Omid Djalili is one of the stars of Battersea Arts Centre's new film, Performance Live: The Way Out, which is released today on BBC iPlayer as part of BBC Arts' Culture in Quarantine season
Djalili (His Dark Materials, The Infidel) plays the enigmatic Guide, leading The Young Person played by Bláithín Mac Gabhann (Penance, Sally Rooney’s Normal People) on a journey where they discover performances devised by some of the most exciting, diverse artists working in the UK today: Lucy McCormick, Caleb Femi, Botis Seva, Le Gateau Chocolat, The Cocoa Butter Club, Sanah Ahsan, and Too Hot For Candy.
Filmed in one continuous shot, this is the latest programme in the Performance Live strand: pioneering, artist-led commissions for television, supported by Arts Council England, BBC Arts and Battersea Arts Centre
Performance Live: The Way Out offers an immersive journey through Battersea Arts Centre’s labyrinth of rooms and corridors, propelled by performances from extraordinary artists, filmed in one continuous, unbroken shot. The latest programme in the groundbreaking Performance Live commissioning series, The Way Out is part of BBC Arts’s current virtual arts festival, Culture in Quarantine, offering viewers access to a broad range of imaginative UK theatre and dance work at this time when many are confined to their homes. The film premiers on BBC iPlayer on Friday 10 April here before being broadcast on BBC Four in May.
BAFTA-nominated Director Suri Krishnamma (A Respectable Trade, The Cazalets) uses a single camera to create the feel of an immersive theatrical performance. Using the latest technology to enable a single 42 minute take, in the tradition of seminal films such as Russian Ark (2002), Performance Live: The Way Out invites the viewer on a journey of surprise and unexpected discovery, revealing stories that move, provoke and entertain.
In a surreal, theatrical adventure, a young person escapes into a seemingly empty building at night and meets a mysterious guide who offers them an alternative way out.
Battersea Arts Centre’s building is also a protagonist in the film. With a long, proud, radical history, both as a Town Hall and as an arts venue with a track record of pushing the boundaries of performance, coupled with strong belief in the power of creativity – it is a fitting backdrop to a film that also pushes boundaries in terms of form and content.
Watch the full collection here.
Pictured: Omid Djalili, Bláithín Mac Gabhann
