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    Interview: Where Next For Wolf?

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    Cameron Corcoran on taking Wolf to Camden Fringe 2022

    Normally here at ET Towers we tend to do interviews before a show starts its run. We like to have a chat with some of the people involved and we hope you like the results. But this time we have something a little different. We reviewed Wolf at Camden Fringe and by chance exchanged a couple of emails with author Cameron Corcoran afterwards. Out of this we thought it might be interesting to talk with him after Wolf had finished its short run for a slightly different perspective than usual.

    First, let’s talk Wolf, how would you describe it and what can audiences expect?

    Wolf is a play about domestic and sexual abuse; it considers the more realistic likelihood of these crimes: that they’re committed in the home and it is often the father and not some imagined stranger. I think audiences can expect to feel uncomfortable and also reflect on our ideas of abuse and how complicit people can be/feel for their actions, whether it be ignoring it or acting against it.

    Wolf has finished its short Camden Fringe run, how do you think it went? Did anything surprise you about the audience reception?

    Given that we only performed it twice, I think it’s fair to say we were all gutted we couldn’t do it at least one more time – you discover things in the room that weren’t present in rehearsals and things also come across differently to a live audience, so it would have been nice to have a few more performances. I think we forgot just how uncomfortable and awful the situation in the story is: we’ve sat with this information for a while and as soon as we finished the first performance we noticed a quiet in the audience, which informed us just how dark the story is.

    As well as writing Wolf, you play the character of Sam. Did you write Sam with the intent to also take on the role or did that come later in the process?

    For me, I’m starting an MA in acting at Rose Bruford College in October and I wanted to do a play before I start so I could get back into the swing of things. I did always envision playing Sam because I knew it was really outside of my comfort zone as a performer, so felt it was the best experience before October. I felt I could do the role competently enough not to sabotage the other actors too, so it was very early into writing I knew I’d be playing Sam.

    Wolf is at times quite heavy, with a lot of tension early on. Our review mentions it’s the only show where it was so tense the reviewer didn’t end up taking a single note. When you are on stage with the lights on and the audience around, were you aware of this?

    That’s very kind of you to say and very humbling too. Our director (Naomi Wirthner) and assistant director (Polly Waldron) worked very hard to trim the fat on the script, to keep the tension high and sustained. The original script was an hour long but after cuts it was just 32 minutes. They’re both experts in creating tension so I can’t really take the credit for that. Certainly, I felt I had written a few lines, small little bits of humour that received a muted response from the audience. Maybe they weren’t funny, but it felt like the stakes in the scenes were far too serious for laughter. I felt that too, it all seemed very real and we could sense how engaged the audience were with what was happening in the scene.

    When you kindly invited us to see Wolf, you said you had invited some theatres along in the hope of finding a run for it. How is that process going, have you had any nibbles?

    I think with theatre nowadays it’s extremely difficult to get theatres to come and watch a play. I often get replies asking to provide them with a recorded version of the play, which doesn’t seem to add any further dialogue… It can be quite frustrating getting little feedback from theatres. I know there are lots of plays on and resources are limited, so it is a godsend to have Camden Fringe because otherwise it’s very difficult to get plays on, even for extremely limited runs. Nevertheless, we are toying with the idea of performing Wolf locally. I’ll have to let you know.

    Camden Fringe is over and we reviewed 38 productions: did you have a chance to see any other shows?

    Regrettably not this time! I think the cost of living is affecting everyone. We had liaised with a number of companies on social media; however, both sides were unable to attend each other’s plays. I think in these times the theatre industry does have to fight very hard to get an audience in. I’m not cynical, I’m sure things will get better – it just felt like a bit of a perfect storm to hinder access to watching theatre this summer.

    Finally, while I imagine your main focus is on Wolf at the moment, are you working on anything else? Might we see another piece of writing or acting from you or Off Main Stage in the near future?

    Notwithstanding a potential performance of Wolf locally, I’ve been under strict instructions to focus on the MA for the next 12 months. However, after a run of our play Mosquito at the Seven Dials Playhouse (a truly amazing venue), I have been writing a new play called Nook, which focuses on family relations, and I’d like to approach Seven Dials with the hope of putting the play on there. It does feel like my best work to date.

    Thanks to Cameron for taking the time to chat to us. We wish you the best of luck with the MA and with Wolf. We are also big fans of Seven Dials Playhouse and would love to see Nook make an appearance there down the line.

