Author: FairyPoweredProductions

LIVERPOOL’S RAY QUINN ANNOUNCED TO STAR IN JACK AND THE BEANSTALK

Breathe

February 1st – 2nd, Lion and Unicorn Theatre

New play Breathe, after readings at the Young Vic and scratch night performances at the Bread and Roses, is staged in a full production at the Lion and Unicorn Theatre this February. The play tackles the thorny issue of mental health amongst millenials trying to make their way in life.

“ambitious (…) I look forward to see the (full production)” The Blog of Theatre Things

Breathe pans across the struggles of four housemates living in London trying to successfully accomplish their dreams. Personal secrets, fears and dreams emerge as their lives intertwine, revealing the importance of human connection and friendship in the face of anxiety and depression. Will they choose security or transform their fears into fuel to conquer their dreams?

Writer Lucrezia Pollice is a freelance theatre & film director and producer based in London. After training as an actor at the famous Italian drama school Paolo Grassi Academy and the RADA foundation course at CSVPA, Lucrezia graduated with a First Honours Degree from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, in Drama, Applied Theatre and Education – focusing her degree on Directing, Producing and Playwrighting. She recently produced and directed the critically acclaimed short documentary IDENTITY ,which premiered at the United Nations WTPFilm Festival at the BFI Southbank. She will soon be producing and directing a documentary short film for Westminster Council.

Producer Aretusa Campagnolo worked as an assistant producer for MDA Contemporary Dance Company and as an executive producer for RedWedge Srl, a film production company based in Rome. She moved to the UK to undertake a Master’s degree in Culture, Policy and Management at City University of London, where she graduated in October 2017. Prior to moving into assisting in producing Metal Rabbit Productions in 2017, she interned as a Company Administrator for circus company Gandini Juggling.

SON OF A PREACHER MAN COMING TO DARLINGTON HIPPODROME

Featuring the soulful music of Dusty Springfield, with a book by Warner Brown and directed and choreographed by Craig Revel Horwood, Son of a Preacher Man embarked on a national tour in September 2017, and is coming to Darlington Hippodrome next month.

Featuring the greatest hits of Dusty Springfield, including “The Look Of Love”, “I Only Want To Be With You”, “Spooky” and of course, the classic “Son Of A Preacher Man”, this sparklingly funny and sweetly touching new musical by internationally renowned writer Warner Brown will have you laughing, crying and singing your heart out to some of the greatest songs ever written.

Director and choreographer Craig Revel Horwood said: ‘I am delighted to bring to life for the very first time this wonderful story created by Warner Brown, with soulful songs from the legendary Dusty Springfield’s iconic music catalogue. I hope that audiences in Darlington will come to love this warm-hearted and uplifting new musical as much as I do.’

Alice Barlow will star in the new musical playing the role of Kat. Best known for her roles on television, with credits including Coronation Street, Swipers, Drifters series 1, 3 & 4, Benidorm, Banana, Staff Room, Casualty, Crime Stories, Hollyoaks, and was also a contestant on The Voice, Alice will perform at Darlington Hippodrome for the one week run.

Son of a Preacher Man is at Darlington Hippodrome from Tuesday 6 – Saturday 10 February.

Tickets* are priced from £27. *Includes £2 restoration levy. To book contact the Box Office on 01325 405405 or visit www.darlingtonhippodrome.co.uk

Poleroid Theatre in association with Mercury Theatre present
Plastic by Kenneth Emson
Old Red Lion Theatre, 418 St John Street, London EC1V 4NJ
Tuesday 3rd – Saturday 21st April 2018

Following a highly successful run at Latitude Festival, the multi-award winning Poleroid Theatre bring BAFTA nominated playwright Kenneth Emson’s Plastic to life at the Old Red Lion Theatre. Directed by JMK 2017 award winner Josh Roche, this powerful new play explores how the insecurities of childhood can follow us into later life in this unflinchingly honest drama about time, memory and escape.

Remember the moment you became an adult? Or did you miss it? Kev used to have a girlfriend called Lisa – she wore a fitted blazer and reebok classics and lit up the school yard. Kev used to be the captain of the school football team and he scored the winner in the All-Essex schools cup final. Ben used to get beaten up most days. He stole money from his mum’s purse to pay off ‘Wicksy’. Now he’s an accountant. But Ben always had Jack. His loyal, unbreakable mate Jack. Adults are the kids that survive school right? But what if some kids don’t?

Set in a school in Essex, Emson’s poetic and unflinching production is an extraordinary mix of drama and performance poetry which tells the story of four young people who are forced into adulthood. Through its innovative verse, Plastic examines the creation of urban folklore and the sealed world of adolescence with all its unique pressures – how hard it can be to survive, and how hard it is to be left behind.

