In 1984 a small collective of Sydney street performers took on the name of a warm up exercise and created a new physical theatre company. From these origins on Gadigal country, Legs On The Wall has grown to become the internationally renowned powerhouse it is today, with a reputation built on sharing vital contemporary stories through spectacularly daring public art. Inspired by this trailblazing legacy and led by Artistic Director Joshua Thomson and Associate Artist Vicki Van Hout, Legs remain a forward-facing company propelled by our mission: to make meaning in a rapidly changing world through transformative physical theatre.

Legs' performances appeal to diverse audiences, incorporating the lyricism of dance and the enchantment of circus with the expressive heft of the theatre. Routinely reimagining what's possible in the conventional auditorium, Legs' works also break through the walls of cultural institutions and language barriers, bringing excitement, wonder, humour and gravitas to public spaces. The flagship durational work THAW (2022 – present), in which a series of artists perform on a suspended 2.7 tonne ice sculpture as it melts, is an iconic example of Legs' practice. An urgent call to action on climate change, THAW defies perceived impossibility in a work of staggering ambition and scale.

BEETLE (2023-present), a critically acclaimed work for children and families, expands upon this core preoccupation of Legs’ current repertoire, encouraging care for the environment through inspiring a sense of wonder in nature; a value backed by rigorous attention to sustainability in company practices. Legs headquarters operate on carbon neutral power, with the Red Box now drawing from solar power generated on site, and our works routinely make use of re-purposed and recycled materials. Legs continue to pursue methods which will lessen our environmental footprint and aspire to play a further role in the pursuit of industry-wide sustainable arts practices.

This values-led approach to creative storytelling can be traced across Legs’ four-decade history as a company founded in the 1980s on principles of gender equity, through landmark works such as Homeland (1998-9) celebrating multiculturalism, to First Nations led works such as Man With The Iron Neck (2018-9), and expressions of LGBITQA+ resilience and liberation behind works such as LOVERS (2023) and Holding Achilles (2022-present). Legs maintain the Red Box as a home for artist and sector development, provide free and low-cost training as well as our “Leg Up” and “Leg Room” mentorship residency programs, and act as leaders in our specialised fields of aerial performance and physical theatre. Legs On The Wall continue to kick against gravity, connecting with audiences from all walks of life with thought-provoking and adrenaline-inducing works built with ingenuity, bravado, and integrity.

PEOPLE

images: Jana Castillo and Anna McCulla in the Red Box (Carlita Sari Photography), Jenni Large in THAW (Prudence Upton), Lloyd Allison-Young in BEETLE (Carlita Sari Photography), Legs On The Wall ensemble members.