Octopus Story: a story about Portsmouth’s relationship with the sea.
Octopus Story was a large-scale immersive audio-visual installation, theatre performance, community workshops and creative maker activities that ran through 2022 in Portsmouth on the south coast of the UK.
Inspired by the ‘Octopus Medicine’ poems by Becci Louise. Taking the Octopus as our medicine animal the project encouraged audiences to develop a connection with the ocean, both as an otherworld and an eco-system upon which our own, terrestrial lives, thoroughly rely. Sited in Portsmouth Cathedral in November 2022 over three nights the event was co-created by local artists and community members guided by experts in the field of immersive audio-visual, scenographic and theatrical production.
Portsmouth has a symbiotic relationship with the sea, it simply would not exist without it. Generations of local people owe their livelihoods to the sea, having served in or helped to service the Royal Navy, fished in local waters, or worked in our tourism industry. The project aimed to provide a cultural opportunity to help local people to revisit their relationship with the waterfront that they have long taken for granted. At a time when its power threatens the city and the harm we have done to it threatens the planet, we wanted to have a wide impact on the creative and cultural economy by staging a ground-breaking mile-stone event and contributing to the city’s transformation towards a sustainable future.
Through participation in activities ranging from writing, acting, prop making and audiovisual arts, audiences acquired a connection with the ocean, both as an otherworld and an eco-system upon which our own lives rely. Originally commissioned as “Octopuses & Other Sea Creatures” – a small-scale production in 2019 as part of the New Theatre Royal’s Sea Festival at the Square Tower. In 2022, Octopuses & Other Sea Creatures was re-envisioned for a new location, with increased community participation, co-creation, skill-sharing and a new story.
The Begining
As part of Bookfest 2022, we encouraged people to get their pens out and be part of the story.
Octopus Medicine – Young Peoples Half Term Creative Writing Workshops
Young people learned about the creatures that inhabit the seas surrounding Portsmouth and found out what they can do to protect them. With poetry writing, art-making, these workshops were perfect for creative souls and budding environmentalists.
Transmedia Storytelling for Writers with far too much Imagination!
The workshop was the first step in a journey that culminated with a large-scale immersive audio-visual art installation in Portsmouth Cathedral in November 2022. We invited writers with too much imagination to bring their pens, notebooks, and creativity and pour it onto the page.
The Front Room Words & Music – our launch at The Loft
An evening of poetry, spoken word and performance as we celebrated the launch of Octopuses & Other Sea Creatures. Featuring a reading of Octopus Medicine by Becci Louise.
The Undersea
For World Ocean Day in June 2022 this exhibition promoted a conversation about our marine environment.
The Pollution we can’t see – artists and researchers in the classroom
During the summer term of 2022, we placed artists and scientists together in local schools as ‘researchers in the classroom’ in collaboration to deliver creative-making workshops about ‘the pollution we don’t see’ and showcased this work in the exhibition.
World Ocean Day – a conversation about our relationship with the sea
We staged an exhibition of art made during our schools’ workshops, at St Mary’s Church in Portsmouth as part of World Ocean Day. The event included a presentation from a real-life octopus keeper and facilitated a public dialogue promoting environmental literacy about the marine environment.
We worked in the community and met many new volunteers
There are lots of different city residents could get involved with the project, as a creative, as a volunteer or as a sponsor through our successful crowdfunder and we met lots of passionate people.
The Octopus
We aimed to bring some exciting participatory events to the city that celebrated our marine environment.
Creative arts workshops inviting people to get involved
We invited people interested in immersive theatre, audiovisual arts, sonic arts, or scenography to take the opportunity to participate two-day public workshop at Groundlings Theatre aimed at people with little or no experience in large-scale community creativity.
Creative exploration workshops at Groundlings Theatre
Over one weekend in July we took over Groundlings Theatre and ran immersive theatre, sonic arts and video proh=jection workshops with experts in their field. Members of the public not only had the opportunity to learn some new skills but they also contributed to the devising of the story for the final show.
Octopuses & Other Sea Creatures & We Shine Portsmouth
For three nights in November 2022, we took over Portsmouth Cathedral to stage a large-scale immersive theatre, audiovisual experience. A family-friendly adventure to inspire, shock and awe.
