Route 10

A new dance theatre piece about journeys to health

Route 10 is inspired by Coventry’s No 10 bus route, which is used in reports to highlight health inequalities in the city. On average people live ten years longer as you travel from the areas of deprivation on the east side of the city to more affluent areas on the west, a journey that can be found in every city. As the bus becomes a theatrical space, audiences find themselves in close proximity with live performers. Shining a light on city life, with a health and well being focus, Route 10 treats its audiences to comedy, dance, and spoken word as well as including some audience participation.

Project Details

Through our research we have partnered with different community groups, Warwick and Coventry University academics and health professionals. These partners have enabled us to draw on diverse sources from healing traditions of different cultures including faith healing, complementary therapies, modern medicine and dance movement practices to explore the body’s capacity to heal and a body/mind interplay within this.

Route 10 is currently in its research and development phase, after an initial creation and short performances tested in Coventry on the bus and at Coventry Cathedral.

1) A health activism spectacle in, on and around a customised double-decker bus; a metaphor for our journeys through health and wellbeing. The bus transforms scene by scene, revealing funny and moving personal stories that are told through dance and spoken word. 

Anticipated length: 30 min which can be repeated
Audience Size: A ‘VIP’ interactive experience for 20 people and spectacle outside for up to 1000 people depending on performance area.

 2) A distributed performance event across a city.

Performance takes place across a city’s tram/bus route, identified and found with the commissioning host. Audiences can discover a moment or follow the performers throughout the city
Work is embedded in the city’s stories and routes.

In-depth activism work on communities health and well-being, the Route 10 can offer a mechanism to connect and engage participants in dance as a positive engagement tool for health awareness. ‘In residence’ for a period of time with a city we can create a distributed journey for audiences and participants to make connections across as city, with the bus linking co-authored work with community groups.
The piece will be family friendly, appealing to a broad, diverse audience demographic.

Route 10 can take a performance to your community location, or city centre; reaching new audiences. Route 10 will engage and enthuse your festival or event audience with activity on around and the bus, in a highly visible and engaging show.

We can provide organisations with promotional print, film clips, photos and press releases. The bus itself and the end artwork also becomes a marketing tool in terms of its visibility within the city. We anticipate this novel performance will also be of press interest.

Route 10 RnD was supported by Arts Council England Project Grant and Coventry And Warwick Universities 2021 Open Call, along with inkind support from the Albany Theatre and our helpful bus enthusiast Mr R. Burdett. We are inviting partners to co-commission stage two and place booking for shows from July 2020 to match our next ACE proposal.

We have a confirmed premiere and residency in Birmingham Summer 2020, and are looking for investors to realise the next development phase of the piece, as well as 8-10 bookings for Summer 2020 across the UK. We will be applying for Arts Council Funding and other local/national funds to support the next development phase.

Please get in touch to book or discuss the show

Back to Top