Dispatch

About Dispatch

“Dispatch” is puppet and Audio/Visual-based visual theatre, employing black light theatre, rod puppetry, an ethereal sound design and AV through an innovative software program called “Isadora” (Barking Spider is one of the first Australian companies to be using Isadora). It was initially developed in 2007 and requires one more process of creative development to be ready for presentation.

Synopsis

“From nothingness we come

By nothingness we are sustained

To nothingness we return”

“Dispatch” is about a puppet character “Sorrel” a little girl who has died and is unable to realise it. She arrives in a boat at “the Middle place”, an island in the middle of an ocean. The island is guarded by Maman Brigitte, a human character who is the guardian of the dead. Maman Brigitte is there to guide souls out of the Middle place, or keep them there, if they refuse to move on.The “island” at which Sorrel arrives is actually Maman Brigitte’s dress: a huge Marie-Antoinette style crinoline constructed out of blue and green silks, fishing nets, seaweed, and treasures from the deep. On the dress are abandoned suitcases – the belongings of the departed. Sorrel goes through the suitcases seeking shelter and refuge but receives stories and lessons through the contents she finds within.>Maman Brigitte oversees Sorrels journey, to guide her towards her ultimate decision: to stay or to go. “Dispatch” is ethereal and timeless in feel. A single narrative line is peppered with weaving mini-narratives that are born of each suitcase as Sorrel, the protagonist, discovers them. “Dispatch” runs for approximately one hour and is suitable for an teen and adult audience.