Beyond the bustling crowds and neon lights of inner city Fringe, amongst the ghostly stone-built streets of Fremantle, you will find the Old Customs House, and the terrible and fabulous creatures within…

Presented by Existence Theatre and ART IN PROCESS, THE WITCH AND THE GOAT is a story of cycles and boundaries. Through a combination of interpretive dance, spoken word and storytelling, video projection and live sound composition, the show uses the story of the Witch and the Goat – shapeshifters who take on different forms and curse those who speak of them – in order to explore cycles of fear, trauma and shame, and comment on how these cycles are enabled and mythologised by wider society.

From the very beginning the boundaries between the audience and the performers are blurred. Throughout the show performers will not only directly address you – whispering pieces of the narrative into your ear as if it were small-town gossip – but will get up close and personal, physically dragging into the story itself in a way that forces you question your role as a spectator both in- and outside the venue.

There were some stellar physical performances from the cast and while some sequences were a bit too long – sometimes disconnecting from the larger story – the dances were both animalistic and horrifically human, creating a sense of both awe and unease when combined with the atmospheric sound design, which makes use of everything from swelling brass to glitchy synths to choral drones that echo through the building.

That being said, due to the role of the audience as participants, as well the intense and intimate nature of the show, I must also warn audiences that there are some sequences that can be extremely confronting in its depictions of violence and brutality. Do not take the show’s 18+ rating lightly.

THE WITCH AND THE GOAT is a unique experience in the FRINGE WORLD lineup – perhaps an acquired taste. However, it is thought-provoking, experimental and surreal, and will keep you teetering on the edge of a fairytale and a harsh reality.