    You can keep up with Off Main Stage via their website and Twitter More

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      Interview: Finally, A Touch of Class at ET

      by

      Karen Hall on Delusions and Grandeur

      A cellist, improv trained comedian and seasoned performer are not a trio you would expect to see taking part at Camden Fringe… or maybe you would, who knows nowadays with Fringe Theatre? But either way, how about all three in one? That’s what you are going to get if you pop along to see Karen Hall‘s Delusions and Grandeur when it takes up its residency at Hen and Chickens Theatre from 17 – 21 August. Because Karen has worked as all those things and more as we found out when we caught up with her from the other side of the Atlantic as she was packing a bag ready to come join us in Camden.

      Are you really all those things; classically trained cellist, trained comedian and writer/performer?

      Yep. I’m trying to redefine what constitutes a triple threat in the theatre and settled on those three.

      And how on earth do you find the time to fit everything in, or is that why you’ve decided to make use of all three in one show?

      Combining them all is partly a selfish pursuit to have all my joys in one place. It’s a lot of late nights or early mornings in the practice chair keeping my chops up and, unfortunately, I do often have to choose between comedy and music when it comes to my evenings or weekends. It’s been lovely having them all together.

      What made you decide you wanted to step away from the pit and put on your own show?

      I’ve been working in Los Angeles now for close to sixteen years and always doing jobs for someone else. I’ve had some great jobs, too. I was the cellist on Glee for four seasons, I’ve been in the studio for Emmy-nominated scores, and I’ve collaborated with some incredibly talented people, (Like Geoff Emerick who engineered a little album called Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club over here.) But I knew it was time to start backing myself and my work. In the whole world there might be five cello-playing, musical-devising, Idiot-trained, clown cellists so I have to jump on the market now before it gets saturated.

      Are you bringing your cello with you?

      I am! They have their own seat on the flights and I’m hoping they are allowed one personal item when boarding or my luggage situation will need to be reconfigured…

      The show is entitled “Delusions and Grandeur”, which has something of a classical feel about it, what can you tell us about that title?

      I spent a long time thinking of titles before this one came to me. Everything prior felt too punny or clowny and didn’t honour the music and the craft I’ve dedicated my life, so far, to. This one came to me one day and then the show quickly solidified around it. Honouring the integrity of the music has been very important to me in creating the show. Throughout it I perform Suite Number One for Solo Violoncello by J.S. Bach and I never wanted to diminish the performance of it, although some classical musicians out there would possibly argue I have… 

      As for the show, it’s about your contemplations on perfectionism, expectations, and failure. Is it as autobiographical as it seems to suggest?

      It’s greatly autobiographical but I also talk about the daunting statistics most musicians or artists face: our high injury rates, our high mental health statistics, our struggles to have a career and balance it, and neurobiologically what happens in someone’s brain when they achieve mastery at a craft. I have to believe based on the numbers that I’m speaking the truth of the majority of musicians; I just no longer have issues in using my voice to lay it exposed and vulnerable along with some of my personal experiences. That’s my clown’s training; to fail, hope, fail again, and to allow others to witness all the feelings and struggles in the process.

      Are you still performing in orchestra’s or has the desire to be out front taken hold of you?

      My desire to be clowning and/or directly with my audience has taken over! But I do still play in symphonies, and I do still love them. If someone could get me on a Cirque job though, I’d swap them out for a bit.

      When we’ve seen orchestras perform, everyone does look very serious (although we suspect they are not really), were you ever told off by your conductor if you tried to bring some comedy into the pit?

      I’ve had shushes thrown in my direction and a few stand partners comment that I’m “really funny.” I do a pretty good job of sliding into serious work mode, although I’m also pretty serious in my cultivation and pursuit of nonsense.

      How are you finding Camden in comparison to where else you have performed in your career, we suspect a slightly different vibe?

      I arrive in Camden soon and I cannot wait! I once did a run-by of all the major London sites on a 24-hour layover but will be staying a full week in Camden this time around. I’m looking forward to being there during the Camden Fringe Festival and am excited to catch other shows, experience pub culture, and find out what it’s like to hustle under my own name.

      And give us one more reason, why should we be getting along to Hen and Chickens next week to catch your show?

      My charming American accent. 

      Our thanks to Karen for finding the time to chat. You can find more about her on her website here.

