Wednesday, February 24, 2010

FRIGID New York Interview - Martin Dockery of The Bike Trip

By Byrne Harrison
Photo by Kristen Hanshaw & khphotographics


Name: Martin Dockery
Show: The Bike Trip
Website: martindockery.com

How did you first get involved in theatre?

For many years growing up, my brother and I and some friends would put together a New Years Eve play that we would perform for our parents.

Who are your biggest influences?

Author: Geoff DyerMusic: Sonic Youth, Shpongle, Duran Duran

Tell me a little bit about The Bike Trip.

It was the height of WWII, in the very heart of Europe, when Swiss pharmacologist Albert Hofmann found himself struggling through a most bizarre bicycle ride—one that would unexpectedly introduce the world to LSD and alter the way millions of people perceive the very nature of consciousness. 65 years later, in a quest to understand why acid so enthralls and terrifies, I set out to explore the psychedelic scenes of San Francisco, India, and Switzerland, before tapping into Hofmann's very first acid trip by, amongst other things, renting a bike.

What inspired you to write it?

The public perception of LSD is frozen in a 1960s tie-dyed haze, and yet its use is as prevalent - and as secretive - as ever. The Bike Trip tells a very personal tale as it attempts to look anew at this most powerful of all psychotropic substances.

Do you have any collaborators on this show?

On this particular project I’ve been working alone.

What's next for you after FRIGID?

I will be on the road for 4 and a half months this spring & summer, traveling to festivals in Fresno, Phoenix, Orlando, Charleston, London, Regina, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Victoria, & Vancouver.

And finally, if you could say anything to your potential audience,
what would it be?


Since I don’t work with a script, each night is slightly different. There’s an immediacy in the room, an energy that’s palpable, and which makes for, I hope, a thrilling experience.

The Bike Trip
By Martin Dockery

The Kraine Theater
85 East 4th Street

Thu 2/25 - 10:30 PM
Sat 2/27 - 4:00 PM
Wed 3/03 - 6:00 PM
Fri 3/05 - 7:00 PM
Sun 3/07 - 2:30 PM

1 comment:

Audacity Theatre Lab said...

Saw BIKE TRIP in Phoenix Fringe. Martin is great performer and very high energy. Highly recommend it.