The last few years of my career wrapped into a power shell.
Many thanks to Cirque Bijou, John Bishop, everyone at Blue Peter, Henley Festival and the Box, London.
Cut and edited by the amazing Thomas Johansson (thomas-johansson.com/).
Cover photograph by Simon Yin (simonyinphotography.com/)
Soundtrack: LCD Soundsystem.
Tag Archives: dancer
Balance Yourself!
I spent the last 3 months training and collaborating with some incredibly talented people in Ko Pha Ngan – Thailand. This was a particularly inspiring and fruitful journey and below are a few images to witness how Thailand truly is a place for artists and nature to meet.
All photos above by Jan Peter.
Photos above by Mark Rutherford.
And below is a short clip from my performance at the inaugural ‘Colours of Love’ festival on Why Nam beach. Thank you to Wild Sirenda for calling us into a higher vibration of love and cosmic connection.
Metamorphosis
When she transformed into a butterfly, the caterpillars spoke not of her beauty but of her weirdness.
They wanted her to change back into what she always had been…
But she had wings.
Photographs by Simon Yin. Big thanks to Chenghao Liu and Jacksons Lane Theatre, London.
The hoops in these images are LED smart hoops by SpinFX. I can program them to change colours and patterns to any chosen music, which allows for endless possibilities to create bespoke acts and fit with specific requirements and special events. You can see more photos here.
Hula Hoop & Motion Graphics – Live on the John Bishop Show
I have always had a great interest in animation and mixed media, so when Cirque Bijou offered me to collaborate on a bespoke piece that mixed my hoops with Howie Bailey‘s visual graphics, I dived right into it.
The piece was commissioned as an intro to the John Bishop Show on BBC1, which made the whole project even more exciting.. and slightly nerve-racking.
We knew it was going to be hardcore and risky – we only had a few days to research and develop ideas and then put it all together into a live show for prime television.
Yet, despite the time and space constraints, we just went for it wholeheartedly, feeding off each other’s passion and inspiring each other through laughter and relatively appropriate doses of OCD.
The result was a wonderful work of circus and visual arts that I hope will lead to more opportunities for exploration and collaboration.
Massive thanks to Julian Bracey, director of Cirque Bijou, and Howie Bailey for being absolute legends. True gratitude and respect also for John Bishop and his crew and the BBC.
Now rock on!
More lovely photos on my Flickr.
Silvia hula hoops on ‘Blue Peter’ – BBC
I’m not sure if it was a coincidence or through word of mouth, but just before my multi-media performance on the John Bishop Show was released on the BBC, I was invited to hula hoop live on the Blue Peter show…
It was so last minute, everything literally happened within a few hours, and that included running from London to Manchester to live TV, whilst beating a tube strike, in true ninja style… BOOM, HOOP, BANG!
You bet I got a Blue Peter badge for that!
Many thanks to everyone at the BBC Bridge House Manchester, it was great fun!
‘OnOffice’ Magazine Feature
Anywhere can be an office.
In September 2012, I collaborated with the talented Andrew Meredith, on a feature for OnOffice Magazine.
OnOffice is a design magazine about workplace design, whether it is architecture, interiors or furniture. Every month they dedicate a piece to the more unusual workplaces and the people who use them. Whether a sky diving instructor or mountaineer shot in their given environment… The November issue portrayed a professional hula hoop dancer training at home, in her warehouse in North London.
It was lovely and really good fun working with Andrew. I was also very pleased to be picked for an article that might make people think and consider how others go about their somewhat unorthodox jobs.
Gynoid
Here is a brand new teaser for my new glow hoop act ‘Gynoid’.
In ‘Gynoid’, I’m exploring movement and manipulation, as well as the relation between the machine and the human body, through hula hoops.
How is our body affected by the props and tools, that we use every day? If our body is the main tool, the machine, what can influence and radically transform its appearance and purpose?
Many thanks to Thomas Forsyth for editing this video.
