MARA by Dominic Kelly

It’s 1868. Discharged from the army with malaria, Morten scrapes a living on the edge of Sweden’s ancient forests. Suddenly he begins to suffer nightmares and mysterious visits as he sleeps. A friend tells him he’s plagued by a Mara – a possessed person who visits another in spirit form. To free himself from the Mara, he must discover their identity. But who is it?
To find out, he begins to closely watch the world around him. But as he becomes aware of his neighbours’ lives and the life of the ancient forest, his own begins to transform…

Entertaining, unsettling and moving, this solo storytelling performance is
a whodunnit
a dive into the dreamscape of Swedish folklore
a love story
a journey into Europe’s ancient forests
a playful look at our relationship with sleep
and an exploration of what really means to be awake

Dominic performs MARA on a stage empty but for a traditional Swedish settle-bed, around which his performance revolves. He slips between the world of the story and the world of the audience, and between Morten’s daytime and night-time lives. And as the protagonist enters each night into the world of dreams, the settle-bed itself turns out to have a little more life in it than at first appears…

“Dominic Kelly conjures an entire world single-handed from an almost empty stage” Lancaster Guardian on MARA, Sept ‘23

WHAT PRESS & BOOKERS HAVE SAID ABOUT DOMINIC’S PREVIOUS WORK
“Compelling, funny and heartbreaking” The Times, on ‘Trickster’, 2012

“Storyteller Dominic Kelly catches the mood with unerring skill as he builds an atmosphere of excitement… the end result is quite simply awesome and had the audience entranced.” Dorset Echo, on The Forbidden Door, 2016

“What a treat” The Times, on ‘Crow, 2010

“ ★★★★★ Gripping and satisfying… a rare event” The Cornishman on The Hero Light, 2015
“Breathless and enthralling” The Hindu, Indian national daily, on The Gift, 2011

Dominic Kelly’s warm, witty and powerful storytelling style has captivated audiences around the world, from India to the Arctic Circle. His UK venues include the Barbican Pit Theatre, National Theatre, British Museum, and The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival.
Resident in the Lake District, he lived in Sweden for many years, where he is still a member of the Stockholm-based company Fabula Storytelling; and teaches on Linköping University’s International Course in Storytelling.
He knows intimately the landscape, nature, culture & folklore of northern Sweden; in MARA, he takes you on an immersive, unforgettable journey into this place, though experiences we can all relate to.
MARA by Dominic Kelly