
This is a simple, fluid, starter list of ideas to stir thought & initiate discussion. All other beautiful ideas are deeply welcome. See description at the bottom of the page of the 3 types of spectacle performances - ‘interruptive’, ‘eruptive’ and ‘improvised dance’ + the 2 types of interaction. We highly encourage performers to always interact with the audience as much as possible in their acts, and extend them with immersive walkabout.
Possible acts & performances
ARTISTIC EXPRESSION OF 60S TRIBAL POWER & IDENTITY
TEAMS OF SYNCHRONISED ROLLER-SKATERS (pref to ‘bladers)
BLACK POWER: TROUPE OF POWERFUL BLACK DANCERS (warrior spirit)
GAY POWER TROUPE
FEMALE-POWER TROUPE
NON-BINARY POWER TROUPE
PEACE & PROTEST MOVEMENTS
BRA-BURNING
LINE OF RIFLE-WIELDING SOLDIERS NEUTRALISED BY FLOWER-WIELDING PROTESTORS
FLASHMOBS; surprise, eruptive synchronicity
MASSES OF CHANTING, STOMPING, CHEERFUL PROTESTERS
FLOWER POWER
DANCERS EMERGING FROM PILES OF FLOWERS & PETALS
DANCERS DANCE THROUGH GARDEN OF FLOWERS THAT COME TO LIFE
DANCERS AS MAGICAL MOVING FLOWERS
SUSPENSION SHIBARI - ceremonially-hung humans + flowers
GRANDEUR
SOMETHING MASSIVE TO FILL WHOLE LARGE DANCEFLOOR
CIRCLE OF REVERENCE (perhaps something worshipful to do with Summer Solstice, a few days earlier)
PROCESSION - slowly & ceremoniously through entire room (opening ritual?; carry & cast flowers?
CEREMONY
INVOCATION TO THE PAGAN GODS OF POWER & SENSUALITY
COLLECTIVE CULT WEDDING
HANDFASTING
FLOWER CORONATION
FLORAL TRIBUTES
SEXUALITY
PILES OF WRITHING NAKED-ISH BODIES
ORGASMIC TRANCE
OVERT SEXUAL PROSTRATIONS
PSYCHEDELIA
COLLECTIVE TRIPPY MOMENTS
FEED EACH OTHER “MAGIC MUSHROOMS” + FRENZY INTO HEALING DANCE
Music & Sound
MC / MASTER/MISTRESS OF CEREMONIES - we are open to our 1st time working with 1
WILD & TRIBAL DRUMMING
CHANTING & SINGING
LIVE JAMMING
PSYCHEDELIC SOUNDSCAPES (though nowhere in the venue is quiet…)
WANDERING BEAT POETS reciting
+ 60s PERFORMANCE ART & HAPPENINGS
Group Participation
We’re especially keen on acts & moments that involve the participation of the whole crowd for maximum group bonding.
CEREMONIES REQUIRING AN ACTION FROM EVERYBODY - e.g. everyone holds a string hung from a performer about to be “sacrificed” on the central aerial rig
LARGE GROUP PROTEST
LARGE GROUP APPEASEMENT OF PROTEST (neutralise priapic guns with feminine flowers)
FASHION SHOW -each guest who wants to sashaying down a runway in middle of dancefloor
LARGE GROUP GROUP CHANTING
LARGE GROUP TONING - notes; no words
MASS COORDINATED DANCE
MASS FRENZY - melodic-techno mosh-pit moment
SMALL GROUPS CREATING DANCE CIRCLES - witnessing each other dance in centre
ETERNAL RING OF DANCE - perhaps started by dance activators, who tap people in
Interactions & Characters
WELCOMING COMMITTEE
The entrance process covers six different areas including the main and smaller streets outside; entrance and smoking queues: entrance lobbies; entrance areas to both bars.
We would love to have lots of immersive performers creatively and soulfully interacting with guests at each stage (not just performing as spectacle).
