FoolishPeople is a British

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

collective specialising in original site-specific and immersive theatre, as well as

independent film An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, i ...

and

books A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical ar ...

. The collective was founded in 1989 by John Harrigan, who developed the theatre practice ''Theatre of Manifestation''. Combining

ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized, b ...

mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

shamanism Shamanism is a religious practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with what they believe to be a Spirit world (Spiritualism), spirit world through Altered state of consciousness, altered states of consciousness, such as tranc ...

, drama therapy, strategic forecasting and

open source Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use the source code, design documents, or content of the product. The open-source model is a decentralized sof ...

collaboration in the creation of FoolishPeople's work. Each project takes form by merging text, performance, sound, art, light and the building itself to create dreamlike worlds that living characters inhabit. FoolishPeople were one of the early pioneers of immersive theatre in the UK and have utilised

transmedia Transmedia storytelling (also known as transmedia narrative or multiplatform storytelling) is the technique of telling a single story or story experience across multiple platforms and formats using current digital technologies. From a producti ...

within their work since their inception in 1989. FoolishPeople consists of a core creative team which is enhanced by different actors and artists in various productions and projects. They have toured internationally, performing in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, and have worked in partnership with the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

, the

Arcola Theatre Arcola Theatre is an Off West End theatre in the London Borough of Hackney. It presents plays, operas and musicals featuring established and emerging artists. The theatre building, in the former Colourworks paint factory on Ashwin Street, Dalst ...

The Horse Hospital The Horse Hospital is a Grade II listed not for profit, independent arts venue at Colonnade, Bloomsbury, central London. It has a curatorial focus on counter-cultural histories, sub-cultures and outsider as well as emerging artists. It delivers ...

, the

Institute of Contemporary Arts The Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) is an artistic and cultural centre on The Mall in London, just off Trafalgar Square. Located within Nash House, part of Carlton House Terrace, near the Duke of York Steps and Admiralty Arch, the ICA c ...

and

Conway Hall Ethical Society The Conway Hall Ethical Society, formerly the South Place Ethical Society, based in London at Conway Hall, is thought to be the oldest surviving freethought organisation in the world and is the only remaining ethical society in the United Kin ...

, which is thought to be the oldest surviving

freethought Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...

organisation in the world. FoolishPeople launched their small press

publisher Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

Weaponized Imprint in 2010 and released their first

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

Strange Factories ''Strange Factories'' is a 2013 British experimental horror film written, directed by John Harrigan and produced by the British immersive theatre and production collective FoolishPeople. The film is an example of interactive cinema, featuring a ...

in October 2013.

Founder

The founder and artistic director of FoolishPeople is John Harrigan, British

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

, producer,

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

occultist The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism an ...

. Harrigan also founded Weaponized Imprint. Harrigan's work centres around the creation of

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

and immersive events. He founded FoolishPeople in 1989, taking its name from The Fool

Major Arcana The Major Arcana are the named or numbered cards in a cartomantic tarot pack, the name being originally given by occultists to the trump cards of a normal tarot pack used for playing card games. There are usually 22 such cards in a standard 78-car ...

of the

tarot The tarot (, first known as '' trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a pack of playing cards, used from at least the mid-15th century in various parts of Europe to play card games such as Tarocchini. From their Italian roots, ...

. In January 2006, Harrigan was the first person to be presented with the "Magi of Trygonia"

Award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An awar ...

for FoolishPeople's Dark Nights of the Soul, Anthology of plays which were performed during a thirteen-month residency at

, awarded by the Dionysian Underground. Harrigan received the Best Director Award for his second feature film '' Armageddon Gospels'' at Brighton Rocks Film Festival in 2018. To date, Harrigan is the writer and director of all FoolishPeople projects and productions. His scripts have been commissioned and presented at such venues as the

, the

Productions

Film

* 2021 Lightships - Feature Film - Writer and Director John Harrigan - in co-production with GHRL Ltd * 2019 Armageddon Gospels - Feature Film - Writer and Director John Harrigan * 2013

– Feature Film - Writer and Director John Harrigan

Theatre Productions

2018 The Lying Field - Writer and Director John Harrigan - 24–26 August 2018

Byline Festival The Byline Festival is a festival whose aim is to promote independent journalism and free speech. The festival was founded by Stephen Colegrave and Peter Jukes in 2017. Its tagline is "Dance, Discuss, Laugh and Change the World". The festival ...

