In advance of Tramway's Unlimited Festival, I've been in touch with a few of the artists to ask them to write something for the Kim Asks What blog. Here's a brief chat with Jack Dean.
Kim: Can you tell me a bit about your work at Tramway’s Unlimited Festival?
Kim: Can you tell me a bit about your work at Tramway’s Unlimited Festival?
Jack: I’m bringing my show Grandad and the Machine to Tramway. It’s an epic storytelling show, loosely inspired by Ted Hughes’ The Iron Man, that is set in a bizarre, steampunky alternate version of England where the British Empire never died. It’s got live looping, puppetry, silly pop culture references and dramatic battle sequences, but at its core its about trying to be good to yourself and each other in a troubled world.
Kim: What does “Unlimited” mean to you?
Jack: It means breaking out of the belittling pigeonholes of privilege and disadvantage, which is essential for meaningful self-expression as an artist. It means winning back the right to be an individual. It means all kinds of awesome.
Kim: Could you highlight one thing we may not know about your practice or experience as an artist/performer/producer working in a ‘disability-led’ context?
Jack: I’m a dyspraxic person working with puppets! What’s not to love?
Grandad and the Machine is on at Tramway on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 September at 4pm.
Image: Jack Dean / from Unlimited Impact