Gravity & Other Myths

Gravity & Other Myths is an acrobatic contemporary circus troupe based in Adelaide, South Australia, founded in 2009. It has performed at the Adelaide Festival of the Arts and the Adelaide Fringe, and toured in Australia and internationally. In 2019 the group won a Helpmann Award for Best Visual or Physical Theatre Production, for Out of Chaos, and has been nominated for or won several other awards.

WWW gravityandothermyths.com

History

Gravity & Other Myths was formed by a group of students participating in the Australian Cirkidz program in 2009. Elliot Zoerner, Jascha Boyce, Jacob Randell, Lachlan Binns, and Martin Schreiber were co-founders.
The group has appeared at festivals and theatres in Australia, including the Adelaide Festival of the Arts, as well as touring to many countries. It rotates through a changing repertoire of shows.

Style

Unlike many circus acts, Gravity & Other Myths' artists do not hide the intense physical effort of their acts, instead highlighting the effort to comedic effect. During some acts there is a close contact with the audience which sits or stands around the stage, and the atmosphere between acts is informal. The performances include traditional circus skills such as acrobatics, juggling, and clowning, but combine these with elements of dance and theatre.
In 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, the company had a huge response when it conducted recruitment sessions in Adelaide to increase the number of performers by eight.

Awards and nominations

The group has been nominated for and won several awards, including:

2015: Dance Award for Best Physical Theatre
2015: Green Room Award for Outstanding Contemporary Circus
2017: Nominated, Best Choreography in a Ballet, Dance or Physical Theatre Production, in the 17th Helpmann Awards, for Backbone
2017: Geoff Cobham nominated for Best Lighting Design, in the 17th Helpmann Awards, for Backbone
2018: Winner, Made in Adelaide Award at the Ruby Awards, for Backbone + A Simple Space
2019: Winner, Best Visual or Physical Theatre Production in the 19th Helpmann Awards, for Out of Chaos...
2018: Winner, Made in Adelaide Award at the Ruby Awards, for Out of Chaos
2021: Winner, Award for Outstanding Contribution by an Organisation or Group, Ruby Awards
2021: Finalist, Best Work or Event Within a Festival, for ''The Pulse''

People

, five of the co-founders are still with the company, in various roles:

Elliot Zoerner – composer, musician
Jascha Boyce – producer, acrobat
Jacob Randell – finance manager, acrobat
Lachlan Binns – acrobat
Martin Schreiber – acrobat

Darcy Grant is artistic director, and there are many other acrobats as well as several other musicians and other technical and support staff.
Geoff Cobham was formerly lighting designer, including for Backbone in 2017.