0:00:15 > 0:00:19This year's Manchester International Festival,
0:00:19 > 0:00:22it couldn't be happening at a more poignant time
0:00:22 > 0:00:26for this city and its people.
0:00:29 > 0:00:32The response here to the recent terrorist attack
0:00:32 > 0:00:34has been one of deep sadness.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38But also one of great determination.
0:00:38 > 0:00:42This shows the courage and the strength
0:00:42 > 0:00:44of the people of Manchester.
0:00:48 > 0:00:52It is a city defined by its music and art.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54And at a time like this,
0:00:54 > 0:00:59we have never needed creativity and inspiration more
0:00:59 > 0:01:02to raise our spirits,
0:01:02 > 0:01:05to lift our hopes.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19The Manchester International Festival runs every two years,
0:01:19 > 0:01:23and invites artists and performers from all over the world
0:01:23 > 0:01:25to premiere new work.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28Tonight, we're going behind the scenes
0:01:28 > 0:01:32of the festival, to see the rehearsals for five key shows...
0:01:32 > 0:01:35When we do lights up,
0:01:35 > 0:01:38you come in with your threat line...
0:01:38 > 0:01:42..all getting ready for their opening nights.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45Take a break, we're just waiting for lunch to arrive...
0:01:57 > 0:02:02As ever, this year's festival is a showcase for new works
0:02:02 > 0:02:03and many of these productions
0:02:03 > 0:02:06involve the people of Manchester.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08None more so than
0:02:08 > 0:02:12What Is The City But Its People?
0:02:20 > 0:02:23Today we're in the old Granada Television studios
0:02:23 > 0:02:24in Manchester,
0:02:24 > 0:02:28and we are rehearsing for What Is The City But The People?,
0:02:28 > 0:02:31the opening event of Manchester International Festival.
0:02:32 > 0:02:36The inspiration for the event comes from the artist Jeremy Deller.
0:02:36 > 0:02:38The main visual thing that people will see
0:02:38 > 0:02:42in Piccadilly Gardens right in the heart of Manchester
0:02:42 > 0:02:46is a catwalk that's almost 100 metres long,
0:02:46 > 0:02:49and then they will see the people of Manchester staged on that catwalk.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53It's a kaleidoscope of the city of Manchester,
0:02:53 > 0:02:57a portrait of the city in multiple fragments.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00Literally seeing all manner of people, all ages, all backgrounds.
0:03:00 > 0:03:04This performance, still at an early stage of rehearsal,
0:03:04 > 0:03:09features ordinarily Mancunians with some extraordinary stories to tell.
0:03:09 > 0:03:11Mr Hussain used to chase me around in school.
0:03:13 > 0:03:15And I used to run away from him because I didn't like him at all.
0:03:15 > 0:03:21- And then we went our separate ways when he left school a year earlier, before me.- Yeah.
0:03:21 > 0:03:25I decided at one point, "I'm going to leave home." So I left home.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27Obviously when I left home, I didn't plan anything.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29So where am I going to sleep?
0:03:29 > 0:03:32So I started sleeping in Piccadilly Gardens.
0:03:32 > 0:03:37So Piccadilly Gardens has a very, very significant point
0:03:37 > 0:03:38for me in my life.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40I went to the council,
0:03:40 > 0:03:43they suggested a flat that they had -
0:03:43 > 0:03:46I thought, "I'm going to risk getting on the bus
0:03:46 > 0:03:47"without a fare or anything like that."
0:03:47 > 0:03:51I got on the bus - I saw Shabnam.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53- Oh...- He told me a bit about his story.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56At that time I didn't realise he was sleeping rough.
0:03:56 > 0:03:58So then one day he asked, "Would you just marry me?" and I went...
0:03:58 > 0:04:00- So it was about three months in. - .."Ooh, yeah."
