FULL CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR UK PREMIÈRE OF
KATE ATTWELL’S TESTMATCH
AT ORANGE TREE THEATRE
Orange Tree Theatre (OT) with co-producers ETT (English Touring Theatre) and Octagon Theatre Bolton today announces full casting for the UK première of Kate Attwell’s Testmatch. Diane Page directs Aiyana Bartlett (India Two and Daanya), Aarushi Ganju (India One and Messenger), Haylie Jones (England Three and Two), Tanya Katyal (India Three and Abhi), Bea Svistunenko (England One and One) and Mia Turner (England Two and Memsahib). Testmatch opens at the Orange Tree on 24 April and runs until 18 May, with previews from 24 April and will then tour to Octagon Theatre Bolton from 24 May until 1 June, with previews from 23 May.
Diane Page said today, “I’m really excited to be directing the UK premiere of Kate Attwell’s play Testmatch and to be back again at the Orange Tree. I’m looking forward to working on the play with our fantastic cast and team, and to sharing it with audiences in both Richmond and Bolton.”
Kate Attwell’s
TESTMATCH
Directed by Diane Page
A co-production with ETT and Octagon Theatre Bolton
Director: Diane Page; Designer: Cat Fuller; Lighting Designer: Rajiv Pattani; Sound Designer: Simon Slater
Cast: Aiyana Bartlett (India Two and Daanya); Aarushi Ganju ((India One and Messenger); Haylie Jones (England Three and Two); Tanya Katyal (India Three and Abhi); Bea Svistunenko (England One and One) and Mia Turner (England Two and Memsahib)
20 April – 18 May 2024
Lord’s, present day. The Women’s Cricket World Cup: England versus India. There’s a rain delay. Stuck in the same locker room together, tensions mount, ambitions are laid bare and a whole new tactical game begins.
Calcutta, 1800. Two British administrators encounter challenges on the field of play that threaten the entire regime.
In this game of integrity and power, past and present collide.
Kate Attwell is a playwright, television writer and devised theatre maker. She is currently working on commissions for Manhattan Theatre Club, A.C.T., EST and Playwright’s Horizons. Her previous productions include So Long Willy, and her work has been developed at Portland Centre Stage at the Armory, The Bushwick Starr and New York Theatre Workshop.
Aiyana Bartlett plays India Two and Daanya. This marks her UK debut. Her theatre credits include A Hundred Words for Snow (Gothenburg English Studio Theatre). Her television credits include Piglets.
Aarushi Ganju plays India one and Messenger.Her theatre credits Unlocking Canons House (Canons House), Roobaroo (The Space), Henry VII (The show must go on(line)) and Face Off (The UnDisposables). Her television credits include The Three-Body Problem.
Haylie Jones plays England Three and Two. Her theatre credits include Lear (Hope Mill Theatre, Shakespeare North Playhouse), Romeo and Juliet, Little Women, Stig of the Dump (Grosvenor Park Open Air theatre), and A Brew, A Terrace And The 184 (Oldham Coliseum Theatre). Her television credits include Blind Spot, Stay Close, Coronation Street, and The Cup; and for film Wanderland, Public House and Jamais Vu.
Tanya Katyal plays India Three and Abhi. Her theatre credits include The Empress (RSC); and for television Eternally Confused and Eager For Love.
Bea Svistunenko plays England One and One. Her theatre credits include The Tempest (Shakespeare’s Globe), Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet (Guildford Shakespeare Company), and A Very Expensive Poison (The Old Vic). Her television credits include 3 Body Problem, Litvinenko, Industry; and for film, Beetlejuice 2 and Cost of Living.
Mia Turner plays England Two and Memsahib. Her theatre credits include Boys (Tabard Theatre).
Diane Page returns to the Orange Tree to direct for a third time, following revered productions of Dael Orlandersmith’s Yellowman in 2022, and as the 2021 JMK Award winner, directing Statements After An Arrest Under The Immorality Act. Her other credits include The Tempest, Julius Caesar (Shakespeare’s Globe.), Lost and Found (Royal Opera House), Out West (Co- director, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre).