      Delusions and Grandeur plays at The Hen and Chickens Theatre between 17 and 21 August (no performance on 19). Tickets are just £10.50 (£8.50 concession). Further information and bookings here.

      And as we say with all Camden Fringe shows, why not look to double (or triple) up on them, there are plenty of shows on at the same and nearby venues. More

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      Interview: (Brit)Pop’ing all the way to Berlin

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      Writer Holly Whinney on new play Berlin

      Not only do we love theatre here at ET, but many of our team also love live music. So how could we not be interested in a show centred around a 90s Britpop band? Ok, the show is obviously much more than just that, but hey, it got our attention which is a good start.

      Holly Whinney’s Berlin brings together the remaining members of that Britpop band as they try to deal with the death of their lead singer. It’s a dark comedy exploring grief, toxic masculinity and betrayal. It plays at Etcetera Theatre as part of Camden Fringe between 23 – 27 August (more information here).

      We couldn’t resist wanting to know more, so we dug out our best 90s band t-shirt, put Oasis on the stereo (no streaming for us) and sat down with Holly to ask some questions.

      Berlin features an imaginary 90s Britpop band, what made you decide on that era and music? Were you a 90s groupie at all?

      Britpop was definitely a massive influence on me when I was younger. I have very fond memories of being in my dad’s van on the way to a B&Q with Cigarettes and Alcohol blasting so loud! I was only about 6 at the time but, the first time I heard the opening to that song (blatantly T-Rex) I knew that it was the coolest thing ever and I had to learn guitar and all I wanted to be was Noel Gallagher. My taste has changed more with age and I’m really starting to believe that the coolest person was  Jarvis Cocker and because of this I now have several tweed jackets and chunky glasses due to him.

      Did you have any real bands in mind as you were writing the play?

      The [untitled] band that is depicted was never massive during their heyday – they sold a lot of records of course but, they were never at the level of Oasis or Blur – when I described the band to the actors during an early rehearsal I said Pulp. If you were to pin the band down to a culture reference purely on popularity at the time it would be them.

      The idea of the play came after reading a passage from Peter Hook’s book Substance which looks into New Order and him navigating a post-Joy Division world. Within the book he writes two lists: ‘Ten things you should always do when you form a group’ and, ‘Ten things you should never do when you form a group.’ These two lists really formed the gem behind Berlin. They were both contrary to one another – one list said to work with your mates and the said never work with your mates as you won’t stay mates. I also reflected on the passage on Ian Curtis where Peter Hook mentions that the band ‘never talked about it [Ian’s suicide] in depth. Never analysed any of it.’ Instead, they made jokes and ‘pithy’ comments and ‘never confronted the grief’. This was where I started to write the play. It’s since developed and grown into something completely different and by no means am I trying to represent New Order.

      Can we expect a nice 90s soundtrack to go along with the play?

      Can’t afford the rights. So, instead a very good friend of mine, Tara, does the music for the show with her band, The Ramshackles – the opening guitar to Wasteland has some slight Champagne Supernova vibes which is spot on for us.

      I also thought it best to avoid any direct links to Britpop bands as I didn’t want spectators to be taken out of the experience by thinking what a ‘tune’ or walk out because they prefer Blur. Or, they are like my mum, and hate everything Britpop – bar Pulp of course.

      There doesn’t feel to be too many plays based around bands, and yet it would seem a rich tapestry to explore – do you feel there are reasons we don’t see more plays like this?

      I don’t have a clue why the premise of a band is not used a lot. I agree, I think you have so much to play with that it seems a waste. Maybe it is because of the element of music that would potentially need to be composed? But play concepts and settings and themes come in waves. With a post-covid and an inevitable recession, creatives will set their work in one location (as in one room) with fewer characters as it is more cost effective. So, maybe we will see more plays based in one location with only four characters becoming more mainstream over the next year or so and with that maybe more plays about bands.

      The band members reunite in a Berlin studio, what was the appeal of sending them all the way to Berlin then?

      Berlin is a really interesting place when considering the landscape of music and specifically the studio that influenced the production, Hansa Studios. It use to be a concert hall for the Nazis, not that that effects the story at all but, it complements the idea of the past and present being deeply intertwined within the fabric of Berlin. Berlin is this bohemian hub where artists, whether musical or writers such Christopher Isherwood, go to really focus on their work. I think the symbiosis of the past and present there really stimulates the brain and is such an alluring bait for a creative.