0:04:00 > 0:04:03And for us to end up doing a catwalk
0:04:03 > 0:04:0621 years after when I was homeless, in Piccadilly Gardens,
0:04:06 > 0:04:08- we never could have dreamt this.- No.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12What we do now is we run a food bank ourselves.
0:04:12 > 0:04:15So we look after people so they don't get to that...
0:04:15 > 0:04:17- Get to that point.- Oh, wow!- Yes.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22We create this great choreographic
0:04:22 > 0:04:24mess of chaos of the city,
0:04:24 > 0:04:27I think that's what we're attempting to do,
0:04:27 > 0:04:29to lift the pavements up
0:04:29 > 0:04:33and put them on this yellow catwalk through the centre of the gardens.
0:04:36 > 0:04:38I come from a small town in Kosovo.
0:04:39 > 0:04:44And I used to live in a big house with my uncle, my cousins,
0:04:44 > 0:04:45my grandmother.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48And then my mum, my dad, my sisters, my brothers
0:04:48 > 0:04:51so we were a very happy family,
0:04:51 > 0:04:53I have great memories of
0:04:53 > 0:04:56my house and my childhood.
0:04:56 > 0:04:57And what happened?
0:04:57 > 0:05:01In March 1999,
0:05:01 > 0:05:06the Serbian soldiers came to the house,
0:05:06 > 0:05:10and I was shot, my two brothers were shot,
0:05:10 > 0:05:13my sister was shot in the throat.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16My cousin was shot 16 times.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18And I lost about 19 members of my family
0:05:18 > 0:05:21including my mum, my sister, my grandmother.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25But I managed... Me, my sister, my two brothers, my cousin,
0:05:25 > 0:05:27managed to survive.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31So that's why we came to England, to get medical treatment,
0:05:31 > 0:05:33and we came straight to Manchester.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39And what does this show mean to you?
0:05:39 > 0:05:41It was a good opportunity to tell the people of Manchester
0:05:41 > 0:05:43about MY personal story,
0:05:43 > 0:05:47and also to, erm...to thank the community of Manchester
0:05:47 > 0:05:49for the support that they've given us.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54And they helped us with our recovery, with education,
0:05:54 > 0:05:57with everything, really, so in a way,
0:05:57 > 0:05:58I just want to thank Manchester
0:05:58 > 0:06:01for what they've done for me and my family.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07Everyone's really, really nice and really friendly
0:06:07 > 0:06:09cos they're there for, like, a purpose.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12And especially after the Manchester attacks,
0:06:12 > 0:06:15it's become much more an important event
0:06:15 > 0:06:17in the city of Manchester.
0:06:17 > 0:06:19And it's not like it's a tribute for it,
0:06:19 > 0:06:20it was going to happen anyway,
0:06:20 > 0:06:22but it kind of adds a weight behind it.
0:06:22 > 0:06:24And so, even more so, I want to get involved
0:06:24 > 0:06:28and, like, be part of a showcase of the city.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30How are you going to feel
0:06:30 > 0:06:33when you walk down that catwalk in Piccadilly Gardens?
0:06:34 > 0:06:36Powerful.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39I think we represent the creative kind of youth, and
0:06:39 > 0:06:42I'm standing for them as much as I'm standing for myself
0:06:42 > 0:06:44and standing for Manchester as well.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47And when I walk down, I'm just going to give it 100%
0:06:47 > 0:06:51because that's nothing less than they deserve,
0:06:51 > 0:06:53do you know what I mean?
0:06:53 > 0:06:54And how are YOU going to feel?
0:06:54 > 0:06:58I don't like to kind of...flag that, "We're Muslim",
0:06:58 > 0:07:01kind of thing, because we don't look typically Muslim, do we?
0:07:01 > 0:07:04So it's always, like, people will know me for five years
0:07:04 > 0:07:06and then they'll only find out -
0:07:06 > 0:07:09not even through me saying it, just the way I kind of carry myself -
0:07:09 > 0:07:10they'll be like...
