I sat down with Larisa Faber to find out more about White Gold coming to the Camden People’s Theatre this November.
White Gold draws a unique parallel between the high-pressure world of ballet and the physical toll of seasonal farm labour. What inspired you to use dance and clowning to expose the human cost behind Europe’s white asparagus industry?
White asparagus and ballet have quite a few unexpected overlaps: they require hard labour, are strictly regimented in appearance and are associated with highbrow culture.
I wanted to explore seasonal labour through the POV of the asparagus, which is a bit of a ridiculous premise. Clowning as a performance style made sense in that context; it’s not a naturalistic take.
What drew you to telling this story through the dual perspectives of a mother working the fields and a single asparagus spear longing to be picked?
Both story strands are about tradeoffs and sacrifice to get something extraordinary.
The mother needs to leave her home to make her little girl’s dreams come true. Both the girl and the asparagus spear want to be picked – one metaphorically, the other one literally.
Combining delicate ballet, clowning, and heavy themes like labour exploitation and parental sacrifice is a complex mix. What has been the biggest creative challenge in balancing these distinct theatrical styles?
Put together like that, it does look a bit random, but they make sense on stage!
The asparagus costume incorporates ballet elements (a white tutu, a hat made of pointe shoes), and the subplot with the mother and daughter is (also) about ballet. The asparagus dances on pointe when she’s picked.
It doesn’t read like it would gel, but, on stage, it does!
How do design elements like sound, movement, and lighting help transport the audience between the harsh reality of agricultural labour and the dreamlike world of ballet?
There’s video in the show. The footage is of real pickers I worked with in Luxembourg. The video is a constant reminder that, beyond the ridiculousness of a dancing and talking asparagus, there are very real people.
If you could sum up the spirit or central message of White Gold in one word or phrase, what would it be and why?
Perfection requires sacrifice, and someone will have to do it to achieve it.
White Gold runs at the Camden People’s Theatre, London, on 25 – 28 November. Tickets available at https://www.neimenster.lu/en/events/white-gold/
