Savannah Coots is a 31-year-old artist with Downs Syndrome, and she loves performing in front of people and has been doing so for the past seven years as part of the BoilOver Performance Ensemble - an inclusive performance ensemble that sits within Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health.

Savannah talks to Richard Watts on SmartArts ahead of BoilOver's performance of The Birds at the International Day of People With Disability Festival on Saturday December 2nd at Sunbury Hume Global Learning Centre.

Richard and Savannah are also joined by 5AngryMen's Artistic Director Steve Phillips, and BoilOver support worker Karen Cleur. Together, they talk about 5AngryMen's approach to developing physical theatre for performances in public space (including The Birds, in which roving performers interact with audiences), including the use of FM transmitters to communicate with ensemble members during the show.

Savannah describes the soundscape technologies that Steve and 5AngryMen have brought in to BoilOver's performance: "We have smartphones and small speakers attached to our arms, legs and waist. We have an app that creates the music and sounds as we go. If we move our arms fast the sounds will speed up and get louder. If we move around slowly the music and bird sounds will be softer and slower. Each artist is in control of what sounds they want to play and at what pace."

You can learn more about BoilOver Performance Ensemble on the Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health website.

Photo: Savannah Coots and Karen Cleur with other members of BoilOver Performance Ensemble performing The Birds in October 2023 at Abbotsford Convent as part of Melbourne Fringe Festival. Image credit: supplied by BoilOver and Sunbury and Cobaw Community Health.