0:07:10 > 0:07:13- "Oh, you're Muslim." - ..shocked that we're Muslim.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Then there's this cognitive dissonance that we've removed...
0:07:15 > 0:07:17Especially these ignorant people
0:07:17 > 0:07:19who think they know what a Muslim looks like.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22They'll have so many, kind of, perceptions of me. And then...
0:07:22 > 0:07:25But not one of them will be Muslim. I can guarantee that
0:07:25 > 0:07:28not one of those people who don't know me will think I'm Muslim,
0:07:28 > 0:07:30and I think that's very important
0:07:30 > 0:07:32because what does a Muslim even look like?
0:07:32 > 0:07:35I think Manchester's one of the most diverse places in the UK.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37Like, you see everybody from all walks of life
0:07:37 > 0:07:39just walking through Piccadilly Gardens,
0:07:39 > 0:07:42which kind of brings back to What Is The City But The People?, that's the idea of it.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45If you just stand and just watch Piccadilly Gardens,
0:07:45 > 0:07:47you can see so many different people
0:07:47 > 0:07:50- and they, like...- Yeah. - ..all coexist, it's beautiful.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54It's as if you can just pick one of these people out of the gardens and then open them up like a book.
0:07:54 > 0:07:57- Yeah, like a little fact file. - That's what I found really interesting about this project.
0:08:06 > 0:08:08Stanley Kubrick's
0:08:08 > 0:08:11dark parody Dr Strangelove
0:08:11 > 0:08:14predicts a post-apocalyptic society
0:08:14 > 0:08:16dominated by alpha males,
0:08:16 > 0:08:19with ten women assigned to every man.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21Blast off!
0:08:21 > 0:08:23BOOM
0:08:25 > 0:08:30What If Women Ruled The World? as the name suggests,
0:08:30 > 0:08:35takes a very different view of that dystopian idea.
0:08:35 > 0:08:37The show is being written
0:08:37 > 0:08:40by British playwright and screenwriter Abi Morgan,
0:08:40 > 0:08:42and is directed by Vicky Featherstone,
0:08:42 > 0:08:46the artistic director of the Royal Court Theatre in London.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49Let's go Woman 1, "It's an honour to have you here."
0:08:49 > 0:08:52And let's just see how that goes.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54The idea for What If Women Ruled The World?
0:08:54 > 0:08:58came from the internationally acclaimed artist Yael Bartana.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02So Dr Strangelove has always been in my mind
0:09:02 > 0:09:04ever since I've seen the film, actually.
0:09:04 > 0:09:09Fascination about the way Stanley Kubrick is dealing with
0:09:09 > 0:09:14a very terrifying issue...
0:09:14 > 0:09:15Hey, what about Major Kong?
0:09:15 > 0:09:18Trying to basically create a sort of a comedy science fiction,
0:09:18 > 0:09:22to put us in the condition of,
0:09:22 > 0:09:26if we can go that far with one leader who decides to...
0:09:26 > 0:09:28that he goes crazy and decides to drop a bomb,
0:09:28 > 0:09:31what is the consequences?
0:09:31 > 0:09:34The aircraft will begin penetrating Russian radar cover
0:09:34 > 0:09:36within 25 minutes.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41General Turgidson, I find this very difficult to understand.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44I was under the impression that I was the only one in authority
0:09:44 > 0:09:47to order the use of nuclear weapons.
0:09:47 > 0:09:50'It is a film that is in a way also'
0:09:50 > 0:09:55showing the system of male domination in society
0:09:55 > 0:09:57that is driven by war
0:09:57 > 0:09:58and creating fear.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01There would be much time, and little to do.
0:10:01 > 0:10:03HE CHUCKLES
0:10:03 > 0:10:07But, er, with the proper breeding techniques and a...ratio of, say,
0:10:07 > 0:10:10ten females to each male,
0:10:10 > 0:10:13I would guess that they could then work their way back
0:10:13 > 0:10:16to the present Gross National Product within, say, 20 years.
