Press

“ Gecko excels in creating small moments that capture wordlessly the individual’s emotional struggle.”

Nuala Calvi,The Stage
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With their trade-mark inventive style, Gecko takes the unruly spirit of Russian writer, Nikolai Gogol’s masterpiece The Overcoat to create their own intoxicating journey. A downbeat draughtsman is fixated on a new coat- and, ultimately, the unobtainable girl at the desk next him. His thoughts spill into everyday life blurring reality with grotesque fantasy to present a love story-and vivid critique of modern consumption.

Gecko’s The Overcoat magnifies the atmosphere of Gogol’s short story; his ‘department’ becomes an office playground with floating desks and an apparent labyrinth of corridors representing the repetitive, bureaucratic routine. The humdrum is juxtaposed with the magical inner-world of the underdog protagonist, Akkaki’s extraordinary imagination and determination to win the affection of the girl of his dreams and change his position in the world.

The Overcoat premiered in March 2008 at the Contact Theatre in Manchester, UK and went on to tour throughout the UK at many theaters including the Lyric Hammersmith, London. Selected by the British Arts Council and Elevator East to perform at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, this special platform was specifically to raise the company’s profile and introduce them to new audiences.

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Company Biography

Founded by Amit Lahav and Al Nedjari in 2001, Gecko have been creating and touring their own brand of physical theatre in both the UK and internationally. Their coming together was fueled by a shared response to theatre which for years had left them feeling somewhat dulled and uninspired. Instead, Lahave and Nedjari wanted to arrest their audience’s imagination, awaken their senses and fill them with energy and vitality. The solution to create dynamic theater existed in exploring a movement that involves great athleticism, physical contact and endurance.

During performances, Gecko engage the entire body, including the voice, as the vehicle to express motion. In order to respond to the playground of the stage and to infect and provoke their audiences, Gecko is able to access emotions quickly, deeply and truthfully and express them fully. They are athletes of the heart.

Previous original works created by the company include, Taylor’s Dummies, The Race and The Arab and the Jew.

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Artist Biography

Before founding Gecko in 2001, Amit Lahav (Artistic Director), worked with artists inclusing Lindsey Kemp, Stephen Berkoff and Box Clever Theatre. He worked extensively with the David Glass Ensemble on Unheimlich Spine and Off The Wall, and was a key member on The Lost Child Project working with young people, teachers and practitioners in Argentina, Brazil, Cambodia, Italy, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam.

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