Jo Fong and George Orange’s cult dance-theatre hit comes back to Bristol

Since Jo Fong and George Orange (self-described as an “old dancer” and “old clown” respectively) last spoke to Bristol24/7 about their cult dance-theatre hit The Rest of Our Lives, it has continued to snowball.

In April 2026, they will surpass the milestone of 100 performances of their “cabaret of life and near death”, a show that has now taken them around the world.

Back in Bristol following an early performance at Circomedia in 2022, the pair will perform at The Mount Without for four nights, off the back of an acclaimed 10-day run at Under the Radar festival in New York.

Bristol24/7 revisits their conversation on what first attracted them to working together, the origins of The Rest of Our Lives, and the startling impact the show continues to have on audiences.

Can you introduce yourselves, and your respective performance styles?

Orange: “I grew up on a failed farm in rural Minnesota. The glamour quota was very low. Running away to the circus seemed like a viable plan. I was drawn to Wales by NoFit State Circus, for whom I did five years’ worth of work.

“I did my first professional performance in 1989. I have made or been part of thousands of shows by now.

“I am complicated. I am fascinated with the endless analysis of living. The artist’s journey. I’ve tried it all: painting, sculpture, busking, circus, theatre and dance. For me, it always came back to the cyclical relationship of art and viewer.

“My work now is about community and connections. Jo and I share a desire to live in hope.”

Fong: “Who am I? I’m female, my dad’s Chinese, and I grew up in a Chinese supermarket. I’ve been making performance for over 30 years and I wanted to do it in a different way, so it’s taken a while.

“I work in the arts, I’ve danced, acted, sung on stages, played magician’s assistants, performed a solo on the Paris Opera stage, co-created award-winning opera, and worked with professional artists as well as those who have never been on the stage before.

“I’m interested in people, and how different they are: their struggles, what motivates them and this time, in finding a way to inject some momentum for positive change.”

Jo Fong and George Orange – photo: Catriona James

What drew you together – and how do you complement one another on stage?

Orange: “We clicked, we clocked, we boomed!”

Fong: “I’d never met a real-life clown before; it’s fascinating. We first worked together in 2016 on a show that I initiated called Ways of being Together. It had about 50 people in it, and was a meaningful but playful show about the impact of building community, support networks, dancing together, trust, and friendships.

“At the time, George and I lived around the corner from each other, and we became friends. I think it’s also about projection, since we both thrive in the live environment – we love performances that relate to audiences, where everyone feels welcome.

“I like to think as performers and makers we’re risk-takers, on the adventurous, brave end of art making.”

Jo Fong and George Orange in The Rest of Our Lives at Ageless Festival – photo: Sara Teresa

How did The Rest of Our Lives evolve?

Fong: “We’re both now in our fifties, and it’s a thing: menopause; the end of your career as you know it; and did I mention there was a pandemic? Ultimately, I feel this show was created because we needed it. It was our medicine, the thing that drew us out of the dark times, out of loneliness, and into thinking about what made us happy.”

Orange: “The show was first made in 2019 and for me that was a very bad time. I really thought it couldn’t get worse. And for me 2020 wasn’t but it was worse for a lot of people. The rest of you sort of caught up with me in 2020 and 2021. Now we are all on the other side and trying to figure out life ever after. For us it comes back to loving and dancing.”

Fong: “In terms of process, firstly we’d never worked together in this way before and I felt we really took our time pondering upon how we would do it. We shared skills, improvised together, played games and tried to get to the point where shame or failing in front of each other would be ok.”

Orange: “I remember there was a lot of open-mindedness to it, and a lot of laughter. The feeling that anything was possible within the constraints we imposed, of not being able to have very much stuff on stage. Coming from circus, that was exciting and freeing; usually there’s loads of equipment and rigs to consider…”

Fong: “…whereas we just had our bodies, the space, and the notion that the audience would feel like they’re part of our endeavour. Also we have costumes, raffle-tickets, balloons, microphones, and roller-skates.”

The show is a joyful blend of dance, theatre and clowning – photo: Craig Kirkwood

Finally, what’s your reaction to how much audiences have taken the show to heart? Has it taken you by surprise?

Orange: “Yes and no…. I love doing the show; I think we both do, and somehow it is infectious, despite being something so personal. So, yes it is a surprise that it connects with people but such a heartwarming one. It is giving me hope that people seem to be so moved and happy at the same time.”

Fong: “It’s a wondrous thing. I was working in London recently, I’d just arrived and was having a bit of a culture shock whilst walking by the Southbank river. This lady said: ‘hi Jo’; it was a little awkward at first, and then we chatted as if we had known each other for years. This stuff feels mighty.”

 

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The Rest of Our Lives is at The Mount Without on April 21-24 at 7.30pm. Tickets are available at www.headfirstbristol.co.uk.

Follow @fong.jo, @georgeorange and @the_rest.of.our.lives for updates.

Main photo: Alan Smith

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• George Orange and Jo Fong bring their life-affirming dance-theatre journey to Circomedia