      A big example of this is Bowie. He famously left LA where he was living of red peppers, milk and cocaine and headed to West Berlin with Iggy Pop and Lou Reed. The idea was for him to step away from the drug scene of LA and cut entirely …so, he moved to the Heroin capital of the world in the 1970s. I always liked the irony that came with that. But, with him moving to Berlin you have others that follow such as Nick Cave who did the same in the 1980s. This is why I believe the characters and the band head to Berlin. To get their spark back or, at least this is what Nick thinks. Nick is the character that brings the band together – he just wants his mates to get along but doesn’t know how to make this happen – so, he decides to do a rehearsal in their old studio in Berlin. In my head Hansa Studio was THE recording studio for them. They followed their heroes to this mecha of a musical holy land. However, it was an artificial move at the time – they had to do this because that’s what Bowie did – or, it’s like The Beatles going to India. They feel obliged to go to a different country … but, it doesn’t change them or the course of history. It’s similar to someone deciding to up sticks and move to a different country – they believe the country they have left was the problem but after a few years they move elsewhere because they are unsatisfied – they are just running away from themselves and not addressing their own personal issues.

      So, the setting of Berlin is a combination of history being part of the fabric of the present city but, also an element of the pastiche of a creative running from their problems. This theme of running away from problems or diverting the real issue is a big theme within the production so, Berlin works very well as a setting for this theme to materialise on a symbolic level.

      The play looks at, amongst other things, toxic masculinity, do you feel the 90s Britpop and lad culture that went around it makes it perfect for those themes?

      Absolutely! I don’t at all think Liam Gallagher would be shouting this off the rooftops – he would just say they were in the late 20s – cigarettes and alcohol is what it’s about! And of course, Britpop was mainly fuelled by the media and then the Blair campaign. However, if you reflect on Britpop and a lot of cultures before this and after – Toxic Masculinity is a big theme within the subculture. The feuds of Blur and Oasis and the bullying of Robbie Williams and singing about getting drunk and high and starting fights with the press and one of the Gallaghers saying Sting is a wet wipe because he just cries in a corner are all examples of this. However, internally a lot of bands don’t get on – The Who famously didn’t get on at all. Liam Gallagher threw a plum or some form of fruit at Noel before a Paris gig and Noel walked out and quit. I think the idea of a ‘Rock ‘N Roll’ lifestyle is the demise of bands and what it means to be a quote-on-quote man.

      However, with the idea of ‘Lad Culture’ it comes with a far heavier weight than just some band members throwing various pieces of fruit at each other. You have sport, mainly football, with an idolisation of violence against opposing teams as demonstrated in films such as The Firm and Green Street. You have binge drinking, smoking like a chimney and quite an archaic interpretation of Manhood.

      With this play, they are all ‘Lads’ within their own right – but they have to grow out of this phase and deal with responsibility. One of them is going through a divorce and cannot come to terms with this – it is not until the final part of the play where we learn of this. This character is the last ‘Lad’ of the group – he is trying to hold onto the past and puts it on a pedestal of being drunk, smoking in the studio and rocking up on cocaine. But he can’t do that all the time – he has responsibility.

      You also look at grief and betrayal, what is it about these subjects that made you want to delve deeper into them?

      The subject matter of grief and betrayal seems to saturate the theatrical market however, on the other hand, there are far fewer productions which deal with it in a comedic light. Or, if they do, it can verge on the farcical. My objective with this production when it came to those themes was to be open with the reality of death and coping with this. The characters poke fun at each other and have a joke – they talk of Harry [the lead singer that committed suicide] as if he was just away on his holidays. They are very funny characters. I always found it strange going to wakes and no one really was crying but instead you had my Uncle Tappy and Malcom having a few beers and maybe a cigarette. They would check on the relatives but quite soon they would be joking about and chatting about music or talking about plans for the Farnham Beer Exhibition. However, by doing this they are not addressing the elephant in the room, and they are not grieving in a healthy and safe manner. This is where the frustration comes from and, out of that, anger and hate.

      Yet, this production does not only explore the idea of grief in the mortal sense. It also looks at the grief of a relationship, getting divorced – going from being a full time parent to barely seeing your child. It looks into the grief of not being able to do what you like as it destroys you – as demonstrated with Nick and his addiction to alcohol.

