Cast announced for the world premiere of
Fabulous Creatures
Arcola Theatre
May 22 – June 15
“We used to kill, but now we cabaret!”
The world premiere of
Fabulous Creatures
The untold story of the female monsters of The Odyssey
a play with songs
by Quentin Beroud & Emily Louizou
Directed by Emily Louizou
Welcome to the Monstrous Cabaret Club, a place to drown more than your sorrows, where the acts are unreal and the voices to die for!
Whether you’re strapping in for the Sirens or caught between Scylla and Charybdis, you’re in for a night you’ll never forget!
Once the pre-eminent killers of the mythical age, the Sirens have long given up their licence to kill. Now they run a private club hidden somewhere between Mount Olympus and the Underworld. But the
glamorous routine of their cabaret life is about to be shattered when a desperate and determined woman asks for help in taking down her abusive husband before he returns from a 10-year war. These fabulous creatures are now faced with a deadly dilemma: sacrifice the safety of the shadows or come out into the light and help a stranger in her hour of need?
Collide (“clearly a company to keep an eye on”, The Guardian) invites you to an epic new show about sisterhood and vengeance. An ensemble of three brings you the never-before-told story of the female monsters of The Odyssey, blending humour and darkness, myth and modernity and Collide’s signature dream-like aesthetic.
Cast:
Hannah van der Westhuysen is Charybdis aka “Whirlpool”, hostess of the grotesque.
Hannah are best known for playing the lead role of ’Stella’ in Fate: The Winx Club Saga for Netflix. Most recently, they can be seen playing a recurring role in Sexy Beast (Paramount+) and hit production The Sandman (Netflix).
Kate Newman is SCYLLA, a rock star with outrageous costumes.
Kate is a classically trained actor, neo-burlesque performer, writer, producer and the creator and host of Like A Virgin Cabaret. She trained at The Drama Centre and The Cheek of It School of Burlesque. Her burlesque alter ego Have Your Kate and Eat It has performed at The Barbican, Battersea Arts Centre and The Hippodrome Casino. She is currently working on Dance, then her debut short film, in which she plays the role of Iris. Her TV credits include Alder (ITV) and Smothered (Sky Comedy).
Jazz Jenkins is Siren, the woman-bird with the notorious voice.
Jazz is a native New Yorker and relocated to London to train at LAMDA where she graduated in 2023. Fabulous Creatures marks her UK professional stage debut. Theatre while training includes: The House That Will Not Stand (Agnes), RENT (Joanne), The Caucasian Chalk Circle (The Singer) and The Seagull (Nina).
Creative team:
Written by Quentin Beroud & Emily Louizou
Directed by Emily Louizou
Movement & Choreography by Ioli Filippakopoulou
Music Composition & Sound Design by Irene Skylakaki
Set & Costume Design by Ismini Papaioannou
Lighting Design by David Doyle
Promo images by Mariza Kapsabeli
Executive Producer: Elizabeth Filippouli
Produced by Collide Theatre in partnership with Elizabeth Filippouli and in association with the Arcola Theatre
Composer Irene Skylakaki said: “I am thrilled to be writing music for three mythological monsters, three creatures with voices that blend darkness, sensuality, and power. We are creating a hybrid-play, something between musical theatre, cabaret, and a play with songs! Sonically inspired by PJ Harvey, Bjork and James Blake – expect a lot of quirky punchiness!”
Director Emily Louizou said: “This project is a celebration of female resilience and sisterhood. Scylla, Charybdis, Siren stand for women who were punished, ostracised and vilified for reasons that were quite absurd or short-sighted. I am excited to present these mythological monsters under a new light, seeing beyond their victimhood, beyond their monstrous appearance and their ‘evil’ label.”
Executive Producer Elizabeth Filippouli said: “As figments of the imagination, the awkward, scary female creatures that populate myths have long been used by societies to portray an otherness that goes outside the norms, and to set the boundaries of conformity within which women were expected to operate. Guess what, the monstrous in this play is synonymous with the fabulous, fascinating, fantastic!”
Fabulous Creatures is produced under the auspices of the Hellenic Embassy in the UK, supported by The Hellenic Centre and women’s empowerment initiative Athena40.Irene Skylakaki (Music Composition & Sound Design) Irene Skylakaki is a musician and songwriter, originally from Athens, Greece. To date, she has released five studio albums: Wrong Direction (2012), Before Dawn (2014), Matterless (2018), Souvenir (2020) and Hydra (2022). During the past four years Irene has also written music for TV and theatre, most notably collaborating with director Emily Louizou on Labor (Poreia Theatre, Athens, 2022) and Symptoms of Weightlessness (Little Theatre of Ancient Epidaurus, Greece, 2023).
Quentin Beroud (Writer)
Quentin is a writer and director for stage and screen, with a particular interest in European theatre and the tragic-comic. His translation and adaptation of Mariveaux’s farce The Game of Love and Chance (***** Hackney Gazette) was Arcola’s first major production to open their new Outside Space post-COVID. As Writer & Adaptor, credits include: The Game of Love & Chance (Arcola Theatre). As Dramaturg: The Coral (Finborough Theatre).
Emily Louizou (Writer & Director)
Emily Louizou is a London-based theatre and opera director, originally from Athens, Greece. She trained on the acclaimed MFA Theatre Directing programme at Birkbeck, University of London. Prior to this, she completed her BA Degree in English Literature at University College London (UCL). She is the founder and Artistic Director of Collide, an international female-led theatre company based in London. Since its inception in 2015, Collide has collaborated with more than 70 migrant artists coming from all disciplines and created 9 successful theatre productions. Most notable past credits include: The Woman Who Turned Into A Tree (Omnibus Theatre, 2023), The Coral (Finborough Theatre, 2022), Metamorphosis (New Diorama & HOME, 2019).
Elizabeth Filippouli (Executive Producer)
Elizabeth Filippouli is a writer and executive with a career across media and social entrepreneurship. As a journalist she has worked at Al Jazeera English, CNN International and in Greek media. She is also the Founder of the non-profits Global Thinkers Forum and Athena40, supporting women and youth through mentoring and public conversations. In 2023 she adapted and produced ‘Alexander the Great-Between Dreams and Imagination’, a sold out play revisiting the idea of greatness in leadership, presented in the British Library. She works on artistic projects that aim to re-imagine our societies and the way we think.
Arcola Theatre
Arcola Theatre was founded by Mehmet Ergen and Leyla Nazli in September 2000. Arcola Theatre produces daring, high-quality theatre in the heart of East London and beyond. They commission and premiere exciting, original works alongside rare gems of world drama and bold new productions of classics. Their socially engaged, international programme champions diversity, challenges the status quo, and attracts over 65,000 people to our building each year. Ticket prices are some of the most affordable in London. Their pioneering environmental initiatives are award-winning and aim to make Arcola the world’s first carbon-neutral theatre. Arcola has won awards including the UK Theatre Award for Promotion of Diversity, The Stage Award for Sustainability and the Peter Brook Empty Space Award.
LISTINGS INFO
Collide Theatre in partnership with
Elizabeth Filippouli and in association
with Arcola Theatre
present the world premiere of
Fabulous Creatures
The untold story of the female monsters
of The Odyssey.
Written by Quentin Beroud & Emily Louizou
Directed by Emily Louizou
ARCOLA THEATRE
24 Ashwin Street,
London
E8 3DL
Box office:
https://www.arcolatheatre.com/whats-on/fabulous-creatures/at
May 22 – June 15