This film of After the Flood presents a camera-friendly version of the live, promenade performance (of the same title), created for Leeds Waterfront Festival, in June 2016. This was a co-production between Multi-Story Water and the Leeds-based company, Common Chorus Theatre, which sought to respond to the major flood that hit Leeds on Boxing Day, 2015. (For further details on the live show, click here.)

In the live version, small groups of spectators were invited to embark on a looping walk around a section of the River Aire in Leeds city centre, starting and finishing at Granary Wharf. Our actors, stationed at points around the loop, would perform their scene afresh for each new group that came past. In the same spirit, the show’s six scenes are presented below as six separate videos, for you to “navigate” in sequence. Enjoy!

Station 1: In which Philip (Pete Freeth) welcomes you – the volunteer team – to the flood clean-up effort.

Station 2:  Poppy (Kat Martin) shares her family’s experience of the flood.

Station 3: Trevor and Bruce (Joe Large and Nick DeJong) consider engineering solutions to the flood problem.

Station 4: The Gardener (Matthew Bellwood) considers some natural alternatives.

Station 5: The Agency Man (Jake England-Johns) addresses the complexities of flood planning, while juggling.

Station 6: Poppy’s mum Linda (Libby Wattis) brings it all back home.

This film version of After the Flood was shot during a one-day-only revival of the piece, on a weekday in September 2016 (which explains the absence of festival crowds).

It premiered to the public as part of the Flood Response exhibition at Leeds Industrial Museum (Armley Mills), on 8th December 2016. The exhibition will run for 6 months.

Filmed and edited by Richee Mathwin of Big Media Films.

Directed by Simon Brewis, for Common Chorus Theatre

Produced by Steve Bottoms, for Multi-Story Water