, Pippingford Park, Nutley UK 2017 British Enough? - Writer and Director John Harrigan, in collaboration with artist and filmmaker Kristina Cranfeld, exploring the physical and imagined spaces conjured by Brexit in the borderlands of Britain’s future outside of the EU - 6–8 July 2017 BE FESTIVAL, Birmingham Repertory Theatre, Birmingham UK 2016 Borderland, Sex Angel - anthology of immersive theatre, episodical events at secret locations - Writer and Director John Harrigan 2015 The Woods Trapped at the Edge of Midnight - Writer and Director John Harrigan - 6–9 August 2015 Wilderness Festival, Cornbury Park, UK - Headlining Act - Theatre and Performance. 2014 Strange Factories: Remade - Writer and Director John Harrigan - 13 September 2014 Scalarama at the

Curzon Community Cinema, Clevedon The Curzon Cinema & Arts, in Clevedon, North Somerset, England, is one of the oldest continually running purpose-built cinemas in the world. Opened on 20 April 1912 by Victor Cox, the original building had 200 seats and the first show raised fu ...

UK; 24 September 2014, Making Waves Film Festival at the

Kings Theatre, Southsea The Kings Theatre is a theatre in Southsea, Portsmouth, designed by the architect Frank Matcham. It opened on 30 September 1907. It is operated by the Kings Theatre Trust Ltd. The building was designated a Grade II* listed building in 1976. Hi ...

Portsmouth UK; 17 October 2014, at the

Ultimate Picture Palace The Ultimate Picture Palace is an independent cinema in Oxford, England. It is Oxford's only surviving independent cinema, showing a mixture of independent, mainstream, foreign language, and classic films. The cinema has been a Grade II liste ...

Oxford UK; 1 November 2014 at The Magic Lantern Cinema Tywyn UK. 2013 Strange Factories: The Imaginari - Writers John Harrigan and Craig Slee, Director John Harrigan - 26 October - 9 November 2013 at the

Cinema Museum (London) The Cinema Museum is a museum in Kennington, London, and a charitable organisation. Its collection was founded in 1986 by Ronald Grant and Martin Humphries, from their own private collection of cinema history and memorabilia. Its current buildin ...

; 10 November 2013 at the

Duke of York's Picture House, Brighton The Duke of York's Picture House is an art house cinema in Brighton, England, which lays claim to being the oldest cinema in continuous use in Britain. According to cinema historian Allen Eyles, the cinema "deserves to be named Britain's oldest ...

; 15–16 November 2013 with Sundown Cinema at Cadwell Farm, Hitchin and 18 November 2013 at Pavilion Dance, Bournemouth. 2012 Virulent Experience – Writer and Director John Harrigan - in partnership with

2010 The Basement - Ward 12 – Co-Writer and Director John Harrigan - in partnership with

Secret Cinema Secret Cinema is a London-based entertainment company that specialises in immersive film and television events. Founded and created in 2007 by Fabien Riggall, it began with mystery screenings at initially undisclosed venues in London, inclu ...

2010 The Providence Experiments – co-produced with Mythos Media 2010 A Red Threatening Sky – Writer and Director John Harrigan 2009 The Abattoir Pages – Writer and Director John Harrigan - presented with Guerilla Zoo 2009 Cirxus – Writer and Director John Harrigan 2008 Terra:Extremitas – Writer and Director John Harrigan 2007 Dead Language – Writer and Director John Harrigan 2007 Desecration – Writer and Director John Harrigan 2007 Weaponised Art 3.0 - Lazy Gramaphone - Writer and Director John Harrigan 2007 Terra-Incognita - Writer and Director John Harrigan - 491 Gallery 2007 Ghost Redux 2006 Dark Nights of the Soul: Cycle VI - Carousel - Writer and Director John Harrigan -

