Ride (2008) & Stairworks (2001)

From 7pm Friday 20 November until midnight on Sunday 29 November

We are delighted to share this double bill of archival dance works, presented in partnership with Protein and Woolwich Works, marking 20 years of The Wapping Project and 21 years of Protein.

Featuring a provocative duet between Ascot Lady and Jockey, oscillating between aspiration and desire, unbridled passion and respectability, and an afterlife of chefs ‘culled’ during the foot and mouth pandemic of the early 2000s, Ride and Stairworks were commissioned by The Wapping Project, and include performances from some of Protein’s early company dancers, including Luca Silvestrini himself.

This double bill is dedicated to the memory of our late founder and director Jules Wright.

Performers:

Ride: Charlotte Broom, Omar Gordon
Stairworks: Ben Abbott, Jean Abreu, Robin Dingemans, Kristoffer Hahn, Ilkka Kokkonen, John Milroy, Eddie Nixon, Luca Silvestrini, Johan Stjernholm, Daniel Watson

Ride (2008) was commissioned for Turning the Season, a major exhibition playing with the idea of the Season – the social elite’s summer of balls, races, festivals and regattas – and spanning photography, film, sculpture installation and performance. The third Protein’s commission for The Wapping Project responded to the sports aspect of the Season with a duet between Ascot Lady and Jockey, performed by Charlotte Broom and Omar Gordon.

Stairworks (2001), Protein’s first piece for The Wapping Project, was commissioned as part of the Jerwood 10 X 8: Stairworks series, and guest-curated by Siobhan Davies. Eight choreographers were invited to make 10-minute pieces for the external staircase. The works were intended to be caught out of the corner of the viewer’s eye, and to play with the idea of what a dance performance could be and where it can be performed.

Luca Silverstrini’s piece mixes news coverage with Vivaldi’s music and images of young men wearing only white bath towels. Performed on an outdoor staircase, it could only be viewed through windows and doors from the inside of the restaurant within the building. Following its premiere on the 20 November 2001, the piece became so popular (and re-named The Boys in Towels) that its filmed version went on to be shown on screens around our  building in the following years.

This online broadcast is part of our Protein 21 Remix Series which brings back historical works onto a digital stage to help us take some distance with the present and provide a social and individual perspective on society, interpersonal connections and the everyday.