      It is a very open and brutal examination on grief and what it does to you. How grieving a person you are very close to can tear you up inside and make you angry. But, this play is exploring grief when the person commited suicide – you constantly reflect and get angry at yourself wondering if you could have done anything! Some people try and pin the blame on others, which is what Ben does, and this turns him into a dreadful human being.

      Have you put on a show at Camden Fringe before? And how important are festivals such as this for writers like yourself?

      This is my first time at the Camden Fringe – it’s really exciting! And yes, these sorts of festivals are so important for writers! And down to one pretty simple reason…economics. I’ve spent countless nights submitting my work to new writing venues and always receive the email “unfortunately we cannot take your work at the moment – we wish you all the best in your writing journey.” So, either you give up or realise thousands of people are applying to those venues thus, your chances are so slim! However, how many people would be like “you know what, screw it, this is good – it is going on and I will finance it myself.” That is why Camden Fringe is so good – it is just a buzz of loads and loads of creatives doing what they love and producing what they want with no check list and pressure from the top executives! It’s so liberating!

      It is a showcase of talent and really it’s only about the art! It doesn’t matter if your show is not profiting thousands (yes, that would be nice) but, that is not the objective. The objective is putting on a great play that says something about the world we live in – and showing it to people of Camden!

      Any other Camden Fringe recommendations you can put our way?

      Everything looks so good! I haven’t had time yet to go through the online brochure yet – but, everything looks brilliant from what I’ve seen posted on Instagram.

      And to wrap things up, give us a last pitch as to why we should all be heading into the moshpit at Etcetera Theatre to catch Berlin?

      It’ll make you laugh, it’ll make you cry. It is a venue on top of a pub and on at 21:30 during the weekday and 17:30 weekends so a perfect way to finish off a night in Camden!

      Our thanks to Holly for a wonderful insight into her play. You can catch Berlin when it comes to Etcetera Theatre 23 – 27 August as part of Camden Fringe. Further information and bookings can be found here.

      Note that the show starts at 9.30 all nights except 27 August (5.30pm), so why not take advantage of seeing two shows in one evening? There are a host of shows playing at both the Etcetera Theatre and others nearby, check the Camden Fringe website for more information. More

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      Interview: We go Late Night Fish(ing) with Shipwreck Theatre

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      Liam Alexandru on Camden Fringe bound play, Late Night Fish

      Shipwreck Productions’ Late Night Fish promises us more than a passing nod to Harold Pinters’ The Dumb Waiter, as a pair of ‘Waste Management experts’ head to the lakes to dispose of a package. We think we can all guess what that means!

      We’re always in the market for someone to help us dispose of any reviewers who don’t do what they are told though, so we thought we’d get along to meet up with Shipwreck’s Liam Alexandru to find out more about the play and whether they are looking for a little extra work, no questions asked.

      Shall we start with the most obvious; by “waste management business” can we safely assume the package is going to be about the size of a body, possibly wrapped up in a big rug?

      A BIG RUG! Why didn’t I think of that? I think it is absolutely safe to assume the package is large and the size of a body. Specifically, according to Tony, one of our two “disposal men”, this “package” is roughly 110kg’s and about 6 ft tall.

      The play’s inspired by Pinter’s’ The Dumb Waiter – for those of us unfamiliar with that story, what are the connections?

      So Pinter’s The Dumb Waiter follows two hitmen, Ben and Gus, as they sit waiting in a basement for the next “assignment” to reveal itself. A very Waiting for Godot-esque piece where the two pass their time with nonsensical chatter, mind games and trivial stories which, all the while, has a deeper, menacing undertone, all building up to the big twist at the end. We also get to learn so much and yet so little from our characters which really conflicts us on who we’re routing for. We read the script and were blown away and knew we had to do something with it. We took on those same points, leaning into the dialogue, menace and character intimacy but not forgetting those moments for a little bit of comedy and real-world chat.

      Are you big Pinter fans then? Is this your first foray into his work or has it featured in previous shows?

      We’ve certainly read and watched some of his impressive rep, but this is our first time playing with it. One of our niches at Shipwreck is we like to create new work inspired by great previous works, be it a homage, parody or somewhere in-between. Call it copying but, as they say, there’s no such thing as an original story anymore ha-ha.

