IOU Theatre

The Rear View bus was conceived by David Wheeler, artistic director of IOU Theatre.

I was brought in to be project manager and designer for the project. It entailed chopping a wedge shaped chunk out of the bus and installing 40 rear facing seats.

The idea of the show was to take an audience on a journey around a town. They have a surprising and unfolding view of the world facing backwards. Along their route they encounter various characters and situations that weave together into an intriguing story. Everyone wears headphones listening to an accompanying soundtrack and radio links to actors. There is a blurring between what’s real and what’s staged.

An amazing team was assembled for the bus conversation. The structural steelworker was installed by Halifax Engineering and the fit out was by Pickwell and Arnold, boat builders of Todmorden. Dan Powers of IOU Theatre was technical manager/designer.

Devised and built with Tim Hunkin.

Tim and visited Blackpool Pleasure Beach back in the 1990’s and one of stand out rides for for ingenuity was the “Haunted Swing”. It’s an illusion based on an old Victorian ride. The audience are seated on a suspended bench inside a room and it appears as though the seat swings backwards and forwards until it spins fully upside down. It then continues to keep spinning around and around. What’s actually happening is that the bench is static and it’s the room that spinning around the bench… but your brain makes you think that it’s you who are doing the spinning. It’s a great optical illusion.

Several years later we realised that it could be possible to fit the “Haunted Swing” inside a caravan and decide to try and make it. It soon became obvious that this would be treated as a fairground ride and therefore would need to pass various safety tests for it’s design and manufacture. We managed to make it and it’s still touring around the country 14 years later

The Piano Bikes were built to kick off the Tour de France celebrations in Yorkshire. Commissioned by iMove and Dave Nelson, the brief was to pull a grand piano up the longest single incline in England by bicyle. It took 18 bikes and 36 strong legs.

Here is a link to the BBC film about the project https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-26899453

PIER, TOURING THEATRE SHOW

A mobile, elevating pier with telescopic pavilion and organ, built on a 2CV chassis.

Commissioned by DC Productions in 1995

DOUGHNUT TRIKE, TOURING THEATRE SHOW

An electrically powered doughnut van, which drives around selling doughnuts transforms during the show, telescoping out to form a chopper trike motor bike. Built for a national touring street theatre show.

Commissioned by Whitewood and Fleming in 1996

Cremulator was commissioned by Walk the Plank for The Art Car Parade. It has a powered Digger arm on the roof, spinning dichroic spirit inside the hearse and a sound track by Matt Wand.

OPERA CAR, ENGLISH NATIONAL OPERA

A seventeenth century Italian opera updated to 1940’s Eastern Europe. The car was owned by a con man who toured around selling the elixir of love. This exotic mobile shop included a pulpit, his display case , the bottling plant and a handy bouncy castle for any passing children. The car is electrically powered with four wheel steering.

Commissioned by Jude Kelly and The English National Opera in 1998