Swallow-a-Bicycle invites Calgary-based artists to participate in two upcoming projects at the High Performance Rodeo, Calgary’s International Festival of the Arts. Both projects will run January 6-8 and 13-15, 2011 in downtown Calgary.

Freak Show Classic

Returning to One Yellow Rabbit’s High Performance Rodeo for its fourth consecutive year, Freak Show is a site-specific tour that puts a wide variety of freakish multidisciplinary performances in unusual spaces – stairwells, rooftops, storage rooms, parking lots and more.

Artists are asked to create an original, self-contained 5-7 minute performance/experience. This creation should be inspired both by the theme “Freak Show” and by the site of the performance. Swallow-a-Bicycle is seeking artists with an interest and understanding of the creation of new work, and who wish to challenge their current creative practice via artistic experimentation.

For more information about previous productions of Freak Show, visit the “Performances” page at www.swallowabicycle.com.

Freak Show Redux

Swallow-a-Bicycle is proud to introduce a new Freak Show format for the 25th annual High Performance Rodeo. For “Freak Show Redux”, an ensemble of creators and performers will work collaboratively to develop a cohesive Freak Show performance.

This performance will be a site-specific traveling tour that moves throughout a building; but, unlike the original Freak Show, the entire tour will be developed by a collaborative ensemble to create a unified experience. There will be four weeks of rehearsal (evenings & weekends) in November-December 2010 to collaboratively develop and rehearse a mobile site-specific show based upon the theme ‘Freak Show’, followed by twice-nightly performances from January 6-8 and 13-15, 2011.

Submission information:

To be considered for either project, please submit a description (maximum two pages) of:

• Your creative practice
• Your experience with collaborative creation
• Your reasons for wanting to participate in the project(s)
• Your interest in site-specific performance / creation
• Your interest in the theme “Freak Show”
• Your availability for November/December 2010, January 2011

You may also submit additional materials, including: CV, video, reviews, surprises.

Artists are welcome to apply for both projects, but will not be able to participate in both. You may submit one application to be considered for both projects.

Participating artists in both projects will receive an honorarium.

Submission deadline: Monday, September 20, 2010 @ 5:00 pm
Send submissions to info@swallowabicycle.com
[Subject line: “Freak Show Classic”, “Freak Show Redux” or “Freak Show Classic & Redux”]

Call 403.698.3088 or e-mail info@swallowabicycle.com for more info.