      This originally started with our first two hander, Waiting for Mary (I’ll let you guess which play that’s inspired by) but rather than perform it we thought “well, what if those two characters were two stoner flatmates in London and all the nonsensical chatter comes from a modern, hazy brained place?” We essentially repeated this process with the Dumb Waiter but incorporating it with our love for the gangster genre.

      The Dumb Waiter takes place in a basement, are you moving your show to the lake then? Does this make the set quite easy, a nice rowing boat for the pair to sit and chat in?

      So originally this piece came from the amalgamation of several ideas, including performing a play entirely set on a rowboat. The intimacy and lack of exits that that scenario brings is fascinating and brings up a lot of truth in conversation simply because the characters cannot escape. However, does that look pleasing? Will an audience want to watch a 2D play as two characters bicker in a tight boat setting for 30 minutes? So, alongside our boat trip out onto the lake, we decided to add the dock and create, as with so many two handers, a little bubble universe where this story solely takes place. That brought plenty of comedic and menacing moments we could exploit. Taking difficulty aside, we wanted to ensure that, however we present and set the play, it should be easy to read and manoeuvrable. All I’ll say is thank God for pallets…

      There are plenty of gangster-based films and TV shows, but we don’t see so many on stage – what can we expect from your duo of Michael and Tony?

      I like to think you can take a lot of things away from this piece (a Dumbwaiter knock off being one, I’m prepping myself for “those” reviews) but this is absolutely a love letter to the gangster genre. This is a gangster story, first and foremost, with all the nuances, cliches and real-world facts. Not only are our two characters gangsters, who talk the talk and walk the walk, but they are themselves gangster film fans and refer to these films and the effect they have on gangster culture. We see our two killers discuss the likes of Scorsese and Tarantino, what’s fictional and what’s not, and making those links between the gangsters we think we know and the gangsters actually out there. And, of course, we couldn’t avoid the opportunity to throw in a few meta jokes here and there, take for example the character names, two of Pacino’s greatest gangster performances.

      The play has already had good success at previous festivals, has this allowed you to develop it further? How much has changed from those original outings?

      It really has and we’re so proud of the journey. This piece originally started as a recommendation after an amateur festival in the Midlands ibn 2018 where I immediately started scribbling down ideas. Then in 2020, just after we formed Shipwreck Productions but just before lockdown number one, we had a phone call from the same festival asking if we could bring something to the table after our success with Waiting for Mary. Ten days and countless gangster films later we had our original draft! That version went on to win several awards, including Best Play at the festival, and offer us our opportunity to publish the play and have it produced as an audioplay via The Grey Hill.

      The piece has very much stayed true to its original draft but ever since we’ve been developing it in small ways, via constructive feedback and adjudication, adding small moments and new gags until low and behold here we are, with our most recent version at the Camden Fringe!

      You’re playing at both Hen and Chickens and Canal Café, do you have to make adjustments for the different venues? Not tempted to take it outside Canal Café to, well, the canal?

      Ha-ha, all I’m going to say about the last part is we’ve looked at the legalities of going up and down the canal in a blow-up boat, three-piece suits, a body bag and a megaphone…

      Not really, we’ve performed the play now in a few different venues of various different sizes and requirements and really this piece is so adaptable, the staging looks complicated with its dual lake and dock setting but we’ve been able to make it work on large stages like the Albany in Coventry and smaller black box spaces. It’s just a case of finding the right layout for the right venue. Honestly speaking, a dream of ours for this piece would be to perform it site specific and play it out on and besides a real lake, I imagine it would ramp up the menace of the piece to 11. But that’s a performance for another day.

      Ok, just between us, if we send along a reviewer we might need to get rid of, how easy would it be to get Michael and Tony to add them to their workload for the evening? Would you do it in exchange for a 5-star review?

      I think as 5-star review would certainty tempt Michael and Tony into making two trips out onto the lake… but how easy it is on the other hand is another question. Without giving anything away, let’s just say disposing of a “package” isn’t as simple as it seems. For one, you need a boat…

      Our thanks to Liam for his time. We’ll be in touch about that disposal if we need it!

      You can catch Late Night Fish when it plays as part of Camden Fringe at the following venues:

      The Hen and Chickens Theatre, 13 & 14 AugustThe Canal Cafe Theatre, 17 – 19 August.

