3x2

About 3x2

3x2 is the working title of a new show currently in creative development. The starting place for this creative development is a very specific format for the collaborative process. Three separate pairings of a circus performer and a composer are working with Circus Monoxide's Artistic Director, Alicia Battestini, to create three strongly character-based pieces of circus performance, each with an original musical score. The pieces are intimate portraits of three individuals experiencing an increasing sense of living a life wasted, or a life in hiding, and their search for passion and meaning. The stories that unravel will track the despair, small triumphs and crossed paths of isolated individuals with hilarious and devastating results.

The Pairings

Aerialist Emma McGovern and Composer Elena Kats-Chernin. Starting with a rope and a grand piano to depict the circumstances of a volatile single mother.

Acrobat and character performer Matt Wilson and composer Carl Polke. A tortured office worker literally falls into his day. His office -- which folds out of a suitcase -- becomes the setting for strained small talk with colleagues, a disastrous presentation to his superiors, and virtuosic physical character performance by Wilson. Bryony Anderson is contributing designer maker on this collaboration.

Trapeze Artist Zebastian Hunter and a composer (to be announced soon) portray a transgender with some serious existential questions for the audience.

The show will be ready for presentation in 2009.

The Artists

Alicia Battestini -- Director
Al has been with Circus Monoxide since 1998 as a performer. In 2002 she became one of its' heavy vehicle drivers -- a pre-requisite to becoming the company's artistic director in 2004. Prior to Monoxide she was Marketing Associate at the Danspace Project in New York, as well as a yoga teacher, a fruit seller and an appalling waitress. Her training includes a Masters Degree in Performance Studies from the Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, a BA Honours in Performance Studies from Sydney University and a BA in Communications (Theatre/ Media), Charles Sturt University in Bathurst. As a performer she tends towards clowning with a magic-realist bent. As a director her passion is big spectacle and powerful physical performance.

Emma McGovern
After originally training and working as a dancer and physical theatre performer, Emma developed a passion for working in air, discovering an affinity for aerial apparatus corde lisse, silks, aerial ring and flying trapeze. Her abilities and enthusiasm were recognized by an experienced international Aerialist, Louisa Harwood, who became her 'doubles' partner and mentor. With a shared background in dance, together they created 'Tuff Fluff' aerial dance co. Performing duo corde lisse and trapeze in both Australia and Europe. From Bellingen Global Carnival to 'Fuzzy Logic Productions'- Portugal. As a solo artist Emma has worked in festivals, clubs, cabarets, ensembles, television, and corporate entertainment.; Woodford Folk Festival, Brisbane cabaret Festival, NIBA Jupiters Casino Show, TV commercials, Quest nightclub, Harcourts NZ, Pan Pacific NYE celebrations, Singapore, Conrad Jupiters casino, Treasury Casino, Aerial Angels Production co. , Topchick management, and Circa.

Elena Kats-Chernin Elena studied music in Moscow, Sydney and Hanover (in Germany) where her study was made possible through DAAD scholarship. Her music featured at the opening ceremonies of the 2000 Olympic Games and the 2003 Rugby World Cup. She received Sounds Australian Award as well as Jean Bogan Memorial Prize in 1996, Green Room and Helpmann Awards in 2004 for the score for the ballet "Wild Swans", choreographed by Meryl Tankard for the Australian Ballet. She was a recipient of the two-year Fellowship from the Australia Council in 2005-2006. In 2004 she was awarded Ian Potter Commission Prize. In December 2006 her piece "Purple Silence" for four horns was premiered very successfully by Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra Horn section as part of Sir Simon Rattle's Dance and Music project in Stadium Arena in Berlin. 6 portrait CD's of her music have been released so far: "Clocks", ABC Classics; "Unceremonious Processions", German label Wergo; "Purple Black & Blues", Tall Poppies; "Wild Swans", ABC Classics; "Ragtime & Blue", UK label Signum; and, "Chamber of Horrors" Tall Poppies. Her 7th is about to be released, titled "Slow Food", Tall Poppies)"

Matt Wilson
Bio to come

Carl Polke
A circus runaway interested in all things tuneful and noisy, Carl's work encompasses a large variety of theatrical musicality and performance. Born in the misty depths of the last millennium, Carl began studying and performing diverse musical styles through the 80's, until the 90's saw him touring the world with Circus Oz as Musical Director and performer. Carl has since maintained a strong relationship with Australian contemporary circus and continues to work with companies such as Circa, Circus Monoxide and The Flying Fruitfly Circus, as well as composing and producing music for theatre, his score for Flying Blind (Legs on the Wall) winning a 2002 Canadian Jessie Award, and his score for "On the Case" receiving a 2006 Helpmann Award nomination. Recently, he has composed and performed with both The Flying Fruitfly Circus and is involved with a newly formed experimental music/noise band FreeQuestra.

Zebastian Hunter
Zebastian is one of Australia's foremost Cloud Swing and contortion artists. At age 14 he joined the Flying Fruit Fly Circus, a company that acts as both a school and an international performance troupe. In 2002 he travelled to Montreal to become the first Australian accepted by the prestigious National Circus School. Since graduation Zebastian has travelled throughout Europe, North America and Asia performing in circus companies such as "Cirque Productions" and "Antithesis Productions", in Branson-Missouri, Palm Springs-California and Seattle- Washington, German Cabaret's such as "Krystall Palast Variete" and "De Capo Variete", he made 3 separate appearances on the "Circo Massimo Show" filmed in Rome, Italy and distributed worldwide, Circus Festivals such as "La Piste Aux Espoirs" in Belgium, "Sol Y Circo" in Germany and "Wuqiao" in China and high class corporate Gala's.

Bryony Anderson
Bio to come