Before Us
Written and performed by Stuart Bowden
The story of a creature, the last of an undiscovered species, facing extinction. Featuring an abnormally exuberant combo of live music, storytelling and dangerously impressive body movements. This is a raucous, surreal, experimental melan-comedy about death, family and loneliness.
Awards
Won the John Chataway Innovation Weekly Award (Adelaide Fringe 2015)
Nominated Brighton Fringe Award for Excellence (Edinburgh Fringe 2014)
Nominated Perth Fringe World Theatre Award (Perth Fringe World 2015)
Toured
2018
Joondalup Festival
2017
The Blue Room Theatre - Perth Fringe World.
2015
Latitude Festival (Suffolk), Soho Theatre (London), Bristol Old Vic - Mayfest, Giant Dwarf (Sydney), Tuxedo Cat - Melbourne Comedy Festival, Tuxedo Cat - Adelaide Fringe, The Blue Room Theatre - Perth Fringe World, Det Andre Teatret (Oslo).
2014
Rådstua Teaterhus - Tromsø (Norway), Schkapf Theatre (Los Angeles), Camden Peoples Theatre (London), The Bike Shed Theatre (Exeter), Underbelly - Edinburgh Fringe.
Press
"His performance shines with complexity" - Kill Your Darlings
★★★★ and a 1\2 "Bold in its vulnerability, ingenious in its creative tilts and masterful in its storytelling, the show makes the heart creep with loving shyness right out of the chest. It is also very funny. Bowden's style of physical humour and wordplay is truly a breed unto itself" - The West Australian
★★★★★ "Stuart Bowden is an isolated fringe species who defies theatrical logic and description. Many fringe acts promise something different but Bowden delivers, and the result is a wonderful hour of whimsy that will touch your eye and your heart."- The Adelaide Advertiser
★★★★ and a 1\2 "Surrender to Stuart Bowden’s spell of weirdness. You will laugh. You may even cry. But you will leave feeling better about life. This play is just a joy." The Clothesline
★★★★★ "Comedy morphs into pathos and sad contemplation, and then instantly returns to hilarity" - Adelaide Theatre Guide
"I would see this play a hundred times over and laugh more each time, it is hilarious, it has heart, and it will leave you reflecting on what your life truly means to yourself, and to the people around you" - Cargo Arts Magazine
★★★★★ "Many have claimed that their shows will make you laugh, cry and ultimately change your life. ‘Before Us’ delivers. It has everything, as promised. Prepare to die happy." - Edinburgh Spotlight
★★★★★ "Bizarre antics and razor-sharp wit. Bowden creates delicate little songs by electronically looping keyboards, ukulele and vocals that tug insistently at the heartstrings. It will make you consider the brevity of existence, how life is fragile, that death is inevitable but, ultimately, that this is okay." - A Younger Theatre
★★★★★ "There is always one show each festival that takes your breath away. This is it: an experience so bizarre, hilarious and melancholy that it will not only engage but elevate you" - The Public Reviews
★★★★ 'An impeccable performance, endearing in his total weirdness.' - Everything Theatre
'I have died & been reborn in a single show...dying from fits of laughter.' - A Younger Theatre
'A strange but beautiful way to spend a theatrical hour.' - British Theatre Guide
★★★★ 'Before Us is a joyfully irreverent look at the big themes that impact on all of us.' - views from the gods
★★★★ "He stumbles on stage dressed in what appears to be a lime green sleeping bag. Welcome to the insane and wonderful world of Before Us. A thoroughly brilliant piece of humorous theatre delivered by an equally magnificent actor." - TV Bomb
★★★★★ "Before Us is theatre and storytelling that is in a league on its own. Truly magical." - The New Current
★★★★ "Before Us is a piece of funny, moving and highly textured theatre, and is easily one of the most original, strange and quirky shows that you are likely to see" - The Fix Magazine
"Utterly unique and at times hilariously funny... Real sadness and poignancy is mixed with hilarity" - Bristol 24/7
★★★★ "Before Us is a bizarre, surreal show… The overlaying of simple tunes that he plays and hums create impressive and complex sounds." - Broadway Baby
★★★★ "This is a refreshing and original hour of storytelling that will leave you uplifted and invigorated" - The Student Newspaper
★★★★ "Stuart Bowden is a curious man. His mix of deadpan delivery, charming lo-fi songs and bizarre stage antics help create a magical world that he invites us all to inhabit. Surreal and heart-warming." - Three Weeks