Kneehigh Theatre was founded by teacher Mike Shepherd in Cornwall in 1980. From the beginning Kneehigh approached theatre by organically developing ensemble pieces of a highly physical and spectacular nature, to be performed in local environments. This ethos is reflected in much of its early work in pieces such as Awful Knawful (1980) based loosely on the stunt motorcyclist Evel Knievel, The Mystery Machine (1981) based on the Children's book The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster, Mrs Corbetts Ghost (1981) based on the novel of Leon Garfield and Around the World in Eighty Days (Minutes) (1982) adapted from the Jules Verne classic.
After performing shows locally in Cornwall, touring at performing at ‘The Edinburgh Festival’ throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the company began a ‘brilliant new era’ under Emma Rice's direction, as Rice took over from designer Bill Mitchell as joint artistic director of the company. After working with the company as an actor, Rice directed many shows including The Red Shoes in 2000 and under her, Kneehigh's rehearsal programme and style reflected Rice's earlier work with the Gardzienice Theatre Association in Poland, becoming more physical in approach.
The Kneehigh Theatre Style
From the very start of its inception in the 1980's, Kneehigh has aimed to create ‘joyful, anarchic and innovative theatre.’ Anyone who has witnessed one of its shows will know that sense of anarchy and joy present, even in the darkest of performances where there is always a high level of energy and a playful style, typified by its adaptation of Noel Coward's Brief Encounter in 2009.
Working with an ever-changing ensemble and group of collaborators, storytelling has always been central to its work, as well as a strong emphasis on visual performance and design elements. Since its production of the Cornish tale Tregeagle (1985), live music and song has become a feature of the group's work, as has the use of puppetry, dance and film. Throughout its 40 years of work, creative adaptations of novels, films, myths and folktales have also been a feature of its approach, with the trilogy The Bacchae (2004), The Wooden Frock (2004) and Tristan and Yseult (2005) being good examples.
The Kneehigh Legacy
Following a short stint as artistic director of The Globe, Emma Rice formed ‘Wise Children’, a company looking to make ‘ground-breaking work with exceptional artists and tour it across the UK and internationally.’ Though quite nomadic (like Kneehigh at first) in 2022 the company opened ‘The Lucky Chance’ in Frome, Somerset, an old Methodist Church converted into a performance space. The company also run a unique professional development programme, The School for Wise Children, training a new and more diverse generation of theatre practitioners.
Mike Shepherd, the original artistic director continues to run The Barns at Lamledra, where almost every Kneehigh show since 1990 was seeded, developed or produced. Shepherd works here with associated artists using the barns as a creative space for theatre, education, community and environment in Cornwall.
‘This is Kneehigh’
An excellent, immediate resource is the ‘This is Kneehigh’ website – thisiskneehigh.co.uk. The website offers a breakdown of shows themselves and the process involved, with audio, video, gallery, text and image-based resources. This is excellent for those pupils looking to reference previous productions, for say, the BTEC Performing Arts courses for example. This also struck me as hugely helpful for those pupils who may be working as directors or designers, with the process for each Kneehigh show broken down into stages with lots of visual examples to draw on during the pupil's own research stage. There is also a great deal of useful information on how the shows were marketed, with theatrical posters and video trailers, inspiration perhaps for the next school or college production?
The Kneehigh Archive and Falmouth University
Although the archive is unable to provide full show recordings, Falmouth University have been the proud holders of the Kneehigh Archive since 2010. From the earliest days performing in village halls and local schools, this varied Collection documents all aspects of Kneehigh's work up to its most recent international productions. Records include production managers' files, press and publicity materials, scripts and an extensive range of photographs. The industry and creative processes that influence Kneehigh's work are recorded in the funding applications and reports contained in the Archive.
Accessing the archive
The archive can be accessed by contacting Falmouth University's Penryn Campus, Archive & Special Collections, L0 The Exchange, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road Penryn, Cornwall, UK TR10 9FE. To get in touch you can also email archives@fxplus.ac.uk or call 01326 255738.