Fragments: A Journey Through Papyri

Explore the British Library’s Greek papyrus collection through puppetry and drama

An evening of discussion and performance with a scholar of ancient Greek literature, a papyrus conservator and theatre makers as they discuss their collaboration around papyri, sharing techniques and images from their upcoming production.  Theatre company Potential Difference and puppetry director Jess Mabel Jones have been collaborating with Laura Swift (The Open University) and with conservators and curators at the British Library to develop a new piece of theatre inspired by fragments of Greek papyrus.
 
This event combines a talk from a papyrus conservator about their work with a discussion with the creative team, who share how they have drawn on these ancient artefacts to develop an evocative language of shadow puppetry. The evening includes puppetry sequences from the upcoming show to evoke the journey of the papyri through time, conservation techniques, and the stories the papyri tell.
 
Potential Difference is a theatre company that brings together writers and theatre-makers with academics and specialists to tell stories inspired by science, philosophy and technology. Their next production, Fragments, will be presented in Spring 2020.
 
Jess Mabel Jones is performer and puppetry director who works with collage, fragmented images, light and shadow to explore how little is needed to create a narrative. She has worked with Improbable, Blind Summit and Little Angel Theatre.
 
Dr Laura Swift is Senior Lecturer in Classical Studies at the Open University, and researches fragmentary Greek poetry, much of which only survives on papyri. Her publications include Archilochus: The Poems (Oxford, 2019), andThe Hidden Chorus (Oxford, 2010), as well as books and articles on Greek drama and poetry.  Helen Sharp is a senior conservator at the British Museum with sole responsibility for papyrus. She has worked at the Museum since 1991, firstly on works of art on paper, then training under Bridget Leach in papyrus conservation. Her work includes the treatment of papyrus in the collection for Exhibition, Loan, storage and publication. She has published articles on papyrus conservation and is currently writing a Handbook for the care of papyrus in museums. Image: Photo by Geraint Lewis, with thanks to the Egypt Exploration Society