Space Company at The Activist Kitchen

Space Company is an immersive solo show about a massive fictional corporation that doesn't consider itself to be just a company, but also a family that is determined to be "The Best In The Universe" through constant innovation, constant growth, and constant profitability. Emma Irene plays "Mom", a middle manager at Space Company welcoming the audience (now cast as the latest cohort of new hires: "Babygirls") to their new career and their new family on their first day. But it's not a typical first day at Space Company. Mom begins to experience strange auras that interrupt her orientation presentation, and an escalation of strategic changes coming from Space Company leadership (not Chancellors, but rather "Chancellhims") will change the Space Company family forever. Throughout the show the audience is invited to participate, from their first welcoming handshake with Mom as they enter the theater to helping Space Company answer the ever-present Canonical Question (CQ): "What do we do after we destroy that?".

Space Company presents itself to be a benevolent corporation that has the best interests in mind for all its customers and family members, but the truth is they prioritize those who submit to the rules, values, and expectations of Space Company. It is up to the audience to interpret who or what their "Space Company" is.

Space Company has five performances during the Hollywood Fringe Festival. The preview show is Friday, June 5 at 8:00PM. Additional performances are June 13 at 4:00PM (pay what you can show), June 15 at 8:30PM, June 19 at 4:30PM (ASL, requires masks, and is sensory friendly), and June 23 at 8:30PM

About the Team:

Emma Irene Olson is a queer multidisciplinary artist living and working in Los Angeles. Through immersive devised theater, they seek to find and create live performances that connect with an audience and cannot be fully reproduced. Her approach is multi-faceted, with written text, original music, improvisation, clown, audience interaction, and wearable art. Their work explores ego, authority, and consciousness, while being rooted in love, connection, nature, and play. Emma Irene has self-produced three solo shows: Astro Cabaret (directed and co-devised by Natasha Mercado), The Faults In My Stars (directed by Justin Gilbert), and Universal and Absolute (directed by Rosie Glen-Lambert). Astro Cabaret premiered at the 2024 Hollywood Fringe Festival to rave reviews and was nominated for "Best Cabaret & Variety Show" by the Hollywood Fringe Community, as well as the "Three Clubs Production Award".

Maura Mannle is a performance artist, clown, writer, educator, and movement theatre human. She believes in the power of creating your own work, most recently devising her award-winning solo show Extraterrestrial Kink. She has trained with American Conservatory Theatre, Second City, Frantic Assembly, and in the legacy of clown.