Matthew Hammond, the Stand Up Philosopher, presents a unique
show, following the course of the over-used concept of freedom.
From ancient times to modern thinkers, the history of the
idea is traced in a sequence of inspirational performances that unpick the
concept that we think we know so well, and show it in a new and fascinating
light.
Always powerful, sometimes hilarious and at times shocking,
philosophies are shaken from their covers and brought vividly to life as
Matthew Hammond jumps about, making theatre out of all those books you meant to
read but never got around to...
"Dynamic, dangerous and highly original."
performance poet and Wondermentalist Liv Torc.
"When something special comes along, and you might not have the chance to witness it ever again, you've got to get your skates on, and catch it!"
Alan Summers, With Words (Director)
TWO EVENTS :
At the Northcott Theatre Exeter as part of the Laugh Out
Loud Festival:
Sun 3 February 2013
8pm in the Theatre Bar
Tickets from; http://www.exeternorthcott.co.uk/standing-up-for-freedom
Tickets: £7.50
Concs: £5
Age: 12 yrs+
Running Time: 2hrs
Box Office: 01392 493493
And at the Bierkeller Theatre in Bristol on Monday 18th
February:
Tickets from; http://bierkellertheatre.fatsoma.com/events/79599/
Standard Seated £8.50
Concession Seated £7.00
Concession Seated £7.00
Details
Doors & bar open: 19:30
Show starts: 20:00
Show starts: 20:00
Lots of cool quotes and
weblinks and YouTube further below!
Matthew Hammond the Stand Up Philosopher is presenting a new
show
called Standing Up for Freedom. Matthew is an exceptional
and one-of-a-
kind performer. Original yet historical, profound yet
entertaining, he
has built up an audience for Stand Up Philosophy at Taking
the Mike at
the Exeter Phoenix, has showcased it across the south
including at
Bristol's Acoustic Night, Oxford's Catweazle Club, and
Covent Garden's
Poetry Cafe, and has appeared at many festivals including
sets at the
HowTheLightGetsIn Festival of philosophy and music in
Hay-on-Wye, and
the PowWow LitFest in Birmingham.
This new full length show charts the concept of freedom from
Ancient
Greece to the present day. Ideas are shaken from their
covers and
brought alive. Each piece involves condensing a
philosopher's main
dilemma or a philosophical text's main tenet from the
history of the
philosophy, often with the idea or the philosopher
personified with a
mixture of theatre, storytelling, charismatic lecturing and
dramatic
monologue, all to illuminate the present in a devastating
new light or
sudden beautiful clarity.
Each piece is a unique adaptation / interpretation of an
idea /
original text performed by a professional storyteller (he is
also one
half of Widsith and Deor Storytelling Theatre who have
performed at
numerous festivals including Glastonbury, the Big Chill,
Sunrise
Celebration, Beautiful Days, etc.) inspirational lecturer
(LSE Summer
School, Exeter University, etc.) and writer (his most
recent
publication was a chapter in a Deleuze reader by Palgrave
Macmillan)
from memory as theatre.
Brochure copy reads * Matthew Hammond condenses and adapts
ideas and
books from the whole History of Philosophy, transforming
them into
powerful performance art. Accessible, startling, sometimes
hilarious,
often moving, and always inspirational, he jumps about the
stage
making theatre out of all those books you meant to read but
never got
around to.*
To see the show in action, the following link leads to a
trailer on
the website (and once finished, other videos from the
YouTube channel);
The shows are unique, remarkable, theatrical, entertaining
and
powerful. Below are the coming dates with brochure copy,
quotes, links
and a performer bio.
FORTHCOMING DATES;
At the Northcott Theatre Exeter as part of the Laugh Out
Loud Festival;
Sun 3 February 2013
8pm in the Theatre Bar
Tickets from;
http://www.exeternorthcott.co.uk/
And at the Bierkeller Theatre in Bristol on Monday 18th
February;
Tickets from;
http://www.bierkellertheatre.com/
Quotes on Matthew Hammond the Stand Up Philosopher:
*Dynamic, dangerous and highly original.* performance poet
and
Wondermentalist Liv Torc.
*Just wanted to say a big thank you for coming up and
performing at LitFest. Your performance went down really well, and was a
real talking point.* Andy Killeen, novelist and organizer of the
PowWow
Litfest.
*…a very dangerous man…loads of ideas kept popping into my
head…*
James Turner, Poet and Author of the poetry collection
‘Forgeries’
*Incredible intensity.* Audience member at Poetry Unplugged
at the
Poetry Café Covent Garden,
*Brilliant Brilliant Brilliant!!!* Dan Stratford, viewer of
Deleuze
for Beginners video on YouTube
*It's the second time I've seen you perform and I probably
understand about 5% or less, but it's FANTASTIC! It's not like anything
else, but so entertaining.* Audience member, Taking the Mic, Exeter
Phoenix
Links:
Stand-up Philosophy Facebook group;
Performer's Blog;
YouTube Channel - Stand Up Philosopher Playlist;
Matthew Hammond – the Stand Up Philosopher
Matthew Hammond studied Anthropology at Cambridge and after
graduating realized that philosophy was what he actually wanted to do.
