Bruce Barton: The Awesome and Amazing Authoring Experiments of Zuppa Circus

It may come as a surprise to the rest of the country that the Atlantic region is home to some of the most progressive and ambitious theatrical companies in Canada. The Halifax-based Zuppa Circus explores new territory in terms of the relationship between text-based and devised, physically-based creation.  Their "Uncle Oscar’s Experiment" was forged through a productive yet challenging process of script revision in conjunction with collaborative improvisational development. This complex (and occasionally contentious) method of composition demanded an ongoing reconsideration and reformulation of traditional creative roles and processes—and generated as many new questions as it provided clear and repeatable solutions.  With "Radium City," Zuppa Circus further problematizes familiar frameworks and expectations.  This paper will attempt to locate Zuppa Circus’s practice within a discernible sphere of influences, inspirations, and intentions and explore the implications of their process in terms of an evolving conception of authorship within devised theatre performance.