Welcome to Traumatraum

A broken dancer’s body won’t move the way it used to.

A boy’s limp threatens to end his dream of playing football for Ireland.

A banjaxed clown has more bulging discs than a weightlifter.

All three find themselves trapped in a warped trauma dream, where the only way out is head on.

A fusion of text, personal story and dance, Welcome to Traumatraum is an immersive dive into the effects of physical trauma on the psyche, how it can derail a life, but also jolt it onto an unexpected and exciting new path.

Visceral, shocking, moving and chaotic, the ensemble morph between personal story, fact and fiction, words and raging silence. It is a place of pain, of loneliness, a sudden corruption in the order of things. A rip, a tear and a blow to the face. A wound that must heal. A new you.

At some point in life we all suffer physical injury or trauma. Even something as simple as a sprained ankle can leave us feeling vulnerable and in need of care and assistance. Other injuries can be far more serious causing disability, long term mobility issues, or an inability to continue a career. The body can repair and though physical scarring may be visible, mental scars are often suffered in secret. Welcome to Traumatraum aims to engage with audiences to bring awareness to a deeply personal and uncomfortable topic.

Karen Gleeson is a contemporary dance practitioner based in Meath. She has created and performed work across Ireland and Europe, collaborating with leading Irish choreographers and developing award-winning inclusive dance and interdisciplinary projects. 

Philip St. John is a playwright and short-story writer from Dún Laoghaire known for darkly comic, atmospheric theatre blending psychological drama and the supernatural. His plays, including Temptress and The Sylvia, have been staged in Dublin and internationally, with support from the Arts Council. 

Michael McCabe is an Irish actor and director and artistic director of Lumiere Theatre Company. Trained at Jacques Lecoq in Paris and The Gaiety School of Acting, he has worked across major Irish theatre companies and internationally with Anne Bogart and Tadashi Suzuki. 

Matthew Ralli is an Irish theatre director and writer, and artistic director of Speckintime. He specialises in developing new work and collaborative theatre-making, working closely with artists to create and stage original productions alongside commissioned projects