Jake Mace
Sofia Natoli will begin performing her genre-defying cabaret adaptation of the stories of Ancient Greece’s Femme Fatales Babel Beast as part of Voila! Theatre Festival in London this evening. The piece, developed as part of Natoli’s masters’ thesis, explores multi-culturalism, agency, identity and cultural belonging/un-belonging through emceeing, mime and lip syncing. We caught up with creator-performer Sofia alongside Co-Director Al Hawkins for a pixelated pint to find out what inspired the show and what audiences can expect.
You can catch Babel Beast as part of Voila! Theatre Festival in London at the Etcetera Theatre from tonight Monday 10th November until Wednesday 12th November at various times (45mins). Tickets (£14 / £12 conc.) are available through the Voila! Theatre Festival Online Box Office.
The piece will then have a run as part of Talos V Science Fiction Theatre Festival at the Bread & Roses Theatre from the 12th – 13th December. Tickets are available online.
Jake: Hi Sofia and Al! You describe Babel Beast as an exploration of multiculturalism and the lived experience of (un)belonging in between cultural spaces. Tell us about what inspired you to bring your story to the stage.
Sofia: I grew up navigating three different cultures and languages. I’m Italian, I was raised in France, and I went to a French/English bilingual school. I then moved to the UK for university. Being multicultural or multilingual proved to be very helpful when socializing, meeting people, communicating, or translating. I’ve never really thought about it, it was just embedded in me. But I started becoming properly aware of it while living in London, especially being such a cosmopolitan city. I started feeling like I had to find where ‘home’ was. I had knowledge about each culture, but it was never enough to properly fit in them. Being a woman adds a layer to being multicultural or a foreigner, it changes things, whether in everyday interactions or in performative contexts, as an actor.
I was reading about Greek hybrid monstresses, like Medusa, the Sphynx or Harpies, and I realized they could be a metaphor for culturally hybrid women nowadays. They’re seen as these really seductive and feminine creatures, often ridiculously erotic, but also monstrous and threatening since they seduce men to then kill them. I started becoming more aware of myself as a multicultural, multilingual woman, or simply as a foreigner, and what that might mean: I could be a hybrid woman as well, like those half-women, half-animal creatures seen as evil monsters in the stories. Why are they seen as monsters? Why are they the evil ones? And why don’t we speak enough about them? We always read stories about the male hero who defeats these monsters. I wanted to bring my story to the stage, especially as part of Voilà Festival, because so many people share more than one ‘home’. Let’s see these monstresses in a fresh and fun light, and let’s give them a voice (or language) of their own.
Al: I was inspired to work on this project as a director because it is a performance that makes the most of theatre as a form. Of taking stories, myths and social issues and reimagining them in playful and bizarre ways. Of bringing strangers together in a room to be complicit in whatever strange or exciting thing they witness. Of fundamentally-shared, never-the-same-twice spectacles, that exist outside the realm of the day-to-day but are also in direct response to it. I was also excited to explore the themes of multiculturalism and ‘belonging’ as someone who lives inadvertently quite estranged from their ancestral cultures.
My family immigrated to England from Russia and Poland following persecution in the Holocaust, became anglicised and alienated from Jewish life. Though I have always lived in England, there are definitely feelings of un-belonging that I continue to navigate. I believe ‘belonging’ is an idea that is widely relatable yet gloriously unique to everyone, which I tend to gravitate towards in trying to make work that is meaningful, both for creators and audience. I was so excited to explore complicated and personal ideas with an approach that felt creatively limitless yet with strong foundations to guide the process. And none of it has disappointed- it’s a wonderful show, full of passion and substance, and makes me inspired to continue making work that both feels important and doesn’t take itself too seriously.
Babel Beast‘s stories are made for live performance: watching a performer shape-shift, code-switch and re-encounter experiences of joy, tension and connection before your eyes.
Jake: How was that process overall? Did you discover anything you weren’t expecting?
Sofia: The process was amazing really, especially working with my best friends, we’d have a great time in rehearsal. We started devising and playing games, because I had done so much research that I needed to just throw ideas in the space and try them on our feet with other people (aka my directors Luna and Al), not just by myself. We would start asking ourselves what the modern adaptations of these mythical monstresses could be. We’d look at Medusa and ask ‘what are her characteristics? Her hybrid features? And how can that be applied in a modern way, specifically to our context?’ Then we would just start playing, and it was hilarious: we would improvise in many different ways, edit details, then bring it onto the page to write a script.
I discovered a lot about myself, maybe fears or doubts that I didn’t know were embedded in me before, because I had to dig deep into my diary or into my own memories and experiences. I definitely made some self-discoveries as a performer: I did not know that I could be clownish and grotesque and that I enjoyed doing it – I’ve always been into more naturalistic, contemporary acting. But I’ve always thought that comedy is a great way to tackle sociopolitical, darker subjects. And I admire when artists make serious stories come across in a humorous way, I think it’s very potent.
There were struggles as well, especially being a solo show – I found it very hard to even begin writing a monologue. Sharing ideas is so important to see what reactions or new material they can stimulate. I think it’s beautiful that our team, from the directors to the sound operator, is made of multicultural people. We’re all navigating identity and cultures, and it’s amazing that everyone brought their own experience to the table and that the idea of hybridity at the core of the show is mirrored in the creative teamwork.