Director Josh Roche comments, School is hell. We all go through it, but as adults we’re quick to patronise and diminish teenagers who scream for help. We made Plastic to talk about the horror that takes root in schools, a horror of loneliness, frustration and identity – a horror that can define the lives of adults well into retirement.

Plastic is generously supported by Arts Council England, Royal Victoria Hall Foundation and The Old Vic Theatre.

Plastic will also be touring to the Mercury Theatre in Essex from 26
th – 28th April 2018.

AWARD WINNING

LAZARUS THEATRE COMPANY

The company of Lord of the Flies Announced

An all new 50/50 gender split cast announced for Lazarus Theatre’s new ensemble production of Goldings 20th Century epic, Lord of the Flies.

Lord of the Flies

William Golding, Adapted for the stage by Nigel Williams

 

Lazarus Theatre Company are proud to announce the company of Lord of the Flies.

Ralph – Amber Wadey trained at Peer Productions on their Actor Development Programme. Previous credits include; Tash, In Harm’s Way, Rosie Ward, National Schools Tour. Mrs Cratchit, A Christmas Carol, Dale Rooks, Chichester Festival Theatre.

Piggy – Luke MacLeod trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Previous credits include; Rivers/Bishop of Ely, Richard III, Lawrence Carmichael, Cockpit Theatre. Young David Attenborough/Paul Simon, She Moved Through The Fair, Gillian Horgan, Sidmouth Folk Festival/Folk East Festival. Junior Broker, Labyrinth, Anna Ledwich, Hampstead Theatre. Oliver Davenport, Pentecost, Anna Ledwich, RCSSD/Derby LIVE. Macduff, Macbeth, Kelly Hunter, RCSSD

Jack – Nick Cope trained at the University of Exeter. Previous credits include; Snowball, Animal Farm, Abi Clarke, Northcott Theatre. Joe Pitt, Angels in America, Caroline Lang, Northcott Theatre. Donnie Black, Kursk, John Lonsdale, Venue 181. Alistair Ryle, Posh, Caroline Lang, Harry’s Restaurant.

Simon – Benjamin Victor trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Previous credits include; Igor Stravinsky, L’Histoire du Soldat, Alessandro Talevi, Opera di Firenze. Bastian Mole, Mr Kolpert, Lotte Ruth Johnson, Lion & Unicorn. Frederick Clegg, The Collector, Lotte Ruth Johnson, The Space. Medvedenko, The Seagull, Rebecca Reeves, Camden People’s Theatre. Boe, Boop!, Maria Pullicino, Bussey Building. Billy Bibbit, Cuckoo’s Nest, Steve Elias, LOST Theatre. Antonio, Twelfth Night, Christopher Geelan, Principal Theatre. Ensemble, Kiss Me Kate Workshop, Jo Davies, Opera North.

Sam – Nell Hardy trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Previous credits include: Kat, The State of Things, Thomas Attwood, Brockley Jack Studio Theatre. Hansel, Grimms’ Fairy Tales, Paul Linghorn, Abney Park Cemetery. Duchess Boleville/Madeline Usher, The Masque of the Red Death/The Fall of the House of Usher, Omar F. Okai/Maud Madlyn, Brockley Jack Studio Theatre. Macduff/Witch, Macbeth, Thomas Attwood, Brockley Jack Studio Theatre.

Maurice – Robyn Holdaway trained at Guildford School of Acting. Previous credits include; Cordelia/Gloucester/Fool, King Lear, Gemma Fairlie, Orange Tree Theatre. Orlando, Orlando:The Queer Element, Andy Dawson, BFI Flare Festival. Jodie, BBC Casualty, Dave Beauchamp

Eric – Calvin Crawley trained at The Actors Class. Previous credits include; Edward, The Men Who Made Frankenstein, Simon Christopher, The Old Red Lion. Bill Smiley, Pravda, Bridewell Theatre, Louise Bakker. Darren, Extremism, National Theatre, Suzann McLean. Pete, The Ritual Slaughter of Gorge Mastromas, Bridewell Theatre, Lorenzo Peter Mason.

Roger – Georgina Barley trained at the Drama Studio London. Previous credits include; National Youth Theatre “Chic to Cheek” Fundraising Gala, Adam Meggido, Cafe de Paris; Peaseblossom/Mustardseed/Moth, The Dream Fairies, Glenn Elston, Global Theatre – Royal Botanic Gardens Kew; Adriana, The Comedy of Errors, Chrissy Best, Australian Shakespeare Company; Rosalind, As You Like It, Chrissy Best, Australian Shakespeare Company; Lady Montague, Romeo and Juliet, Glenn Elston, Australian Shakespeare Company; Luciana (understudy), The Comedy of Errors, Glenn Elston, Australian Shakespeare Company.

