I’m going to do a few songs today. In about 30 minutes, we’re going to crown a new king. And then, I’m going to fly.

We’ve always been obsessed with the sky. We marvel at aerial views of our homes, gather in awe to watch people take flight, and, every so often, we crown a king.

The King of All Birds is a fresh and playful performance that takes us on a journey through our shared fascination with the skies—how we dreamed of flying, weaved folklore about it, and eventually found a way to rise above the clouds.

Martha Knight guides us through this quirky and innovative story using song, vocoder, film collage, text, and music. She unpacks our long history with the sky: centuries of looking up in wonder, the first bold attempts to touch it—kites, balloons, planes, even cameras strapped to carrier pigeons. And now, our relentless ascent, climbing higher and higher, never quite satisfied.

The King of All Birds is a celebration of flight, ambition, and the stories we tell to keep our dreams soaring.

“When you leave the theatre and look up at the sky, it will have you imagining all sorts of stories playing out above our heads”
★★★★☆
The Irish Times