Caravania!: Intimacy and immersion for family audiences

Abstract

In this artist’s contribution, Ledger discusses The Bone Ensemble’s performance Caravania!, an intimate, participatory performance experience for a family audience. Couched as a visit to a micronation, the piece was conceived as an immersive performance for six spectators at a time in an old caravan and has toured extensively. Ledger explores the reasons for creating the work, especially the desire to address a lack of intimate performance work for children and families. As well as discussing the work’s content and reception, the notion of ‘participant-spectator’ is allied to critical reflection on spectators’ agency in this and other work.