Percival – Abbi Douetil trained at LAMDA (foundation) and Fourth Monkey. Previous credits include: Lotty, Trust, Raymond Waring, The Old Red Lion. Improviser, United, Juwel Haque, The Nursery Theatre. Gretel, Grimms Fairytales, Paul Linghorn, Abney Park. Jennifer Cramer, The Clue, Glyn Dogget, The Market Theatre. Malvolio, Twelfth Night, Arundel Thomas, The Market Chambers. Tilly, Bug Camp, Paul Macauley, Rialto Theatre. Fliss/Detective Cooper, Cream, Pip O’neil, The Dukebox. Vindice, The Revengers Tragedy, Tom Espiner, The Emrys Johns Studio.

Bill – Michael Holden trained at LIPA. Previous credits include; Mark and the Marked, Kim Sykes, Box Clever Tour. Algernon, The Importance of Being Earnest, Alastair Whatley, Wilde Theatre. Orestes, Electra, Rhonwen Cash, Liverpool Playhouse Studio.

Henry – James Russell-Morley trained at the National Youth Theatre. Previous credits include; Me/Freddo, “GREAT” BRITAIN, Matthew Harrison, Hackney Showroom. Darren, Stockfordian, Sean Hollands, The Bunker Theatre. Sebastian, Twelfth Night, Sam Dunstan, Blue Elephant Theatre. One, The Fall, Matthew Harrison, Finborough Theatre. One, The Fall (extract), Matthew Harrison, BBC Radio 4. Chaos47, Game Over, Justin Audibert, The Cut & The Garage. Multiple roles, 20 Tiny Plays About Sheffield, Andrew Loretto, Crucible.

Director’s Note

“Goldings’ novel is one of the greatest examinations of our society, a truly modern classic, to stage a brand-new ensemble production of Lord of the Flies as part of our residency at the Greenwich Theatre is a real honour. This production will challenge and explore Golding’s own suggestions that the novel could only be about a group of boys and will put us as humans in the spotlight.”

Ricky Dukes, Artistic Director

Golding’s Lord of the Flies…

“What are we? Humans? Animals? Or savages?”

William Golding’s explosive 20th century classic hits the stage in an all new ensemble production. Eleven children, one island… an incredible adventure turns into a fight for survival.

Lord of the Flies is the second production in our year-long residency at the Greenwich Theatre which begins in January 2018 with the return of our ★★★★★ production of Marlowe’s Edward II.

Lazarus is an award-winning theatre company, re-imagining and revitalising classic text for a contemporary audience. Edward II is directed by Lazarus Artistic Director, Ricky Dukes.

 

Listings

Dates 13th – 24th March 2018, Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm

Wednesday and Saturday matinee at 2.30pm.

Venue The Greenwich Theatre

Tickets £25.00, £15.00, £10. Concessions are £15 on top price seats. To Book www.greenwichtheatre.org.uk

Social Media:

Twitter @Lazarustheatre #Golding #LordoftheFlies / Facebook LazarusTheatreCompany

Cast

Ralph – Amber Wadey

Piggy – Luke MacLeod

Jack – Nick Cope

Roger – Georgina Barley

Simon – Benjamin Victor

Eric – Calvin Crawley

Sam – Nell Hardy

Percival – Abbi Douetil

Henry – James Morley

Maurice – Robyn Holdaway

Bill – Michael Holden

Creative

Written by Nigel Williams, based on the book by William Golding

Adapted and Directed by Ricky Dukes

★★★★★ “This remains a visionary company who have once again brought us a stunning and thoughtful adaptation. Not to be missed.”

View from the Gods on Tamburlaine

Old Red Lion Theatre – until 3 February.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

4****

David Loumgair’s revival of Tiny Dynamite is haunting and hypnotic. Childhood friends Luce and Anthony are staying in a lake house in the country. This is revealed to be an annual routine for the city dwellers, with Luce finding Anthony in the gutter somewhere, cleaning him up and trying to help him cope with his unnamed mental illness.

The pair share anecdotes from the back pages of the paper about freak deaths – Luce revelling in the logic of cause and effect, and Anthony searching for a miracle in the story. They also tell the story of Anthony’s near-death experience when he got hit by lightning as a child, using their nicknames of Runt Boy and Shy Girl. But one story is never finished – the tale of a woman who jumped off a bridge. As the audience is drip fed snippets about the dead woman and her death, it becomes clear that this tragedy is what binds the two together, neither able to move on with their lives and crippled with guilt and grief for their lost love. When they meet Madeleine, an enigmatic drifter, she forces them to face up to the past and their co-dependent relationship, and the full story emerges.

Luce, a risk assessor living in a tiny, organised flat, copes with life by looking for the logic and weighing up the risk of every tiny action; while Anthony’s life is chaotic and harmful to himself and those around him. In this production, Luce is now female, giving their relationship a new twist, with her patronising actions coming across as misguided attempts at mothering, and their childish, physical confrontations make you question who is abusing who. Eva-Jane Willis and Niall Bishop are outstanding as the damaged friends, with Willis portraying a woman just coping but teetering on the edge of breakdown most convincingly, and Bishop switching seamlessly between violent manic outbursts and puppyish joy. Tanya Fear delivers a beautifully nuanced performance as Madeleine.

