BY ELEANOR BISHOP & KARIN MCCRACKEN
AN ADAPTATION OF ‘ALIENS & ANOREXIA’ BY CHRIS KRAUS

Winner of the Dean Parker Adaptation or Non-Fiction Award at the 2022 Adam NZ Play Awards

Formerly called Aliens & Anorexia, the work was retitled Gravity & Grace in early 2023.

And always, there is the chance that this will fail.

That things will not work out.

Brimming with intellect, humour and rich visuals, this smart new theatre adaptation of acclaimed writer Chris Kraus’ book will have its World Premiere at the Festival.  Kraus, who spent part of her adolescence in Wellington until returning to New York at age 21, is best-known for the cult hit  I Love Dick.  Her book Aliens and Anorexia depicts her attempts to make the feature film Gravity and Grace in New Zealand in the ‘90s.   

Weaving in the writings of French philosopher Simone Weil alongside a free-wheeling retrospective of other “failed” artists – Kraus traverses Berlin, Andy Warhol’s New York, Marseilles and New Zealand in a bid to understand what it means to not succeed.   This theatre piece integrates contemporary video and sound design alongside stand-out performances to create a daring and engrossing production.

PREMIERING MARCH 2024.

The development of Gravity & Grace (formerly called Aliens & Anorexia) was supported by Aotearoa New Zealand Festival of the Arts and is supported by Creative NZ. Thank you to Artificial Imagination for video system design and integration support.

Initial script development of Aliens & Anorexia was supported by BATS Theatre, through their Artist Residency programme and Wellington City Council.

CREATIVE TEAM 2022

Created by Eleanor Bishop & Karin McCracken

Starring Moana Ete, Simon Leary, Karin McCracken, Sam Snedden & Rongopai Tickell

Director - Eleanor Bishop

Performance Designer - Meg Rollandi

AV Designer - Owen McCarthy

Sound Designer - Emi Pogoni

Light Designer & Production Manager - Natasha James

Producer - Melanie Hamilton

Stage Manager - Natasha Thyne

Assistant Producer/Production Manager - Shanell Bielawa

AV Technician - Rachel Neser from Artificial Imagination