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Philly Fringe Vital Stats: Lauren Rile Smith

Posted August 13th, 2012

Kate Aid of Tangle Movement Arts. Photo by Lea Deutsch.

With the 2012 Olympics having come to a close (I’ve already begun prepping for Rio 2016), this year’s gymnasts have been the beneficiaries of my awe, my respect, and my envy (as an 8-year-old, I overheard my coach use the word ‘promise’ once…in a sentence…some time). I live for the aerial events–the uneven bars, the rings–and cheered on Gabby Douglass, as the ‘Flying Squirrel’ defied my rudimentary knowledge of physics.

I am already experiencing the post-Olympic blues. Luckily, the 2012 Philly Fringe will be my ‘hair of the dog,’ the pint that quells the nauseating withdrawal from NBC Primetime Coverage, and at the fore is Tangle Movement Arts, a contemporary circus arts performance group. This year the company will showcase their work on trapeze and rope in You Don’t Say; an ambitious and lofty (ha!) goal.

After the jump: Founder Lauren Rile Smith answers our questions.

 

Name: Lauren Rile Smith.

Age: I’m 25, but Tangle was founded just a year and a half ago—it’s the most athletic toddler ever!

Where do you live now? I’ve lived in Philadelphia my entire conscious life, although I was born in Denver, Colorado.

Show Title: You Don’t Say.

Explain your performance in two sentences. To an eight-year-old. Seven women get together for a party—on aerial silks, trapeze, and other circus equipment. We’re going to climb the furniture, carry each other around, and make new enemies and friends.

Do you have children? If so, do you love them? One of our performers will be seven months pregnant during the show. Let me tell you—trapeze is really hard, and it’s even harder when you’re doing pull-ups for two! Tangle is all about diverse expressions of female strength, so I love it.

What was your favorite toy as a kid? A library card.

Your refrigerator: condiments and beer, or real food? Vegetables from my rooftop garden! We’re growing tomatoes, beans, broccoli, zucchini, cantaloupes, and raspberries.

Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe,” or Cookie Monster’s “Share It Maybe”? As a fan of both pantomime and serious shoulder muscles, I’m going to vote for the USA Olympic Swimming Team’s group lip-synch. This YouTube video includes a credit for “Airplane Choreography.”

You Don’t Say runs September 13, 14, and 15 at 8:00 pm, and September 15 at 3:00 pm at Philadelphia Soundstages, 1600 N. 5th Street. $15.

–Audrey McGlinchy

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