0:10:16 > 0:10:21The performance, still in rehearsal, has a hybrid form.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26Five actors interrogate five different real-world experts
0:10:26 > 0:10:27each night -
0:10:27 > 0:10:30from scientists to politicians, refugees to economists,
0:10:30 > 0:10:34environmentalists to nuclear experts -
0:10:34 > 0:10:38to see what would REALLY happen if women ruled the world.
0:10:38 > 0:10:40One of the things that we got really excited about
0:10:40 > 0:10:42when we first talked about the possibility of this space
0:10:42 > 0:10:45was the idea that at the end of Dr Strangelove,
0:10:45 > 0:10:47you know, there's been a nuclear bomb,
0:10:47 > 0:10:49and the women have gone underground
0:10:49 > 0:10:52and they will start again.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54So the kind of concept of this, if you like,
0:10:54 > 0:10:56is not that there has been some kind of nuclear fallout -
0:10:56 > 0:10:59we're actually in the world that we're in at the moment -
0:10:59 > 0:11:01but what happens if ten women go underground
0:11:01 > 0:11:04to try and come up with the new structures
0:11:04 > 0:11:05and the thing to beat the patriarchy,
0:11:05 > 0:11:09to overcome the major threats that we have at the moment to humanity?
0:11:09 > 0:11:11So, for me, the thing that's really exciting about it
0:11:11 > 0:11:13is this idea of having five actresses in it,
0:11:13 > 0:11:16who start off in a way as the, kind of, characters of Dr Strangelove.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18Where do we start?
0:11:20 > 0:11:22How do we begin?
0:11:22 > 0:11:26Yes. Please tell us. Yes.
0:11:26 > 0:11:27Blackout.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29'And then we bring the experts into that.'
0:11:29 > 0:11:31So there'll be five different experts
0:11:31 > 0:11:32every night over the four nights,
0:11:32 > 0:11:36and they will come, according to their area of expertise -
0:11:36 > 0:11:38whether it's, kind of, nuclear disarmament,
0:11:38 > 0:11:41climate change, people trafficking, human rights lawyer -
0:11:41 > 0:11:43they'll bring their, kind of, main points,
0:11:43 > 0:11:46and what we're trying to do over the course of the evening
0:11:46 > 0:11:48is create some kind of debate, discussion,
0:11:48 > 0:11:51which will come up with new ways of thinking about how we solve things.
0:11:51 > 0:11:53Lights up.
0:11:54 > 0:11:55I believe the biggest threat
0:11:55 > 0:11:59is the desire to keep conflict alive in the Middle East.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03Lina Khatib, head of the Middle East and North America Programme
0:12:03 > 0:12:05at Chatham House.
0:12:05 > 0:12:07'The sense of urgency that we would like to bring to the table,'
0:12:07 > 0:12:09it is very real and very concrete.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13Erm...and that's very important for the audience to experience,
0:12:13 > 0:12:17that it's not something that is...is so far away,
0:12:17 > 0:12:19it's just happening now, here.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22I mean, you experienced also in Manchester,
0:12:22 > 0:12:24two weeks, three weeks ago.
0:12:24 > 0:12:26I mean, we are 2017,
0:12:26 > 0:12:31it makes no sense that there isn't a different world.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34It is women...
0:12:36 > 0:12:39..to whom we now turn, to build the new protocol.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53# I feel so extraordinary
0:12:53 > 0:12:57# Something's got a hold on me
0:12:57 > 0:13:01# I get this feeling I'm in motion
0:13:01 > 0:13:05# A sudden sense of liberty... #
0:13:07 > 0:13:11New Order have epitomised the sound of Manchester for decades.
0:13:11 > 0:13:16But their new show is a very different musical journey.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25We were approached to come up
0:13:25 > 0:13:26with a concept and an idea,
0:13:26 > 0:13:30and Bernard came up with the idea of using a synthesiser orchestra.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33So we have a 12-piece synthesiser orchestra.
