We chatted to the pair about the creation of Sisters Grimm and having a permanent home for their creativity.
How does it feel to have a permanent home for your work in London?
It feels like a total dream come true. Every day there are new learnings. It feels like freedom! To have the flexibility to test new ideas and continue the creative journey in a way that is right for our cast, our Sisters Grimm methodology and our audiences is hugely liberating and audiences are responding to the authenticity in a way we couldn’t have imagined.
How did you both meet and decide that you wanted to collaborate?
We met in 2008 and immediately clicked creatively. We were introduced by chance on a Thursday night, and by that Sunday we were already in the Royal Opera House testing ideas together. Most people were probably nursing hangovers but we were in a studio seeing what might happen.
What would you say has been a career highlight for you both?
We can’t pick just one, but two really stand out. Premiering INALA at the Edinburgh International Festival in 2014 was extraordinary – performing in the largest theatre in Europe to nearly 3,500 people and receiving a full house standing ovation is something we’ll never forget. And more recently, opening our own new-concept West End venue, House of Sisters Grimm, with a red-carpet, invite-only gala on 28 November was a huge achievement.
What have you wanted to achieve through the work that you produce?
We have always been driven to produce work that is motivated by a desire to see positive social change, through cultural collaboration all told within a new format that feels familiar and has commercial viability. We want positive change for the artists we work with, the audiences and to play our part in societal progress.
We’ve always been motivated by the idea that our work can go some way to help create positive social change. Our work is about cultural collaboration and bringing different voices together but presenting it in a format that still feels accessible and is commercially viable. Ultimately, we want to make a positive difference – for both the artists we work with and for our audiences.
You have already done so much in your work, what would you love to do next?
We would love to open House of Sisters Grimm in other major cities around the world broadening the reach and impact of INALA and the whole experience of the venue to audiences in New York, Tokyo, Shanghai to name a few. So, watch this space…..
To find out more about Sisters Grimm visit: https://sisters-grimm.co.uk/