We were delighted to catch up with Jenny Sealey this week and shoot her 2nd film for Push Me.  The Garden’s writer Alex Bulmer has been busy reworking the script for The Garden (as Jenny works on the Opening Ceremony for the Paralympic Games) for its revival at The Southbank for the Unlimited Festival.  Alex told us..

It’s a huge challenge to write for aerial work because one feels the pressure to write something that not only uses those sway poles and those aerial performers to their maximum, but also to write a piece that is worthy of such heightened spectacle. The writing has to work on the ground and in the air, plus burst into song and all for a valid reason in terms of story and style.

Jenny admitted feeling a sense of trepidation with the idea of her actors swaypoling on concrete but both she and Alex are genuinally excited by the move and trust implicitly the resilience of the poles to hold the choreography!

I love this new setting for the show, even more than the first I think it fits better in this space because I like the notion that our  Keepers go to places that might be urban and concrete and then they set up their garden.  It somehow makes more sense to me in this highly developed environment. And with the Thames behind it – will look amazing.

We were intrigued to find out more so after filming Jenny at Graeae, we  bundled in a taxi to get a sense of the space and place first hand.  One forgets what a stunning backdrop the River Thames provides for anything in its wake.  It will undoubtedly be a beautiful setting fit for a feast of stories.

We’ll join Jenny, Alex and the rest of the team in the weeks to come as she moves into rehearsal for the Unlimited Festival.  The Garden is free for all to see from the 6th – 9th September on the Riverside Terrace,  so pitch up.