BEN Norris, the UK All Star Poetry Slam champion, visits the York Theatre Royal Studio on Wednesday with The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Family, his debut solo show.
“Everyone’s dad exists as a kind of statue, frozen in a certain pose," says Norris. "Mine is wearing his cream and black mac, standing in the rain watching football or cross country...it doesn't matter which: it was muddy, and he was there.”
His dad was born in London and only ever moved north, always loosely in line with the M1. So, over six days in Summer 2014, Norris hitchhiked south along the motorway from his birthplace in Nottingham to his father’s birthplace in Brixton, moving backwards in time through his father’s life as he went, stopping everywhere his dad had ever lived.
Ben Norris heads to York with The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Family
Using footage recorded on the journey, bespoke animation and his own words, Norris leads his audience on a warts-and-all journey through modern Britain and his own family history as he attempts to better know Ray Norris; ever present and quietly supportive, but emotionally unavailable and a perpetual mystery. Like so many fathers.
"In the wake of the EU referendum result, it’s clear that we live in an age of deep generational divisions," says Norris. "Feeling distant from your parents is increasingly – and sadly – a universal experience. This show is my attempt to explore how we might bridge the impassable gap many of us feel from the ones we love.”
Wednesday's 7.45pm show is part of a 20-date tour of England and Wales.Tickets are on sale on 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk
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