The Comforter by Stacy Makishi

Duration: 1hr 10mins

Part ritual, part prayer, part rowdy revivalist rally, The Comforter is a rite of passage that reclaims spirituality and proposes a new perspective on the church. Exchanging psalms and sacrament for 80s and 90s pop culture, it draws inspiration from Twin Peaks and Ingmar Bergman whilst throwing a kiss to George Michael.
The Comforter follows the powerfully moving and absurdly humorous Vesper Time, forming the first two parts in a trilogy about the Holy Trinity. The Comforter is the Holy Ghost of the trio and asks the question: “What am I unwilling to feel?”
Commissioned by The Yard Theatre, Marlborough Theatre, Norwich Arts Centre and Colchester Arts Centre. Supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England. Produced by Artsadmin.

Stacy Makishi is a transplant from Hawaii. Like a bonsai plant, Stacy is small but old. She has been making art for over 30 years. A cross-fertilization of theatre, comedy, film and visual art, her work is as complex as it is accessible; humorous as it is challenging; visual as it is literate. It ranges across solo performances for stage, large-scale outdoor participatory projects and intimate one-to-ones. Also a teacher, director and mentor in international demand, Makishi believes in art’s transformative power and strives to share her creative process with others in order to put more aloha into the world.
Her recent solos for theatre include the trilogy Making Bull, The Falsettos and Vesper Time, all of which have toured extensively in the UK. She has recently developed a new strand directing devised works, notably with Contact Manchester Young Company. Commissioned by Contact as a performance response to the Wellcome Collection’s 2015 exhibition Sexology, Under the Covers examined young people’s attitudes to sex, questioning myths and breaking down taboos. Initial performances at Contact were followed by Southbank Centre and the Traverse Edinburgh.

Praise for Vesper Time

“The show moved me to tears, laughter and some serious reflection.” Dean Atta

“Genuinely moving.” A Younger Theatre

“Intricately woven, precise sermon/storytelling from Stacy Makishi #Vespertime @sohotheatre uplifting, funny & touching” Andrew Ellerby @instamatik

“Very meaningful as well as absurd, incredibly clever and witty.” Claire MacDonald

“I admire Stacy’s raw and loving energy. It was refreshing to experience something so humorously absurd containing such powerful substance. Stacy Makishi managed to open my heart with complex laughter.” Emma, Moeller, Total Theatre 

“An hour-long voyage back and forth in time, across the world into space, up through heaven and via a million and one cultural references. I had a blast no matter where Stacy led us and I could never, ever have predicted where we would end up. Every aspect was moving and amusing in almost equal measure.” Grace Murray