Connectors, inciting people to meet and get to know each other
Fashion Gateholders - upholders of costume quality (zero shaming, though inadequate-effort costumes will be lovingly stripped :))
60s-themed scanners (poss sci-fi vibes?) -checking people in; inciting & exciting; checking they know F&B house rules & understand consent
Physical touch; massage
Founts of knowledge - explaining some of the adventures that await the guests
Blessing-bestowers
CONNECTIVE
Silent, tactile interactions in smaller spaces
Love-ins; sensuality; tactile, non-verbal spaces
Curation of cuddle puddles galore (poss sometimes silent; sometimes with use of blindfolds etc)
Group massage - tons of it
Affirmations; hugs; eye-gazing; deep enquiry; authentic relating; love
FEEDERS
Sensual wild play with food
Sloshing fake wine and sacred honey or milk down throats & over faces & body parts
Feeding food - e.g. grapes to blindfolded guests
MYSTICAL
Spiritual teachings, readings and divinations
Fortune telling
Tarot reading
WORKSHOPS
-Sit-ins (we’d love loads of people to lecture; rant; read poetry; connect)
SUBMITTING A PROPOSAL
If you’re interested to join us, please:
make a clear email proposal, with as much detail as possible (NB your proposal can be sketchy & indicative & we can always quickly develop the idea) to foxandbadge@gmail.com
share clear photos and videos of your previous work in one doc or folder
give us as much info as possible to help us efficiently evaluate your offer
outline your fee/costs as clearly as possible (feel free to offer options)
please clarify if you hold PLI insurance (it’s preferable but not necessary; we can get it for you)
outline anything else your proposal might need or benefit from (furniture, props, lighting, help...)
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR PERFORMERS:
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We seek a heady mix of the following 5 types of action & performances, all of which should clearly relate to our theme of SUMMER OF LOVE
1) MAJOR, “INTERRUPTIVE” DRAMATIC / SPECTACULAR STANDALONE ACTS (each lasting ~3-6mins). These have their own music or soundtrack, and are scheduled between DJs in the 2 DJ rooms. They “interrupt” the flow - using the moments between sets when interruption is fine. They take place in the Main Room
2) MAJOR “ERUPTIVE” PERFORMANCES that “erupt” from the dancefloor or somewhere in the space (each lasting somewhere between up to 5mins). These burst out during the DJ’s set, without stopping it - but demand and draw attention. They flow with the moment, but do not interrupt the music. (it is occasionally possible to plant tracks in the DJ’s repertoire - & thus rehearse to a track you know well - to allow a finer tuning of a more-rehearsed choreography, though the performance should appear impromptu. We often set up conversations between DJs & performers where the performer mentions their idea & the DJ can then respond with a suggestion of some tracks they’d be happy to play, consistent with the flavour of their set. All tracks will always be seamlessly integrated into the set.
3) IMMERSIVE CHARACTERS that flow through the spaces (or occupy a zone, drawing people to them) & interact with the guests.Ideally EVERY guest would enjoy a moment of interactive performance. Interactions could happen anywhere, from the outdoor or toilet queues (or inside the toilets) to the chillout spaces or bars and dancefloors. If the larger dancefloor is more focused on grandeur, ceremony & spectacle, the smaller dancefloor will now be dedicated to deep interaction, intimacy & playful connection with the guests. We yearn to enable our guests to deeply connect with each other - and their inner fantasies; for our crew to help liberate our guests.
4) DANCE ACTIVATORS: charming, radiant dancers who do not perform solo or as mere spectacle, but are intent on AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT AND INTERACTION. They move ceaselessly and energetically through the crowds in all spaces, inviting guests to dance or join them in motion. Dance activators are interactive guides, chaperones, therapists, healers. They are like unstoppable whirlwinds & irresistible forces of infectious enthusiasm, focused on unlocking our guests and dancefloor - like energetic MCs that use their bodies, not voice, Their role is to interact and bring joy and liberation. Their focus is less on their own relation to the music, but on others’. They lavish attention on guests. They are playful, impish, mischievous - sensitive and aware, but unconstrained by fear and worry. Sometimes they form impromptu dance-floor circles, inviting guests to dance with abandon in their centre & be joyfully witnessed.