ORANGE TREE THEATRE
LISTINGS
1 Clarence Street, Richmond, TW9 2SA
Box Office: 020 8940 3633 (Mon-Sat, 10am-6pm)
Ticket prices (NO BOOKING FEES)
In person tickets: from £15, prices increase with demand
Under 30s: £15
OT On Screen: From £15
Access: £15
Recipients of Universal Credit / London Ticket Bank Scheme: limited £1 tickets
SEASON AT A GLANCE
SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER
OT On Screen: Tue 16 – Fri 19 Jan
NORTHANGER ABBEY
20 January– 24 February 2024
Mon – Sat 7.30pm
Thu & Sat 2.30pm (from Thu 25 Jan)
Captioned Performance: Wed 14 Feb 7.30pm
Audio Described Performance: Tue 13 Feb 7.30pm
OT On Screen: Tue 21 – Fri 24 May 2024
Octagon Theatre Bolton
1 – 23 March 2024
Stephen Joseph Theatre
27 March – 13 April 2024
Theatre by the Lake
27 April – 17 May 2024
Further summer programming includes:
UNCLE VANYA
2 March – 13 April
Press Night: Thursday 7 March 2024 at 7pm
TESTMATCH
20 April – 18 May 2024
Octagon Theatre Bolton
23 May – 1 June
SUITE IN THREE KEYS
24 May – 6 Jul 2024
Primary Shakespeare: HAMLET
3 June – 5 July 2024 (workshops and performances)
Mon, Tue & Fri
RED SPEEDO
13 Jul – 10 Aug 2024
ABOUT THE ORANGE TREE THEATRE
The Orange Tree (OT) is an award-winning, independent theatre. Recognised as a powerhouse that creates high-quality productions of new and rediscovered plays, it entertains 70,000 people across the UK every year.
The OT’s home in Richmond, South West London, is an intimate theatre with the audience seated all around the stage: watching a performance here is truly a unique experience. We believe in the power of dramatic stories to entertain, thrill and challenge us; plays that enrich our lives by enhancing our understanding of ourselves and each other.
As a registered charity (266128) sitting at the heart of its community, we work with 10,000 people in Richmond and beyond through participatory theatre projects for people of all ages and abilities. Our mission is to enable audiences to experience the next generation of theatre talent, experiment with ground-breaking new drama and explore the plays from the past that inspire the theatre-makers of the present. Operating without regular support from Arts Council England, the OT relies on the support of its audiences and funders to raise £500k a year to create this outstanding work on stage and in the community.
Artistic Director Tom Littler
Executive Director Hanna Streeter
Website orangetreetheatre.co.uk | Email [email protected]
Twitter @OrangeTreeThtr | Facebook/Instagram OrangeTreeTheatre
ABOUT ETT (ENGLISH TOURING THEATRE)
ETT (English Touring Theatre) are a UK based international touring company currently celebrating their 30th anniversary. They stage both new and classic productions of outstanding quality, imagination, and ambition; make innovative and pioneering immersive digital experiences; work which interrogates and celebrates contemporary England, reinventing the rules, reflecting the diversity of the nation. You can find our work in your local theatre, online, at festivals, in a field, internationally and in the West End. In the last five years ETT has produced over 50 live productions and pieces of digital work, enjoyed by audiences of over 340,000; and has won the UK Theatre Awards Best Touring Production in 2014, 2015, 2016; Best New Play Revival in 2019; Excellence in Inclusivity and Best Play in 2022; and Excellence in Touring in 2023.
Major productions include a major revival of Equus by Peter Shaffer in a co-production with Theatre Royal Stratford East, directed by award winning director Ned Bennett, which transferred to Trafalgar Studios; Othello, which toured internationally to the Far and Middle East; Trailer Story (a travelling outdoor performance programme that celebrated local creativity); immersive virtual reality experience Adult Children and XR experience Museum of Austerity, directed by Sacha Wares in partnership with Donmar Warehouse, National Theatre Storytelling Studio, ScanLAB Projects and Trial and Error. More recently Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, a co-production with Curve and Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse, directed by Anthony Almeida, the winner of the 2019 RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award. A national tour of Tonderai Munyevu’s Mugabe, My Dad & Me; A national tour of The Importance of Being Earnest, directed by 2021 RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award winner Denzel Westley-Sanderson; The Cherry Orchard reimagined by Vinay Patel; The Good Person of Szechwan reimagined by Nina Segal and directed by Anthony Lau; and a national tour of I, Daniel Blake, written for stage by Dave Johns; and a national and international tour of Macbeth, directed by Richard Twyman.
ETT are a limited company and a registered charity, founded in 1993. We are based in London Waterloo.
Website ett.org.uk | Email [email protected]
Twitter @weareETT | Facebook/Instagram EnglishTouringTheatre | YouTube ETT
ABOUT OCTAGON THEATRE
Octagon Theatre Bolton is a regional producing theatre that makes bold, adventurous and popular theatre of the highest quality that is seen locally and nationally. We believe theatre matters because everyone’s story matters. The Octagon inspires engages and entertains thousands every year through theatre and creative activities, contributing to a healthier and happier community. The Octagon reopened in May 2021, following a major redevelopment funded by Bolton Council and Arts Council England and many others. The Octagon receives public funding through Arts Council England, Bolton Council and Greater Manchester Combined Authority, and Principal Sponsorship from the University of Bolton. The Octagon was shortlisted for Theatre of the Year at the 2023 The Stage Awards.
Website: https://www.octagon-theatre.co.uk/