Aerial artists, contortionist bring 'Warped' to River Campus

Three touring aerial artists and a contortionist with Paper Doll Militia are bringing “Warped,” a mysterious tale of gears, cranks, levers and ropes, on March 1 to the River Campus in Cape Girardeau.

Hilary Peterson, Southeast Missouri State University coordinator of dance and an associate professor, said the event is the first of its kind at the River Campus.

She labeled “Warped” as a truly “circus arts performance,” with a blend of aerial arts by a “progressive” company.

Anyone who has been to a circus is going to see related elements represented, Peterson said.

“But you’re also going to see elements of progressive theater, in terms of storytelling,” she said.

Implementing fabric, ropes and self-created apparatuses, the performers also will reveal a traditional dance concert, Peterson said.

“One of their artists that they’re bringing in is a contortionist,” Peterson said. “She’s super bendy, and you’ll see some really cool, crazy stuff that she can do.”

She said it’s a story that uses the idea of time “to loosely give the entire production a narrative, and how we interpret time and how we feel about time.”

Peterson said the company’s performance at the River Campus came about through the efforts of Lauren Jones, owner of The Edge – Your Fitness Advantage in Cape Girardeau. Jones’ studio specializes in yoga, aerial, barre and Pilates.

Jones partnered with Paper Doll Militia co-founder and co-artistic director Rain Anya to make it happen. Jones has studied personally with Anya on numerous occasions, Peterson said.

“She loves Rain and she loves what she does,” Peterson said of Jones. “... She thought Cape Girardeau could use exposure to a company like this.”

Jones said she had the opportunity to work with Anya for two weeks, one in Greece and one in Mexico.

“When we were in Mexico last time, [Anya] mentioned they were starting their tour,” Jones said. “I thought it would be interesting to try to get [the tour] to come through Cape Girardeau. We’ve been working on it for about a year to get it all finalized to get here.”

Peterson said she expects a large number of people — from Louisville, Kentucky, Memphis, Tennessee, and St. Louis — to attend the show, since Paper Doll Militia “does not usually tour in this kind of space,” Peterson said.

Typically, the company performs in Los Angeles, or on the East Coast, she added, not touring within the Midwest.

Paper Doll Militia — based in Edinburgh, Scotland, and Los Angeles — seeks to create a total visual and emotional experience through circus, original music, puppetry and dreamy, whimsical, dark storytelling, according to the company’s website, www.paperdollmilitia.com/Aerial_Theatre.html.

More information on the River Campus performance can be found online at www.rivercampus.org.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3632