2006 Dark Nights of the Soul: Cycle V - Home - Writer and Director John Harrigan -

2006 Weaponised Art 2.0 - Guerrilla Zoo - Writer and Director John Harrigan - Corisca Studios 2006 Weaponised Art 1.0 - Guerrilla Zoo - Writer and Director John Harrigan - Corisca Studios 2006 Dark Nights of the Soul: Cycle IV - Congealed - Writer and Director John Harrigan -

2006 Dark Nights of the Soul: Cycle III - Emergence - Writer and Director John Harrigan -

2006 Dark Nights of the Soul: Cycle II - The Fluid Flesh - Writer and Director John Harrigan -

2005 Dark Nights of the Soul: Cycle I - The Wyrm Shroud - Writer and Director John Harrigan -

2005 Dr. Bleach - Writer and Director John Harrigan - Weird Weekend - Centre for Fortean Zoology 2004 Ruined Steel - Writer and Director John Harrigan - Camden People's Theatre 2004 Escape from RS1 2004 The Flesh List 2003 Past the Line, Between the Land - Writer John Harrigan - Camden People's Theatre 2002 The Singularity - Writer and Director John Harrigan - Camden People's Theatre 1994 Revelations; Fear The Mind - Writer and Director John Harrigan - North Herts College -

Letchworth Letchworth Garden City, commonly known as Letchworth, is a town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. It is noted for being the first garden city. The population at the time of the 2011 census was 33,249. Letchworth ...

1991 Enochian; Language of Angels - Writer and Director John Harrigan - North Herts College -

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire Districts of England, district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce peopl ...

Workshops and Talks

2016 Art Arcana - Art and talks, episodical events - hosted by Foolish People 2016 Ritual Art workshops - hosted by John Harrigan

Published books at Weaponized Imprint

2011 Citizen Y - John Harrigan with James Curcio 2011 The Immanence Of Myth - James Curcio, Stephane Griswold, Tony Thomas, Mr. VI, Rowan Tepper, MA, Yakov Rabinovich, Brian Corra, Stephen Hershey, Catherine Svehla, Ph.D, Bria, George, David Metcalfe, Michael Anthony Ricciardi, Damien Williams, Jason Kephas, Mica Gries, Tons May, David Mack, Rudy Rauben, S Jenx, David Aronson (with writing from Leslie Powell), John Harrigan, Laurie Lipton 2011 The End Of The Word As We Know It - Wes Unruh 2011 Forum - Richard Webb 2011 The Sparky Show - Xanadu Xero 2010 Dead Language - John Harrigan 2010 Cirxus - John Harrigan

Awards

2018 Brighton Rocks Film Festival, Best Director - John Harrigan for Armageddon Gospels 2019 First Hermetic International Film Festival, Cagliostro Award - Best Storytelling - Armageddon Gospels - written by John Harrigan

Interviews

2019 STARBURST Magazine Interview with John Harrigan on Armageddon Gospels 2016 Technoccult Interview with FoolishPeople Founder - John Harrigan 2013 Filmmaker Magazine: Out Of The Ashes - Strange Factories - by Nick Dawson 2013 Disinformation: Entering the Theatre of Manifestation – The Art of Possession - Interview with the core members of FoolishPeople by David Metcalfe 2013 The Eyeless Owl: Entering the Theatre of Manifestation – Unveiling the FoolishPeople - Interview with the core members of FoolishPeople by David Metcalfe 2013 New Intelligentsia Online Cinemas: Interview with John Harrigan by Cynthia DuVal "John Harrigan on Art, Strange Factories and Personal Transformation" 2011 Wired UK: Interview with John Harrigan "Strange Factories offers up 'subscription of experiences' to fan-funders" by Alice Vincent 2011 Blogtalkradio: Interview with John Harrigan, Founder of FoolishPeople by Nancy Wait 2008 Technoccult: Interview with John Harrigan of Foolish People by Klint Finley 2007 Culture Compass: Exclusive : John Harrigan Interview by Loma-Ann Marks

References

External links

*
''FoolishPeople'' Journal''Weaponized'' Imprint''Strange Factories''
Film
''John Harrigan''
Founder of ''FoolishPeople'' * {{authority control Theatre companies in the United Kingdom Film production companies of the United Kingdom Theatre company production histories