0:13:37 > 0:13:39These performances see the band
0:13:39 > 0:13:40revisit their back catalogue,
0:13:40 > 0:13:43selecting a set of songs to reinterpret
0:13:43 > 0:13:46with a more orchestral approach.
0:13:47 > 0:13:49The problem, which makes life interesting,
0:13:49 > 0:13:53is that if you include the 12 synthesiser players
0:13:53 > 0:13:57and the five band members, we're a 17-piece.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02So then you've got to re-orchestrate the songs
0:14:02 > 0:14:04for a 17-piece, which means...
0:14:04 > 0:14:05It's like smashing a mirror,
0:14:05 > 0:14:08picking all the pieces up, and then
0:14:08 > 0:14:10everyone comes together on the night and puts it back,
0:14:10 > 0:14:13and there you've got a perfect mirror,
0:14:13 > 0:14:15maybe with a few...parts missing, you know.
0:14:15 > 0:14:17That's the idea of it.
0:14:18 > 0:14:22The design of the show is a collaboration between the band
0:14:22 > 0:14:26and the internationally renowned conceptual artist Liam Gillick.
0:14:28 > 0:14:32The pressure of working with a band like New Order,
0:14:32 > 0:14:37I have to enter that relationship that they have with an audience
0:14:37 > 0:14:41and still bring my own mentality, right?
0:14:41 > 0:14:44Not lose my own mentality. It's not easy.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47The thing is you've really got three elements.
0:14:47 > 0:14:49You've got the band, you've got me
0:14:49 > 0:14:53and you've got a group of keyboard players
0:14:53 > 0:14:55who are deconstructing the music
0:14:55 > 0:14:57along with the arranger, Joe Duddell.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01It really appeals to my sensibility.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03It's not the easiest way to do things, I have to say.
0:15:03 > 0:15:07It's much easier if there's one authoritarian figure,
0:15:07 > 0:15:10but we kind of work like little collectives and now we're trying
0:15:10 > 0:15:14to bring everything together to make it make sense to an audience.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18# It's never enough until your heart stops beating... #
0:15:18 > 0:15:23There's a lot of technical musical challenges in doing this
0:15:23 > 0:15:26because, as far as I know, it's quite original
0:15:26 > 0:15:28and no-one's done it before...
0:15:28 > 0:15:30Probably cos it won't work.
0:15:51 > 0:15:55Migration is a word with many meanings.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57It's a loaded word now,
0:15:57 > 0:16:01central to our politics and cultures.
0:16:01 > 0:16:06And it's at the heart of Susan Hefuna's major new work,
0:16:06 > 0:16:08ToGather.
0:16:16 > 0:16:21Here are palmwood structures which came from Egypt
0:16:21 > 0:16:26and we built them together here in Manchester.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29They are these structures here in the museum and they will be soon
0:16:29 > 0:16:32also structures in the park, which will connect
0:16:32 > 0:16:34the inside to the outside.
0:16:34 > 0:16:38I'm inspired by the city life in Egypt,
0:16:38 > 0:16:44where such palmwood structures are used to define space on the street.
0:16:44 > 0:16:50The whole piece has many layers, so in this exhibition,
0:16:50 > 0:16:54inside the museum, you can see a lot of drawings,
0:16:54 > 0:16:56which are my typical drawings
0:16:56 > 0:17:00made of several layers of tracing paper,
0:17:00 > 0:17:04abstract drawings.
0:17:04 > 0:17:08This work has been developed for over a year with 30 migrants
0:17:08 > 0:17:09now living in Manchester,
0:17:09 > 0:17:13all being found through support organisations
0:17:13 > 0:17:15for refugees in the city.
0:17:22 > 0:17:27My name is Mariam Ibrahim Yusuf. I'm from Somalia.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31My name is Jila Mozohn. I came from Iran.
