About
Caroline’s ongoing practice is to explore how the dramaturgy of reality can activate conventional theatrical forms. With a background in social and environmental activism, her work is often in dialogue with current political issues, for example the semantics of screens in relation to the war in Syria (Now Is the Time to Say Nothing, extensive touring 2018/19 produced by MAYK), multiple deaths in police custody in East London (You Do Not Have To Say Anything, The Yard Theatre) or the relationship between loneliness and technology (Can You Hear Me Now âBritish Council/ MAYK). Using personal narratives, she works to find a performative language that can most powerfully communicate the heart of these stories. At the core of Caroline’s work is a passion for people who wouldnât consider themselves artists to create powerful works of art. Caroline’s work has ranged from a flash mob opera in the British Museum (Millions of Years, ENO) to a one-on-one installation-performance inside a cardboard box performed by migrants (Make Yourself At Home, Nuit Blanche Brussels).
‘ I want to say now that it is a performance â looking back â I increasingly value as particularly rare. I look back on it as one of the most insightful encounters I have had in a theatre.â Theatre Voices on Caroline Williamsâ Puffball
Caroline was one of the first Associate Artists of the Yard Theatre and invited to take part in the National Theatreâs Directors course in 2016. The same year she was awarded a Somerset House Studio residency and chosen by the Victoria and Albert Museum to represent the UK at the Prague Biennial with her performance installation Shakespeareâs Fools. Caroline is currently a Leverhulme Scholar on attachment to The Bristol Old Vic and resident at The Pervasive Media Studios, Watershed.
âCarolineâs work is clever, layered and moving. She is an important voice in British theatre.â
Liz Moreton, Senior producer, Battersea Arts Centre.
Projects include You Do Not Have To Say Anything at The Yard, Now Is The Time To Say Nothing at The Young Vic, Can You Hear Me Now for MAYK, Make Yourself At Home at Nuit Blanche Brussels, Millions of Years for English National Opera at The British Museum, Dad Dancing with Second Hand Dance and Puffball at The Yard, Shadwellâs Tempest and Le Malade Imaginaire with OAE at Shakespeareâs Globe.
‘Strange, detailed and deeply personal, it speaks straight to the heart of our fragile, fearful souls. Tiny and epic, contemporary and timeless. I love this piece.â Emma Rice on Caroline Williamsâ Puffball