30 Days to Space

in 2010 James decided he to become an astronaut. He wanted to get to Space. Space (as defined by NASA) is 50 miles up from the Earth’s surface. That sounds doable. By climbing a 6ft ladder 1467 times each day for 30 continuous days he eventually reached a height of 50 miles; space. Each climb of the 6ft ladder was marked by drawing a chalk star drawn onto the wall. When he was done with the final climb he made a panorama of stars that surround the audience observing below. In the process of reaching ‘Space’ he also created it.

This piece began as an exploration of performance qualities already inherent in the work of Bootworks Theatre; task-based performance, repetition, systematic physical scores and a simplistic but affecting visual vocabulary.

James was interested in the potential of individual endeavour; pushing the body, mind and spirit to ‘achieve’, even if only conceptually. The piece was performed for a duration of 30 days at the Forest Fringe Cafe in August 2010.