Perplexed as to how to proceed, he then trained as a maths teacher at Keele
University and became a certified mathematician, working as a maths tutor so
that he could study philosophy from 5am until 12pm most days, and be full time
carer for the partner he met as a student, an ME sufferer. At 27 he inherited a
crumbling C15th rectory, and started running an artistic community with an
environmental / recycling emphasis, where visual artists, musicians and
thinkers could live and work in the same place more sustainably. This led to
being effectively foster parents/siblings to some very disturbed folks and
having a heap of bizarre experiences, some of them pretty unpleasant.
Eventually some positive-minded artists who used the space as it was intended
to be used turned up, and the recycling and environmentally-minded arts
collective the Cartwheels Collective was born, named after the decaying
agricultural artefacts surrounding the property.
As well
as teaching maths and making a difference to the lives of hundreds of school
pupils giving them confidence in maths and better grades, Matthew collaborated
on art projects, did historical cookery for heritage and arts events, held
workshops in willow and leather, and ended up teaching philosophy at Exeter
University and LSE Summer School, being called an inspirational lecturer by his
students. Such was his popularity, he even ended up teaching informal classes
in philosophy in café bars at the weekends! - but was never going to fit tidily
into academia because no one could ever make up their minds about his work, as
nothing he did could ever be neatly likened to anything or fitted into a box;
before becoming one half of Widsith and Deor Storytelling Theatre when his
partner finally recovered, and performing at all kinds of festivals and events
such as Glastonbury, the Big Chill and the Festival of History, for which he
has made huge bodymasks and figures. Two years ago he started performing solo
as well, and combined at last his two passions of philosophy and theatre as the
Stand Up Philosopher, and has been performing as festivals and venues large and
small from the HowTheLightGetsIn Festival of Philosophy and Music at Hay and
the PowWow LitFest in Birmingham to the Hatherleigh Festival in Devon and the
Poetry Café in Covent Garden.
He has
delivered papers at conferences in philosophy and literature at venues such as
Warwick University, Greenwich University and the University of London. His
publications include a chapter in ‘Deleuze and the Fold – a Critical Reader’,
(edited by Sjoerd van Tuinen and Niamh McDonnell) and published by Palgrave Macmillan,
a number of chapbooks, and his book of essays ‘Not What One Was - A Brief
History of the Concept of Justice’. He has written over half a million words of
philosophy and philosophical literary criticism, some of it on the web, but
much of it still undrafted, as he is profoundly dyslexic which has hampered the
drafting his writings considerably, but which has also ensured a phenomenal
memory and a startlingly rhetorical style in the traditions of the Ancient
Greek philosophers and the C16th Ranters. There is a theory that he was dropped
on his head as a baby as his shirts often unbutton themselves and he is on his
fifth copy of Spinoza’s ‘Ethics’ as the pages always mysteriously fall out…but
his mother claims it was the drugs she was on while pregnant! His other
interests include history, cooking and making monsters ‘as it’s better for you
than alcoholism’…and possibly slightly cheaper. He calls himself ‘Philosophy’s
only tribute act’.
Radio Shows:
Matthew Hammond co-presents a fortnightly programme on
Phonic FM 106.8 and online, covering poetry, philosophy, history, legend,
culture and curiosities called ‘Widsith and Deor presents…’. Shows have
included the History of Philosophy, the Origins of the Idea of Democracy,
Ancient Greek Philosophy, Dark Age Britain, The English Civil War, the
Histories of the Saxon and the Norman Kings, Theatre, Cabaret and Circus, the
novels of Jane Austen and Charles Dickens, history through the lens of art at
Kensington Palace, etc.. Currently the programmes are charting the Kings and
Queens of England from 800AD onward, and forthcoming is a performance of
Geoffrey Hill’s poetry sequence ‘Clavics’ for which Enitharmon Press have given
permission.
He is also the host of the weekly ‘Phonic Drama Show’ which
has included plays from playwrights all over the UK and his own solo dramatic
interpretations of Euripedes’ ‘The Bacchae’, the ‘Oresteia’ trilogy and other
Greek tragedies. He has also presented startlingly original and powerful
tellings of tales from many sources including the 1,000 Arabian Nights to
Viking Gods, often to techno beats and classical music. His most recent show
was an adaptation of a part of the C12th Njal’s Saga.
Weblinks;
The Stand Up Philosopher Web pages; http://www.cartwheels-collective.co.uk/Stand_up_Philosophy.html
Featured Video from the Stand Up Philosophy Playlist -
Deleuze for Beginners;
Stand-up Philosophy Facebook group;
Performer's Blog;
.