0:17:31 > 0:17:35My name is Mariatu Sesay. I'm from Sierra Leone.
0:17:35 > 0:17:38I've done so much that I wouldn't have done back home,
0:17:38 > 0:17:41cos back home, women don't do that.
0:17:41 > 0:17:42Women don't have their place,
0:17:42 > 0:17:44they don't have to be in public,
0:17:44 > 0:17:48so this exposure, to me, has been very good.
0:17:50 > 0:17:54In this country, we are very alone and when we are coming
0:17:54 > 0:17:58and find a lot of friends and we have enjoy time,
0:17:58 > 0:17:59it's very useful.
0:18:01 > 0:18:02I like everything about the project
0:18:02 > 0:18:05because the project is something that people come
0:18:05 > 0:18:08and, you know, participate,
0:18:08 > 0:18:11dance, do art, talk to people,
0:18:11 > 0:18:14but the most thing I like is bringing people together
0:18:14 > 0:18:16in Manchester, all of us.
0:18:16 > 0:18:18That's the best thing that I like about this.
0:18:23 > 0:18:27We worked also with these people on different layers.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31For example, they brought objects which are
0:18:31 > 0:18:35very important for them, like, very touching,
0:18:35 > 0:18:39moving personal objects which are related to their life
0:18:39 > 0:18:41and not to the group they belong.
0:18:46 > 0:18:50This is from my grandma,
0:18:50 > 0:18:54give to Mum and Mum give to me.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57Beautiful, thank you.
0:18:57 > 0:19:02In the same... People also will take part in the dance performance.
0:19:03 > 0:19:06Until now, we rehearsed in studios,
0:19:06 > 0:19:10so now we start to rehearse actually in the park.
0:19:10 > 0:19:12Developed step-by-step
0:19:12 > 0:19:15with the Wayne McGregor Dance Company from London
0:19:15 > 0:19:20and which is related to the structures of my drawings.
0:19:22 > 0:19:27My own background heritage is that my father is Egyptian,
0:19:27 > 0:19:31my mother is German, so from my childhood,
0:19:31 > 0:19:35I was confronted with different cultures and different views.
0:19:37 > 0:19:42So this was part of my artwork from the beginning.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45It's very related to my own story.
0:19:46 > 0:19:51And that's why there's also my interest to interact with
0:19:51 > 0:19:54people from different cultures.
0:20:12 > 0:20:17Manchester is famous for its 24-hour party people
0:20:17 > 0:20:23and as uncertainty and insecurity sweep the globe,
0:20:23 > 0:20:26there's one show at this year's festival
0:20:26 > 0:20:30that takes that to its ultimate conclusion.
0:20:32 > 0:20:36Just what party skills do we need to know for the end of the world?
0:20:37 > 0:20:40This is an immersive theatre piece
0:20:40 > 0:20:43meaning that the audience of 300 people
0:20:43 > 0:20:45are actually part of the show.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47As they walk through the building,
0:20:47 > 0:20:49they can choose from 30 different rooms,
0:20:49 > 0:20:52and in each room they'll learn a new skill,
0:20:52 > 0:20:56to help them party at the end of the world.
0:20:56 > 0:20:59Good people of the world, what is it that we fear?
0:21:01 > 0:21:04That no-one will love us? That we will have no-one to love?
0:21:05 > 0:21:07That we will be alone?
0:21:07 > 0:21:10- Hey, Lemn.- Hey, Nigel. - Yeah, I'm Nigel.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13- Good to see you.- Come on in. - Hello, I'm Louise.- Good to see you.
0:21:13 > 0:21:14- Come in.- This way.- Fantastic.
0:21:16 > 0:21:20The show is Party Skills For The End Of The World, so this show,
0:21:20 > 0:21:23the conceit is that we all come together and we'll teach you skills
0:21:23 > 0:21:26you'd need to have a party at the end of the world
0:21:26 > 0:21:29which would be skills for a party and skills for survival.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31And does the audience know what's going to happen
0:21:31 > 0:21:33before they come in?