5) IMPROVISED DANCERS, amazingly attired, wildly dancing throughout the evening, interacting with each other, & the crowd, everywhere - & esp in the largest arch 1:
(1a) on the main 3’ high front stage, in front of or to the side of the central DJ altar
(1b) on the main floor, amidst the crowd
(1c) on the central stages, which will continuously shift from 1 large to 2 med to 4 small stages
(4) in the smaller dancefloor in arch 3 - either in front of the DJ, or anywhere
We love and honour Ecstatic Dance, Moving Connections, the Heart Wave, Contact Improv, 5 Rhythms, - and all kinds of wild, ecstatic, artistic, connective, devotional forms of improvised body movement & expression.
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TONE & FEEL
60s counter-culture has strong, well-defined traditions which can occasionally tip into cliche.
By contrast, we seek to innovate rather than replicate; to explore, wherever possible, the strange and wondrous, rather than the familiar; & to make the 60s modern & fresh.
We seek originality + deviance.
We seek to create a powerful, ceremonial atmosphere of wild energy; spaces bursting with a rich smorgasbord of surprise and opportunity, and action at every turn.
With plenty of playfulness & naughtiness + edgy, exotic, erotic action.
Add activist warrior energy; lightness + darkness; ceremony & ritual; reverence; joy.
POSS CHARACTERS
We seek a wide pantheon of characters and performers that draw on revolutionary-modern +a bit of ancient-pagan traditions, stories, and particularly archetypes - and imagine worlds beyond them.
We have to run a tight budget so are particularly receptive to performers who can multitask, and perform several moments throughout the evening.
INTENTIONS & MOTIVATIONS
-We seek meaningful actions, not just looks (our crowd looks amazing enough already);
-We seek amazing, unforgettable moments that could only have happened during this evening.
Please aim to stay with our guests forever! ;)
-Headline acts should clearly chime with the theme, provoking thought as well as amazement.
-Immersive characters should interact, & exchange something beyond simple initial looks with our guests.
OUR KEY 60 INFLUENCES for this event :
Art: Carolee Schneemann, Yves Klein, Allen Kaprow, Marina Abramovic, Bridget Riley
Dance: Alvin Ailey, Trisha Brown, Twyla Tharp, Martha Graham; Merce Cunningham
Music: the Doors, Simon & Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Laurie Anderson
Spirituality: Alan Watts, Ram Dass, Timothy Leary
Film: Apocalypse Now
Writing: Ken Kesey
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LIGHTING
The large dancefloor of arch1 will be spectacularly lit by some of the best lighting in London, accompanied by a cluster of 6 high-powered lasers, with potential for lots of smoke & haze.
The space also has a few theatre lights.
The 2nd dancefloor room has subtler lighting, with an impressive array of moving heads, lasers, blinders, strobe & smoke that we’ll be bringing in.
Both rooms will have at least one (brilliant) lighting operator (the larger room will have 2) - to whom all performers will be introduced as necessary.
The general lighting in the side spaces will be dim, occasionally flickering moodily with candles; the main bar has a few spotlights to highlight performances under the gantry.
STAGES
The larger dancefloor will have a dramatic elevated stage, 24’ wide, 12’ deep, 3’ high, with dramatic 16’-wide 4’ deep steps stepping down to 2’ & 1’, oozing towards the audience, inviting their participation.
It will also have a smaller standalone stage composed of up to 4 standard stages - 16’ x 8’, 3’ high - in the middle of the dancefloor, under the circular lighting rig above, & to be used for shibari & aerial acts. This stage will be dynamically reconfigured throughout the evening - sometimes split into 2 long stages of 16’ x 4’, with a void in the middle; sometimes split further into 4x 8’ x 4’ islands; sometimes aggregated into more complex shapes.
