The Building Project began in 2021 as a commission award from the Arts Council. We started developing a new piece of theatre for the Space Upstairs in Project Arts Centre, Dublin. We wanted to make something about how artists are empowered in institutions. We gathered a group of our regular collaborators and architect Rae Moore, and asked the question: “what would you do with the [Space Upstairs] if you had to live here?”

Thus began a building process. We wrote some music and arranged it for 10-piece band, Glasshouse, and set the cast some tasks to generate text, based on the consultation process of an architect. The results were filmed in February 2022. We then presented a proof of concept at the Dublin Theatre Festival 2023 (trailer above).

Since then, we have been developing the concept, and applying it to different contexts. We have plans for it in 2025. This piece may be a life-long occupation of ours. We don’t know yet. Zoe is the Creative Director of Cork Theatre Collective, based in the Triskel Arts Centre in Cork. This role is a manifestation of the Building Project. We are also the 2025 Emma O’Kane Bursary recipients-the process of developing choreography is also feeding into the Building Project. We are indebted to our collaborators, and co-creators of the texts: Peter Coonan, Jose Miguel Jimenez, Jessie Thompson, Aoife McAtamney, Wolf James, Glasshouse Ensemble. The development was funded by The Arts Council and Project Arts Centre.

Please enjoy these samples of the piece.