Theatre and Dance

The Freshly Picked season is a specially selected collection of visual and physical theatre from across the UK. The season kicks off with shows from three Total Theatre Award winners, and also includes a series of performances programmed in collaboration with Yorkshire Dance.

The season starts with Anomie from the Bristol-based theatre company, Precarious. The company have been picking up awards in their trips to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in the last few years and their new show has been shortlisted for the Oxford Samuel Beckett Theatre Trust Award. Their distinctive performance style blends break-neck physicality with stunning visual effects.

The Idiot Colony

This is followed by Fringe First Winner, The Idiot Colony from RedCape Theatre. Based on real-life accounts, it is based on the treatment and incarceration of "moral defectives" in 1940s England. The plays aims to intertwine humour with a genuinely moving storyline. Critically acclaimed for its striking visuals, The Idiot Colony is currently on an extensive tour following a sold out run at the ICA in London.

The season also showcases great local talent - Chotto Ookki Theatre Company mix physical theatre with dance, striking visuals and puppetry. They have just returned from a hit run at the Edinburgh Festival and Freshly Picked is the arena for them to present their new show, Sweet - a bitter take on the saccharine nature of love.

The season continues with a series of performances programmed in collaboration with Yorkshire Dance, including David Hughes Dance Company with The Red Room; Balbir Singh Dance Company with a double bill of Trespass and Play of Percentages; and Vincent Dance Theatre with If We Go On.

The Freshly Picked season takes place at The Carriageworks from Tuesday 22 September until Thursday 8 October 2009. For more information on the individual shows as well as show times, consult the website: