Several years ago, Creative Darlington budget was committed to support a TeesDance proposal which secured support from a number of other parties, including Arts Council England Project Funding, for a project with various aspects, one of which was supporting creatives through MoveAhead commissions.
The commission which Darlington supported was shared through public performance for the first time last night (20th November 2025) and I very much enjoyed CARRIAGE, a new physical theatre show, by Resound Theatre at The Hullabaloo. I found the performance, described below, engaging, captivating, refreshing and thought provoking, and judging by the enthusiastic applause at its conclusion, was not alone in appreciating its beauty and quality. It’s great to see the work of so many talented people shared in Darlington, and I hope to see another MoveAhead commission in due course.
On the threshold between labour and creation, body and mind blur in a quickening spiral.
Two workers harness their powers of creation to free themselves from eternal drudgery – beckoned to pioneer a new world. But what is the cost of this uncharted future?
Inspired by Celtic mythology and the invention of the first passenger-carrying train, CARRIAGE is a celebration of working-class imagination and effort – a story about what it takes to build something new together.
This was Resound Theatre’s first public performance: a small northern company with big ambition, making bold, physical work that comes straight from the gut. Their shows begin with a spark – a text, an object, an idea – and are built through movement, sound and collective graft.
Commissioned by TeesDance and Creative Darlington (Darlington Borough Council)
Supported by Arts Council England, Sheffield Theatres, Darlington Hippodrome and The Forum.
• Devised and performed by the company: Elliot Mann & Matty Muir
• Dramaturgy: CJ Simon
• Stage manager: Jax Heath
• Music and Sound Design: Elliot Mann
• Vocalist: Katie Doherty
• Lighting design and operator: Simon Cole
• Creative collaborators: Ellen Longworth, Jax Heath, CJ Simon, Anaïs Dubois
• Design: CJ Nicholas
• Media: Jax Heath
• Co-producer: Aaron Bowman
“In a region like ours, where arts access isn’t always guaranteed, TeesDance is opening doors and keeping them open”
The quote above is from a participant in TeesDance activity. TeesDance recently secured charitable status and we wish them every success in taking their valuable work forward.