Al: The process has been wonderful. We’re a team who are close friends outside of making work together and rehearsals have been filled with lots of laughter and excitement as everything’s taken shape. As emerging theatre-makers we’ve had to find inventive ways to create set, find space to rehearse and make time for all the admin, which has made the process challenging at times but also so rewarding when the hard work pays off. (I also believe that a DIY approach often contributes to more interesting and unexpected discoveries in its own right). Some of my favourite days were when we took over one of our flats as Babel Beast HQ: Sofia learning lines at the kitchen table whilst Luna edits on Qlab, and Martina choreographing in the living room whilst I edit the press release on the sofa. Even with its difficulties, those days always felt very warm, energised and united, each person doing what they do best over a cup of tea.
Devising the work was at times more difficult than I thought it would be. The show has a clear identity but with many moving parts and competing stories and stylistic influences. In amongst all the chaos and beautiful mess of improvisation and play, there has also been a delicate maintenance of the balance between telling Sofia’s personal stories, representing ancient women, and creating the new cabaret characters who aim to encapsulate both! While tricky, it’s been so satisfying to keep working and reworking until we find interesting and intriguing balances, particularly with the addition of playing with gender expression in the characters and how their femininity connects with their multicultural, or hybrid, identity. It’s been so wonderful to work on a project that feels very experimental, ever-growing and engaging – intellectually, physically and emotionally.
The process has cemented how important an extra pair of eyes and hands is, even for the most personal solo project, collaborating with an open and invested team only enriches the work and makes the practical aspects more possible – even if just as simple as someone to help carry the props. This project has really highlighted how versatile and passionate every team member is.
Jake: What will be the first thing the audience sees, feels, and hears as they enter the space?
Sofia: As audiences enter the space they’ll sense the risqué quality of cabaret, but also this ridiculous, childlike will to play and have fun. We’re welcoming you into an intimate, colorful and teasing world that will feel somewhat familiar, yet new, fresh and possibly a bit eerie…
Al: As the audience enters, they will see a neat space dressed in plush textures, warm light and a few items that may spark intrigue. There is a feeling of stillness, but also a suggestion that the stillness will soon be broken. Some may indulge in the intimacy of the space, some may feel awkward and curious, and some may feel upbeat, unguarded, and excited to see a sexy show!
Jake: What are you hoping the audience might take away from the experience, if anything?
Sofia: We’ve been trying to create a tangible sense of confusion in the space, because that’s what a foreigner, or culturally hybrid person might feel from one country to another. So hopefully audience members will leave with more questions than when they arrived – I’d be glad if that was the case!
Even though it’s classical mythology adapted to my personal experience, so many people share this story in their own, individual way. I’m hoping to open up conversations or perspectives on the topic. I’d love for the audience to leave the space relating to what they just saw, but also with a sense of wonder, a need to digest it, and maybe to reflect on their own or other people’s cultures.
Al: I hope that every audience member has something to take away, even if just a nameless sensation. We hope that after watching Babel Beast people feel warm and well-fed, but also inquisitive and slightly shaken up. It would be really amazing if it inspired people to connect with and explore their own culture, and continue to challenge their perceptions of cultures foreign to them. But it’s impossible to predict what exactly each individual will take from the work, especially from some of the more abstract acts we’ve created… What I hope for is people to leave with strong feelings, in any which direction, and I hope they find ways to share and nourish them.
Jake: With Voila Festival 2025 just around the corner, what are you most excited for?
Sofia: Having fun, playing and feeling the energy in the space! I’m excited to look the audience straight in the eye, I’m curious to find out how they’ll react to what I say or do – especially since the piece relies so much on audience interaction, I want to see how that impacts them. I can’t wait for that little sparkle in people’s eyes when they recognize things they might be familiar with, but also for them to be a bit on the edge of their seat because they might be wondering what the hell will happen next!
I also can’t wait to meet people, see other shows, connect with artists and creatives brought together from around the world, all thanks to Voilà.
Al: I’m so unbelievably excited for our run of the show with Voilà! Babel Beast is definitely a show that is made to be interacted with and it’s work that I’m so proud to share with people and ready to hear what they think. This run at Etcetera and the feedback we receive will be a key part in its development for our next run at Talos V Festival at Bread and Roses Theatre this December! I’m also really excited to see what all the other theatre-makers have been working on- it feels very special to be involved in a festival dedicated to all kinds of new multicultural work.
Jake: Given the themes of Binge Fringe, if your show was a beverage of any kind (alcoholic, non-alcoholic – be as creative as you like!), what would it be and why?
Sofia: A handful of mints in a fizzy drink! It’s a combo of ingredients, it gives you a rush of adrenaline and it could explode any moment!
Al: Babel Beast is definitely a Long Island. Tall, dark and citrus. A bold, sometimes brutal, familiar crowd-pleaser, with subtle, smoky notes to be discovered for those who go looking for them.
A reminder, you can catch Babel Beast as part of Voila! Theatre Festival in London at the Etcetera Theatre from tonight Monday 10th November until Wednesday 12th November at various times (45mins). Tickets (£14 / £12 conc.) are available through the Voila! Theatre Festival Online Box Office.
The piece will then have a run as part of Talos V Science Fiction Theatre Festival at the Bread & Roses Theatre from the 12th – 13th December. Tickets are available online.
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