Stage: Stories from an invisible town
Much-loved emerging Welsh artist Hugh Hughes presents a brand new show at the Brighton Dome
Stories From An Invisible Town is a collection of tales and anecdotes that guide the audience through the childhood of Hugh Hughes, as told by the man himself (with a little help from brother Derwyn and sister Delyth). As the siblings delve into their shared childhood memories, skeletons come tumbling out of closets, with unpredictable and hilarious consequences.
The trio, from Llangefni in Wales, begun their journey into the past after Hugh returned to the family home to help his mum move house.
It’s not just the Hughes family that have an input, as much of the show has been created using live and online audiences to collate the narrative over a period of time. The live show is presented alongside a tapestry of short films, photographs, animations, maps, diagrams, audio clips and poems – all brought together on the web.
Hughes has already developed three deeply personal and imaginative shows – Floating, Story Of A Rabbit and 360. The atmosphere is hilarious, heart-felt, fun and relaxed; there’s real variety in what’s happening on stage – sometimes the audience are shown videos or listening to audio or watching the siblings dramatically recreate moments from their family past.
It consists of three episodes of around 40 minutes, separated by an interval of around 10 minutes each. During these intervals, audio or video is sometimes played but audience members are free to leave the auditorium.
This journey of discovery stretches back to 2004 when Hugh left his small hometown. Since then these three shows have opened to acclaim at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and worldwide success including a sold out run at the Sydney Opera House and visits to festivals in the USA, Colombia, Finland, Singapore and Russia.
The trilogy was presented as one complete show as The Wonderful World Of Hugh Hughes at the Barbican and then in autumn 2010, alongside screenings of the film Hugh Hughes: How I Got Here.
