Laura Murphy + Black Bark Film (UK)
A Spectacle of Herself, 2021
Paired artist → Julia Heijligers with Dear Shannon (NL)
Read their conversation here
Starring Laura Murphy as herself amidst the failing performance of Western civilisation, A Spectacle of Herself charts a cosmic voyage through performance, probing into space and outer space, and taking up space – on your screens and in your lives.
Slicing herself into appropriately sized, appropriately seasoned, appropriately inappropriate portions, Laura navigates in the footsteps of spectacle maker Bridget Jones, asking is she ‘too much’ ? Is she ‘not enough’? Or can you love her just as she is?
Following on from Laura’s debut solo Contra, A Spectacle of Herself is a performance film emerging from research into a new live work. Interrogating themes around virtuosity, autobiography, queer identity, and the spectacularised body, A Spectacle of Herself draws on Laura’s doctoral research which investigates aerial work’s potential as a critically engaged practice and its use as a vehicle for social and political propaganda.
f Artist's bio o
Laura Murphy is a genre-defying queer performance maker from Bristol UK, who makes text driven and dynamic physical work about things that she thinks need to be talked about. Her work is cross-disciplinary fusion of theatre, live art, aerial choreography, dance and verbal explosions, which integrates intimacy and spectacle.
Black Bark Film are female-led film makers that evoke authentic and meaningful conversation by working collaboratively with clients. Topics range from food & farming activism, community engagement, youth empowerment, gender politics and providing a platform for marginalised voices.
r Credits e
Performed and written by Laura Murphy
Film Director, Edit and Camera u Holly Black, Black Bark Films
Art Director q Nicole A’Court-Stuart
Sound n Jo Barker and Nicole A'Court-Stuart
Theatre Director k Ursula Martinez
Lip Sync Consultant v Dickie Beau
Produced by Nicole A’Court-Stuart for ContraProject
Commissioned by CircusDanceFestival and The Lowry, Salford
Supported by Arts Council England
Laura Murphy + Black Bark Film (UK)
A Spectacle of Herself, 2021
Paired artist → Julia Heijligers with Dear Shannon (NL)
Read their conversation here
Starring Laura Murphy as herself amidst the failing performance of Western civilisation, A Spectacle of Herself charts a cosmic voyage through performance, probing into space and outer space, and taking up space – on your screens and in your lives.
Slicing herself into appropriately sized, appropriately seasoned, appropriately inappropriate portions, Laura navigates in the footsteps of spectacle maker Bridget Jones, asking is she ‘too much’ ? Is she ‘not enough’? Or can you love her just as she is?
Following on from Laura’s debut solo Contra, A Spectacle of Herself is a performance film emerging from research into a new live work. Interrogating themes around virtuosity, autobiography, queer identity, and the spectacularised body, A Spectacle of Herself draws on Laura’s doctoral research which investigates aerial work’s potential as a critically engaged practice and its use as a vehicle for social and political propaganda.
f Artist's bio o
Laura Murphy is a genre-defying queer performance maker from Bristol UK, who makes text driven and dynamic physical work about things that she thinks need to be talked about. Her work is cross-disciplinary fusion of theatre, live art, aerial choreography, dance and verbal explosions, which integrates intimacy and spectacle.
Black Bark Film are female-led film makers that evoke authentic and meaningful conversation by working collaboratively with clients. Topics range from food & farming activism, community engagement, youth empowerment, gender politics and providing a platform for marginalised voices.
r Credits e
Performed and written by Laura Murphy
Film Director, Edit and Camera u Holly Black, Black Bark Films
Art Director q Nicole A’Court-Stuart
Sound n Jo Barker and Nicole A'Court-Stuart
Theatre Director k Ursula Martinez
Lip Sync Consultant v Dickie Beau
Produced by Nicole A’Court-Stuart for ContraProject
Commissioned by CircusDanceFestival and The Lowry, Salford
Supported by Arts Council England
Artwork by Daeun Lim
Curated by