0:21:33 > 0:21:37- No.- No.- We work a lot with, sort of, surprises and unexpected situations.
0:21:39 > 0:21:40Follow us.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43OK, so we've just got lots of different people
0:21:43 > 0:21:45working on lots of different stuff.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54Would you like to learn how to play the saw?
0:21:54 > 0:21:57- Yes, apparently, I would.- Brilliant.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00Actually, this is something I've always wanted to know.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05MUSIC PLAYS
0:22:12 > 0:22:14SAW PLAYS
0:22:15 > 0:22:17You are so good!
0:22:17 > 0:22:21And you get a vibrato by shaking your leg, basically, like that.
0:22:21 > 0:22:23OK, let me get a note first, OK, please, if you don't mind.
0:22:23 > 0:22:25Go for it.
0:22:25 > 0:22:27MUSIC PLAYS
0:22:32 > 0:22:34SAW WHINES QUIETLY
0:22:34 > 0:22:36LAUGHTER
0:22:36 > 0:22:40- Hey, Lemn.- Hey, Lemn. - I never SAW that coming.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43Do you see what I did there?
0:22:43 > 0:22:45- I've never been able to get a note out of it.- Oh!
0:22:45 > 0:22:48- That's really impressive. - I feel like I've learned something.
0:22:49 > 0:22:52- Nice view. - It's a beautiful view, actually.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55This is going to be full of people going in and out
0:22:55 > 0:22:58of the various experiences here.
0:22:58 > 0:23:01And it's going to be lit, as well, probably differently.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05This space where the performance takes place, what was it?
0:23:05 > 0:23:08Well, it was the old Salford University
0:23:08 > 0:23:11and now it's ours, and we can do what we want with it.
0:23:11 > 0:23:12We have to give it back.
0:23:12 > 0:23:17We make work using the building and the architecture
0:23:17 > 0:23:18and the history of the building
0:23:18 > 0:23:20as part of the dramaturgy of the show.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23There's this really beautiful glass building
0:23:23 > 0:23:26but it's a cross between a ship and a prison, so it's like
0:23:26 > 0:23:31having a party and learning skills on a prison ship made of glass.
0:23:32 > 0:23:36- That sounds like a great show. - Sounds like an incredible show.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38KNOCK AT THE DOOR
0:23:38 > 0:23:39Hello?
0:23:42 > 0:23:47- Hello.- Hey, man.- How are you doing? - I'm good, I'm good, man.
0:23:47 > 0:23:48Good, thank you. Yeah.
0:23:48 > 0:23:53I'm spinning stuff in my room. That's what I'm doing, so.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57Record spinning and spinning cushions
0:23:57 > 0:24:00which you might want to learn how to do.
0:24:01 > 0:24:03Do know what? In for a penny, in for a pound.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06That's...that's a good starter cushion.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09Give it a good pat
0:24:09 > 0:24:12and then just spin it like a kind of spinning top.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15That's it. And then give your finger a wiggle.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18- Wiggle the finger? - Wiggle the finger.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22- That just keeps it going. - Sounds so wrong.
0:24:22 > 0:24:26- I see!- Very good.
0:24:28 > 0:24:31Immersive theatre is a term that's banded about a lot.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34What is immersive theatre?
0:24:34 > 0:24:37I don't think it's a very helpful term.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39I'm not sure where it's come from and I know people are always
0:24:39 > 0:24:44trying to categorise work that they can't put into boxes.
0:24:44 > 0:24:46What we make is a kind of hybrid
0:24:46 > 0:24:49and I think probably it's safe to say
0:24:49 > 0:24:51there's never been a show like this before.
0:24:51 > 0:24:56It is quite formally challenging and yet accessible.
