Transhumance

Overview

Transhumance takes a surreal journey across the landscape of gender in search of a place to call home. NYC-based clown Ania Upstill playfully explores what it means to be a trans human. Winner of a Best Weekly Award for Circus and Physical Theatre at Adelaide Fringe in 2020, and recipient of four star reviews at the Edinburgh Fringe 2022. Directed by Philadelphia native Molly Houlahan.

‘A work of joy and playfulness – whimsical, witty and replete with wonder’ (TheatreView.org.nz). ‘Manages to be both a deeply personal story of self-identification and a universal experience of gender paradigms’ (TheatreScenes.co.nz). ‘Clever, funny and specific! new talent who can captivate the room and leave you wanting more!’ 10/10 (Upstage Downstage Podcast). 

About the Artist

Butch Mermaid Productions is a company that focuses on creating LGBTQIA+ work that emphasizes queer joy and the voices of gender diverse artists. BM has produced work in New York and New Zealand, and most recently toured two shows to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The company's more recent work is Antonio!, a musical about Shakespeare’s queerest character. Recent works include Too Much Hair, a gender euphoric musical cabaret; Exotic Blooms, a drag installation in the Auckland Botanic Gardens; queer ballet Sapphic Late; and Into the Bush, a queer circus-theatre project. 

Artistic Director Ania Upstill Ania (they/them) is a queer and non binary performer, theatre maker, teaching artist and award-winning clown based in New York City. Ania is a graduate of the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre (Professional Training Program). Outside of BM's work, Ania most recently appeared in War and Play, a production in the 2023 Criminal Queerness Festival produced by National Queer Theater and Today’s Mess, a clown show about diversity, at Nancy Manocherian’s the cell theater.

Credits