'It's part fantasy, part film footage, part theatre, part interaction,' says director Ben Gove. 'We wanted to bring our own thoughts about Jarman to the piece as well as draw on his own style of working.'
Biographies of artists have a reputation for being problematic, but on the back of their proposal for this piece, Flaming Theatre reached the shortlist of the Samuel Beckett Theatre Award, a trust that honours innovation in theatre practices within young theatre companies and issues an annual award of £30,000.
Gove discovered Jarman's films at university in the late 1980s. 'He helped me recognise my sexuality [Gove went on to do a PhD in Gay Studies and published a book, Cruise Culture, before going to work in the theatre]. But even while I was directing other productions, Jarman stayed with me. No one has come along to match him.'
To that end, Gove has tried to reflect Jarman's artistic radicalism and oddness in Jarman Garden, starting with his belief in the value of integrated disciplines and the way he invested his work with his own personal fantasies.
'Jarman's film work, the way he clashes images together, gave me a real sense of possibility when I first worked in theatre,' he says. 'Jarman Garden is a very layered piece. The key is fantasia. We've tried to create a sensual living space that the audience walks into, an atmosphere that they exist in for 90 minutes. We've tried to create poetry rather than individual scenes.'
Jarman inspired friendship in the people who knew and worked with him, and Gove admires his generous reputation almost as much as he does films such as Jubilee and The Garden.
His refusal to dilute his artistic integrity by compromising his sexuality is also key.
'Ian Charleson [who played Angel] removed Jubilee, a film I still find shocking, from his CV in order to get more work in the mainstream,' he says. 'Jarman never forgave him for that. Jarman was always open about exploring his feelings and the culture he was living in in his work. That is probably his greatest legacy.'
Jarman continued working almost until the day he died; his last film, Blue, was a profound meditation on going blind. 'That's why the garden was so important to him,' says Gove. 'The way he invested so much time in it even though he was dying symbolises beautifully the way he worked against the odds.'
Jarman Garden previews from tonight, opens Thu to Mar 6, Riverside Studios, Crisp Road W6, Mon to Sat 8pm, £12, £8 concs, Tue first 30 tickets £5. Tel: 020 8237 1111. Tube: Hammersmith
