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Requardt & Rosenberg’s Future Cargo performs in Southampton

Jul 08, 2021

The latest outdoor dance spectacle from the acclaimed experiential performance duo Requardt & Rosenberg descended on Southampton in July 2021.

A truck arrives from an unknown location loaded with a mystery shipment. As the sides roll up, a strange and unstoppable process is set into motion.

Future Cargo was a sci-fi dance show performed in a 40-foot haulage truck and, like all Requardt & Rosenberg’s shows, it delivered the delicate integrity of a deeply intimate experience within a large-scale dance spectacle.

Audiences experienced the strange and unstoppable process of Future Cargo through binaural headphones.

Co-commissioned by Mayflower 400 Southampton, in partnership with The Place, Future Cargo was performed at Southampton’s Guildhall Square on 15-17 July.

Future Cargo. Picture by Camilla Greenwell

Caterina Loriggio, Mayflower 400 Southampton Anniversary Director, said: "After a long wait, we were thrilled that audiences could come together and that we were able to bring this unique show to Southampton.

"Requardt & Rosenberg have an excellent reputation for creating original outdoor arts experiences - and Future Cargo is no exception.

"It’s fantastic for Southampton to be part of a nationwide network of commissioners supporting the development of this new project."

Future Cargo was the latest outdoor work by The Place Affiliate Artist Frauke Requardt and co-conspirator David Rosenberg, and was created with longstanding collaborators, Hannah Clark (set and costume), Ben and Max Ringham (music and sound) and lighting designer Malcolm Rippeth.

Originally due to tour in 2020, the show was reworked to make it Covid secure for 2021 audiences and its performers. Future Cargo premiered at Norfolk and Norwich Festival on 20 May 2021.

Watch the official trailer for Future Cargo

Speaking about the tour, Frauke and David said: "We were delighted to finally get Future Cargo out on the road.

"This sci-fi movie inspired production of ours, with its binaural sound and built-in travelator, was a real feast for the senses and we could not wait to share it with the universe."

Cllr Vassiliou, Cabinet Member for Communities, Culture and Heritage, added: "We are delighted that Future Cargo came to Southampton on its UK tour.

"It was a fitting finale for the city's innovative and inclusive Mayflower 400 programme.

"Being a co-commissioner for a show of this calibre is a testament to Southampton's ambition and commitment to becoming UK City of Culture in 2025."

Future Cargo. Picture by Camilla Greenwell

This is Requardt & Rosenberg’s fourth outdoor show. Together they create performance away from traditional auditoriums, making highly visible, unique events with a distinctive format.

Mayflower 400 Southampton is pleased to be a commissioning partner on this show along with Without Walls, Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Stockton International Riverside Festival, Freedom Festival Arts Trust, Out There International Festival of Circus & Street Arts, Festival.org and DanceEast via Stomping Ground, and Pavillion Dance South West.

More information and tickets are available here.