Introducing the landscape of Bound Feet Blues – The South Downs Way

A climactic scene in Bound Feet Blues takes place on a 100 mile walk along the South Downs Way as writer/ performer Yang-May Ooi and her gang of hiking friends come across the majestic vista of the Seven Sisters. Here are some pictures taken from Pinterest to give you a glimpse of the beautiful and dramatic landscape featured in this solo show.

** Bound Feet Blues is NOW ON  at the Tristan Bates Theatre until Sat 12 December 2015. Don’t miss this “mesmerising” and “powerful” show – buy tickets below or via bit.ly/bfbtickets **

The South Downs Way, 100 miles from Winchester to Eastbourne – via Pinterest https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/174092341816790690/

The Seven Sisters – vvia Pinterest https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/148548487684014521/

Seven hills rolling out over the white chalk cliffs – via Pinterest, https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/361132463843448476/

 

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**You can buy tickets for Bound Feet Blues via bit.ly/bfbtickets **

DETAILS

Tristan Bates Theatre
1A Tower St, Covent Garden WC2H 9NP

Tue 24 Nov – Sat 12 Dec, Tue – Sat at 7.30pm.
Tickets £16 / £12 concessions.
Q&As post-show, 27 Nov & 4 Dec.

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Introducing the landscape of Bound Feet Blues – Malaysia, where writer/ performer Yang-May Ooi grew up

The setting of Bound Feet Blues ranges from Oxford in England to China and the Australian Outback – and to Malaysia, the childhood home of writer/ performer Yang-May Ooi. We are sharing with you some of these landscapes here on this blog.

Many of the scenes in Bound Feet Blues depict Yang-May as a child running barefoot in the garden and spending time with her family.  To give you a feel of that lush tropical landscape that forms the central heart of the show, here are some photos of gardens in Malaysia and of Kuala Lumpur, Yang-May’s hometown.

 

Garden, Kuala Lumpur – from flickr.com (CCL) https://www.flickr.com/photos/smarterwithin/

 

Garden, Kuala Lumpur – via Pinterest – https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/412079434624710326/

 

Malaysia – contrast of East and West – from flickr.com (CCL) – https://www.flickr.com/photos/hagens_world/

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**You can buy tickets for Bound Feet Blues via bit.ly/bfbtickets **

Introducing the world of Bound Feet Blues: the Australian Outback

Bound Feet Blues is a solo theatre performance – but on an epic scale. Writer/ performer Yang-May Ooi takes the audience across continents from Asia to Europe and Australia. We’ll be sharing with you the landscapes of Bound Feet Blues here on this blog over the next few weeks. Today, the vast desert scenery of the Australian Outback.

In Bound Feet Blues, the open skies and vast desert of Australia gives Yang-May’s younger self a freedom she never had in the narrower landscapes of London and Oxford…

Australian Outback – Photo from flickr.com, thanks to Mark Wassell – https://www.flickr.com/photos/61520356@N07/ (CCL0

Uluru – once known as Ayers Rock . From flickr.com, thanks to Rita Willaert – https://www.flickr.com/photos/rietje/ (CCL)

A pivotal moment in Bound Feet Blues occurs on the precipice at Kings Canyon, Australia – photo from flickr.com thanks to Los viajes del Cangrejo – https://www.flickr.com/photos/viajescangrejo/ (CCL)

 

Walking Wild, Walking Free

One of the themes of my show Bound Feet Blues is the power of being able to walk on your own two feet.  This theme is a very personal one for me as I love being able to stride about. In my daily life, I value being able to choose where I go and taking in the busy urban landscape of London at a walking pace. I also love long walks in the countryside and in particular, walking on long distance trails.

With my partner and our friends, over the last three years, I have walked almost 300 miles along some of Britain’s most beautiful long distance paths.

So, as you can imagine, I am an avid fan of Cheryl Strayed‘s hiking memoir Wild – about her 1,000 mile transformational hike along the Pacific Crest Trail in America. And last weekend, we headed off to the movies to see the film version starring Reese Witherspoon. See the trailer below.

 

The movie is a terrific adaptation of the book, bringing out the internal journey as much as the external journey. The story is as much about a an intense mother-daughter relationship as it is about Cheryl’s discovery of who she is through the solo challenge of the long distance  hike – in fact, the two themes are inextricably linked. This thread means a lot to me as Bound Feet Blues is also about intense mother-daughter relationships  – and self-discovery is portrayed through two life transforming hikes!

Here’s what the New York Times Review said of Wild: 

Running Barefoot on the Beach like a Child

Regular readers of this blog will know that I am a keen (though very slow!) runner. I usually trot along my neighbourhood pavements or round my local park in my cushioned running shoes. I love the feeling of speed (well, compared to a walking pace anyway) that running gives me and the challenge of the effort that it takes, as well as being outside in the fresh air and among leafy, pretty scenery.

Last month, I was down in Devon and had the chance to run on a number of long, sprawling beaches at low tide. One of my favourite stretches was along Saunton Sands where the sand is firm and fairly smooth.  In contrast to city streets or parks there was no hard tarmac and no landmines of dog poo or rusty cans or broken glass.  I took the chance to whip off my shoes and set off on my run barefoot.

What a sense of freedom to feel the warm sand underfoot and the cool air around my toes! It was like being a child again, running for the joy of running. Without the line of the pavement or the footpath I was used to in the park, I ran in any direction and in a tangle of routes. And all the while I could feel