Fireflies at Dawn – CAPA College, Wakefield

Director: Sandrine Monin

Choreographer: Sandrine Monin in collaboration with the performers

Composer: Roberto D. Rusconi

Fireflies at Dawnis a new creation of Unbound Dance Theatre and invites the audience to embark on a journey of discovery into the often frightening and confusing world of Blind and Visually Impaired (BVI) people. This reviewer has had a whole career in the education of BVI and found the total experience emotional and instructive. Congratulations must be due to the entire creative team and performers for highlighting the issues of inclusion, acceptance and individuality in such a sensitive and memorable way.

The show is ideally suited to a smaller, more intimate venue such as that offered by the Box Theatre at CAPA College. Some of it is in total darkness which puts everyone in the position that is the everyday reality of many BVI people, thereby having to rely on the remaining senses (mainly hearing) for information and orientation. This is highly effective in its attempt to simulate the normal experience of blind people for the fully sighted. The show uses a combination of embedded audio description, sounds, lights (the fireflies are represented by hand held lights that flit and dance through the dark forest as they guide us on a journey towards more freedom and understanding) and touch as well as incorporating an innovative new wearable technology calledechomewhich enhances movement perceptions for both performers and audiences alike. At the beginning of the show each performer introduces herself to the audience, describing her appearance and visual status and what her own personal movement “sounds” like by demonstrating the echome technology. Some of this could have been louder and whilst radio mikes would have been useful perhaps this was prevented by the extreme physicality of much of the show.

One scene in particular, that which portrayed the school experience of many BVI people, stood out for this reviewer. It must be said that the current situation in our schools has vastly improved for BVI people in terms of inclusivity, understanding and requirements but most BVI adults of a certain age will well remember being placed in what was a fully sighted world and just not being able to know what was going on – not seeing the blackboard, not having appropriate learning materials (large print, braille, tactile illustrations, audio description etc), generally not having their needs met at all. The heartfelt shout “I can’t see the board” spoke volumes.

Another scene highlighted the question of individuality with the refrain “Who do you think you are?” This, of course, not only applies to BVI but special needs and disability in general. The power of vulnerability that is evoked in this show encapsulates the lived experience of many of our disadvantaged members of society, many of whom are “invisible” to the majority and suffer daily experiences of frustration, misunderstanding, lack of opportunities and empathy.

The five performers all deserve to be mentioned by name for co-creating this show and for helping to showcase the plight of the BVI community and special needs in general. They are Helen Davies, Maddie Irwin, Mayowa Ogunnaike, Tammy Tsang and Sue Whitehouse. Very well done to all.

Reviewed on 10th July 2024.