Calipo Theatre Company was founded in 1994 in Drogheda. The company was established by former members of the Droichead Youth Theatre with the intention of creating more opportunities for young actors to perform and continue training.
Over the next couple of years Calipo produced a lot of diverse work, everything from Shakespeare to Mamet. A small ensemble of young actors and technicians was developed who, at this point, worked with the company on a voluntary basis. A small number of the Calipo team had studied television and other media in college and had wanted to produce a theatre show that incorporated other media for quite some time. In 1995 this happened when the company adapted the movie ‘Reservoir Dogs’ in a multi-media production for the stage. This was to be a major turning point for Calipo. This approach to theatre – integrating video into live performance – struck a chord with a young audience, an audience opposite to the National trend for theatre. This response shaped Calipo’s policy to produce mixed media work that would appeal to this younger audience.
At the same time, the company began developing community arts programmes in video expression and drama. It began working with youth groups in Drogheda and the surrounding areas. The company developed a workshop policy to explore issues that were relevant to young people and these issues would in turn influence Calipo’s productions.
It was also during this time that Calipo developed an ensemble of actors, the majority coming from various youth theatre backgrounds. An internal training programme was set up to consolidate this team. This gave the actors the opportunity to train together, develop new skills and work with exciting Irish and International theatre practitioners.
At this point in 1997, the company had formally developed an artistic policy and felt ready to take to the national stage. They did this with an adaptation of the graphic novel and cult movie ‘The Crow’ by J O’Barr, which played in the Droichead Arts Centre, Drogheda and in the City Arts Centre, Dublin. This production marked the beginning of a relationship with the City Arts Centre. Calipo was next invited to produce a piece of work for the Dublin Fringe Theatre Festival at City Arts Centre in 1998. Calipo devised and wrote its first original play – ‘Love is the Drug…’ and it was the success of this production that prompted the company to continue to produce only original and contemporary work.
In tandem with the development of the theatre, community and outreach work, Calipo began to develop a Picture Company, creating film and television, run by the same artists and employing the same method of devising as the theatre company.
