Curious Caravan.
Powered by joy. 

Curious Caravan is a pop-up immersive experience that was created as a response when theatres were closed during the Covid pandemic. We took the caravan to the heart of communities, meeting people on their doorsteps and over garden fences, inviting them to gather outside the van for socially distanced tea and cake, and to share stories. It was incredible to connect with people after so much isolation.

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The project quickly grew, and the caravan has since toured various communities, festivals, and events, collecting and caring for people’s memories, anecdotes and stories. Alongside a team of story collectors an illustrator captures people’s memories in real-time, sketching them as keepsakes for people who visit.

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“The concept is simple, but it can be deeply moving. Every time we take the caravan out, we experience magical moments. It’s really about spending time together, connecting people who might never have met, and listening, face-to-face away from technology. Sometimes, someone will share something they’ve never told anyone before. These go into the ‘secret box,’ where they’re kept safe.”

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The caravan is a hub of activity where everyone is welcome and there’s plenty of tea and cake to go around. There’s also some playful mythology surrounding the caravan. It's said she has travelled far and wide, from India in the 60s to her current home in North Shields. She’s rumoured to have a TARDIS-like interior, with multiple floors of library space for the collected stories and that she is powered by joy.

 

The caravan is a mobile home for creative experimentation - we have collaborated with AV artists to project on to it, dancers and theatre-makers to make performances that pop out of it, researchers and academics to hold conversations in it, illustrators who inhabit it. We have made plans with chefs to design bespoke meals in it and musicians to hold intimate gigs in it. 

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We are always looking for new and interesting collaborations.

 

Get in touch at curiouscaravanne@gmail.com

 

And follow us on Instagram @curiouscaravan_ne for updates.