Anna Reid’s set design – a wooden stage with hidden floor compartments in which to store props, surrounded by water – is inspired, while Zoe Spurr’s lighting and Dan Jeffries’ sound design evoke balmy summer days, spooky caves and fireflies, adding extra layers to this fine production.

Writer Abi Morgan doesn’t make things easy for the audience, weaving ideas and memories together until the final reveal, and there is no neat resolution, just a glimmer of understanding and hope for the future – which is exactly how it should be. Whether you trust in logic and science or are searching for your own miracle, Tiny Dynamite will touch your heart and soul. Grab a ticket while you can.

King’s Head Theatre – until 3 February.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

4****

43 years after it first opened at the King’s Head Theatre, Stephen Berkoff’s East returns in Atticist’s bristlingly funny and energetic revival. The world may have moved on in many ways, but East’s community and its characters are still recognisable in Brexit Britain, which is both comforting and disturbing.

Berkoff’s writing style, though now familiar, is still exciting, with slang and violent obscenities punctuating lyrical Shakespearean phrasing – all delivered expertly by the cast. East looks at the lives of Mike and Les, two young lads from East London, whose friendship grew from them nearly killing each other over Sylv. Mum and Dad talk about when life was good as they live bitter and empty lives together. Mum’s dreams of a cultured existence contrast starkly with Dad’s wistful reminiscing about marching with the Brown shirts as he spouts racist and anti-Semitic bile.

Nights down the Lyceum, mind-numbing jobs and dreams of past and future glory are portrayed in a fast and furious time hopping parade of set pieces. Director Jessica Lazar ensures the end of pier atmosphere, so effective in the silent movie skits, still pervades through the more violent scenes, giving the brutality on display a farcical, almost pitiful edge as nostalgic ideas and bare reality dance around each other.

Jack Condon and James Craze are the perfect dangerous pair as Les and Mike, with Condon managing to portray Les’s loneliness and neediness without ever losing the fury in his performance. Boadicea Ricketts steals the show as Sylv, excelling in her monologues as Sylv rails against misogyny and the objectification of her body, as she exploits her sexuality like a weapon. As Dad, Russell Barnett is wonderfully obnoxious and bigoted, and Debra Penny is hilarious as Mum, sleepwalking through life and changing her whole demeanour as she describes her dreams.

Carol Arnopp’s piano accompaniment, riffing on hackneyed old tunes and musical clichés is fantastic, with Condon and Craze’s haunting performance of Underneath the Arches being a standout moment.

This revival of East is brutally funny and sharp, full of high-energy performances, and still packing a powerful punch today. Well worth a look.

Bread & Roses Theatre – until 13 January.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

3***

Maud Dromgoole’s slippery two-hander plays out like a high-stake poker game. With the audience and cast sitting around bar tables to evoke the feeling of any traditional British pub, one audience member’s face fell – with frantic whispers about impending audience participation, but our role was simply to watch and try to figure out exactly what was going on.

The ambiguity is immediate, Matthew is sitting waiting for Suzie, and their first awkward conversation teases with ideas of a blind date or prostitution, before finally revealing her true purpose. Matthew has hired Suzie to teach him poker so that he can impress his crush, Katie, at her poker night.

If, like me, you know nothing about poker, don’t worry – Suzie’s machinegun delivery of the rules of the myriad variations of the game is probably mindblowing to old hands as well. The characters’ lives become a challenging game as they slowly reveal their cards to each other over time. The passage of time is marked by blackouts and increasingly redacted news reports about the fall of the UK. Dromgoole cleverly drips in information about troop deployment, terrorists and wolves to obfuscate the actual events taking place outside the pub. But as society crumbles, Matthew and Suzie still meet up for their poker lessons. The howls and growls that slowly build up around the room are nerve-jangling, but the tension is always released by sharp one-liners.

The characters are nicely drawn, revealing information and their true feelings slowly and charmingly. Owen Frost gives Matthew’s outwardly confident man-child a lovely sense of vulnerability (think a less obnoxious Howard from The Big Bang Theory) and, as Suzie, Victoria Porter is spiky and brash. The two have great chemistry, and fine comedic timing. The way they soften and open up to each other is written with very little sentimentality that makes their growing relationship even more beautiful. The chasm separating their politics and ethics narrows as everyday issues are forgotten in the effort to survive, and Matthew’s part in enabling the lupine apocalypse is soon dropped by Suzie.

If you’re in the mood for a charming and funny love story crammed full of politics, moral questions, poker tips, and menacing wolves, then Blue Moon is the play to see.