The smaller dancefloor will not have any stage. That room also no longer has its iconic long copper bar counter, on which performers danced previously; that bar has been split in half and pushed towards the entrance, liberating a greater width of space in that room for dancing, so the DJ will now be in the rear right-hand alcove (we have also had people perform from the mezzanine landing surrounding the room before, though please note that the half nearer the entrance & toilets is congested with people passing to & fro - and the other half is off-limits since used as a cloakroom).
We like to encourage performances OFF-STAGE as much as possible - mingling on the ground with the rest of the event, in high proximity to the crowd rather than distanced from them. People love proximity to greatness ;)
We have a warm, respectful, very well-behaved private community, which has been slowly built on word-of-mouth from friends of friends (we never advertise) over the last 8 years; proximity in performance is safe and effective.
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AERIAL
1a) The large dancefloor has an aerial pulley & rigging point in the middle of the dancefloor, which will be operated throughout the evening by aerial performer and rigger Luke Trentham-Shaw.
1b) It also has a more limited point in the centre of the DJ stage, set back 1 metre from the front - with the disadvantage that any wide, spinning acts risk hitting the DJ set behind.
The rigging points are 7 metres above ground.
2) There is a massive industrial crane/gantry in arch 2’s bar area from which many performers have previously hung hoops for aerial acts, though it has no testing certificate.
BOUNDARIES
Provocation and challenging work is deeply sought and very welcome. Real blood, gore and self-harm are not. Consent is always key. We love performers to be daring + aware. Many of the guests in our community are playful & interactive; please respect those few who do not want to get involved in interactions.
COSTUMES
Wherever possible we prefer performers to be self-sufficient and resourceful in finding the appropriate costumes to wear, and have usually operated on this basis. We love boldness, wildness, richness, abundance, complexity, imagination, beauty & elegance - & thematic specificity.
FIRE
Sadly the venue’s insurance has changed again & NO FIRE is possible, inside or out
GENDER
We would love subversion of gender norms & stereotypes - women in roles often considered male, and vice versa, foregrounding nonbinary and queer performers. We would love to see more men & nonbinary on stage or performing, and to celebrate diverse bodies.
KINK
Kink, fetish & play are key to Fox&Badge. The mezzanine always hosts a dungeon. Exploration & sexual liberation and expression are highly encouraged.
The venue doesn't have a sex licence, and have thrown people out for full-on behaviour before. Nudity is fine with them; whipping and light play will be fine; overt public penetration isn’t.
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STAGE MANAGEMENT
We hire 3 stage managers for each night, and they will help manage your performance; please ensure you introduce yourself to each of them. We expect all performers to take responsibility for being aware of timings, spaces and props, and to make the lighting operators aware as you are about to commence any performance. We prefer performers to arrive well before doors & be fully present throughout the night as much as possible. We love interaction.
GREEN ROOM & DRINKS
There is sadly only 1 tiny green room + 1 bathroom that can be dedicated to performers.
It is not big enough for our entire crew, and no guests are allowed up (please kick them out if you find them up there; ). It gets easily crowded, & should be kept free to allow our large team to change (apologies; we typically have 50+ performers or characters involved in each production, yet can’t get more space from the venue). The backstage area in the main dancefloor is large & available, but a bit more exposed. If you’re able to prepare costume stuff before you arrive at the venue, please do so.
We will be supplying a few drinks (mostly non-alcoholic) in the green rooms at intervals throughout the evening, and handing out a few drinks tokens.
PHOTOGRAPHY & VIDEOGRAPHY
There will be at least 3 brilliant in-house photographers, and at least 2 cameramen, moving through the space on the night. They will happily share for free, unwatermarked, any photos they take of all performers. We are very keen that every performer leaves the night not only with stunning memories, but stunning assets :)
