Jo Bannon comes to Cove Park this June through the Jerwood Performing Arts residencies, programmed by Fuel Theatre. In a new development for 2014, former participants will each nominate emerging artists new to both Cove Park and Fuel to take up this year’s residency opportunities. The nominated artists will work with Fuel either on a specific project, or for the more general development of their creative practice. The residencies will take place in May, June, July and August this year.

Cove Park is most grateful for the continued support of the Jerwood Charitable Foundation for making this work possible.

Jo will use the week long residency at Cove Park to work on Alba, a new staged performance about paleness, blending in and standing out.

Influenced by the artists’s autobiography as a person with albinism, the title refers to the Italian translation of Alba, used as the source for the word albino, meaning sublime light. The performance will use blinding light, invisibility, movement and elements of contemporary opera to create a visual performance that explores the multiple narratives we inherit, construct and acquire in relation to our own identity. This performance explores the stories we tell of ourselves and the stories told about us. The myths we inherit and the ones we embody, the identities we cannot shake off and so instead perform.

image – Manuel Vason