0:24:57 > 0:25:01So, that's fine with your green balloon, there.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03- That's fine.- How much do we need to make these...?
0:25:03 > 0:25:04Two inches, Two inches.
0:25:04 > 0:25:06- SNAPPING - Oh!
0:25:06 > 0:25:07LAUGHTER
0:25:07 > 0:25:08Detention after class.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10Oh, no, How To Dance.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14I've got to say, this is one of my fears.
0:25:14 > 0:25:17- Hello.- Hi. Have you come to learn to dance today?- Apparently so.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20- Come on in.- Thank you.
0:25:20 > 0:25:21Bye!
0:25:23 > 0:25:27- How To Dance.- How To Dance.- Oh, no.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30- You do that with such... - You've just got to...
0:25:30 > 0:25:33I'm just a guy stepping backwards.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37As long as you've got hip action, you've got it. OK?
0:25:37 > 0:25:40- We're going to try some of these moves with some music.- OK, right.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44- Are you ready?- I'm going for this. - You can do this.- I'm going for it.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46It's a tip for the end of the world and I want to dance.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50- I can't believe I'm doing this on film.- Easy as pie.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55OK, ready? One, two, three.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Cha-cha-cha, forward, here.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02Cha-cha-cha, back, together.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05Cha-cha-cha, forward, together.
0:26:05 > 0:26:09Cha-cha-cha, back, together.
0:26:14 > 0:26:17All you need to do is keep practising
0:26:17 > 0:26:19and then you've got it down.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23- Thank you, thank you so much. - No problem. Thank you for coming.
0:26:23 > 0:26:28I will... I will see you on the dance floor.
0:26:28 > 0:26:31- Bye-bye. Ciao, bye-bye.- Bye.- Bye.
0:26:31 > 0:26:33Oh!
0:26:35 > 0:26:37- Shame!- You did it.
0:26:37 > 0:26:42That was a new experience for me
0:26:42 > 0:26:46and, you know, I like a series of things.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49One, she's a really good teacher and makes you feel at ease
0:26:49 > 0:26:52and the other is, yes, you can
0:26:52 > 0:26:56see everything from the outside of each room, here.
0:26:56 > 0:26:58It's all glass.
0:26:58 > 0:27:00That's a thing in itself.
0:27:00 > 0:27:03Very interesting. Interesting not just being in there,
0:27:03 > 0:27:05but actually the act of being outside as you're going to
0:27:05 > 0:27:09another room and seeing this tip
0:27:09 > 0:27:12for the party at the end of the world
0:27:12 > 0:27:16actually happening between the people within that room.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19- That means you get a show... - The whole building's a show.
0:27:19 > 0:27:26You get many shows that are one show in one building of many parts.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28It's really...
0:27:29 > 0:27:32So the designers have had to design 30 different shows.
0:27:32 > 0:27:34So it's 30 different theatres
0:27:34 > 0:27:37as one piece of experimental theatre.
0:27:37 > 0:27:39I'm so happy to be here.
0:27:39 > 0:27:40THEY LAUGH
0:27:40 > 0:27:45- Thank you.- Thank you.- Thank you. - Nice to meet you.- Thank you.
0:27:45 > 0:27:47- Bye.- See ya.- Bye-bye.- Bye. We're here all festival.
0:27:47 > 0:27:49LAUGHTER
0:27:51 > 0:27:54With the catwalk now built across Piccadilly Gardens,
0:27:54 > 0:27:58it's time for the people of Manchester to take to the stage
0:27:58 > 0:28:03and kick off the 2017 Manchester International Festival.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06MUSIC PLAYS
0:28:21 > 0:28:24I even get my own 100m of fame
0:28:24 > 0:28:27as Chancellor of the University of Manchester.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30CHEERING
0:28:30 > 0:28:33MUSIC PLAYS
0:28:48 > 0:28:50The festival is on until July 16th
0:28:50 > 0:28:52and everyone's welcome.