      Tickets for both venues are available here. More

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      Interview: Tackling the Sex Trade via Camden Fringe

      by

      Dominique Izabella Little on Sold By Mama

      What’s so great about fringe theatre festivals is the absolutely incredible range of shows on offer and the multitude of themes explored. And Camden Fringe is no exception, offering shows from the whimsical through to the macabre.

      Dominique Izabella Little’s Sold By Mama certainly falls in the more serious end of themes, as it seeks to explore the complexities of sex trafficking and the effects on those involved. It promises a delicate mix of addiction, mental illness and trauma, morphing childhood dreams into brothels and onto the streets of Los Angeles.

      The show will be playing at Hen and Chickens Theatre 21, 22 (both 7:30pm) and 27 August (3:00pm). You can book tickets here.

      Always eager to ensure such vital conversations are had, we sat down with Dominique to find out more about her show and whether it is one that might require a very open mind?

      [embedded content]

      You’ve a background in documentary filmmaking, was this how you approached writing Sold By Mama?

      My love of reality bleeds into everything I do in that I love unfiltered storytelling. The research and preparation for Sold By Mama are definitely in alignment with documentary. The play burst into my mind after a year of experiences that deeply impacted me, alongside watching hours and hours of doci interviews. The writing process was then about giving all that I had absorbed the space to combust into four new, raw and eccentric fictional characters. They share true encounters through the kind of conversation you would only ever have with a filmmaker, or a stranger that you never see again.

      How much is the content of the play based on real lives and real events?

      Sold By Mama is a bite sized snapshot into the very real global subculture of trafficking known as ‘the life’, along with its hierarchy, rules and jargon.  The women are based on multiple real lives and events.  I love the docu-fiction hybrid – where everything is exactly what happened, re-edited into fictional narrative (like much of the content labelled as ‘documentary’ or ‘reality’ today).  Because on the streets, it’s all hybrid and truth mixed with distortion lending itself to a pretty wild reality. The women finesse on the stage the same way they do on the streets, but even in the most flippant and lyrical rhyme, sits the harshest of truths.  This is a microscopic but intense insight into millions of women’s day-to-day reality. 

      The play’s set on the streets of Los Angeles, why that location?

      I moved to Los Angeles for acting, mid-pandemic, with a budget that could not afford a car, or an uber, so it meant walking the streets, and hours on buses and trains. Sounds like London, right?  If you’ve been to LA, you’ll know this is not a situation you want to find yourself in. It’s odd, growing up in Africa we are indoctrinated to believe things about the ‘first world’ which are incredibly disillusioning when you actually arrive. The homelessness rocked me.  I walk out of my hostel on Hollywood Blvd where the police just arrived for domestic violence, a mother and daughter are living in one room whose smell I can’t escape, and the richest, poorest people are living in tents everywhere as I walk the streets that look so immaculate on TV, yet so heartbreakingly desperate in person. I was grateful for every horrible second in that city which opened my eyes to the true heartbeat of LA. At the same time, I began my deep dive into all things cults, mind control, narcissism, psychopathy – I was in LA after all and its wonderful sunny skies are a breeding ground for twisting minds.  The rabbit hole led me to addiction, homelessness, pimping, sex work and trafficking. Most of the stories I was immersed in had links to LA, so I stayed true to that location in Sold By Mama.

      And even though its thousands of miles away, is it still possible to relate to the people and places from our seats in Camden?

      Camden sits snugly in a city where sex-trafficking happens daily. Whether it’s online or on the streets, any time somebody engages in a commercial sexual act through force or coercion, they have been trafficked. People often think trafficking only refers to being kidnapped, drugged and held captive for sex in another country where nobody can speak the language. It doesn’t. The experiences of the women in Sold By Mama are not unique to LA. Hustlers, dealers, pimps, clients, early influences of childhood and trauma, mental illness, addiction whether it be to sex, substances, fast money or freedom, all of this is universal. The pimping jargon might be LA specific, but the tactics aren’t: Find out what they need, satisfy that need, cause dependence through fear masked as enlightenment, where freedom equals bondage and the user is a slave to desire.  Even this isn’t specific to sex work, we go to university to learn how to do this in business, in political campaigns, on billboards. 

      Sold By Mama certainly looks to be one of the heavier pieces playing at Camden Fringe, should we bring the tissues along with us?

      The most striking thing about watching people talk about their experiences, is that sometimes the thing that hits you, is the thing they are most casual about and vice versa. What is shocking or unthinkable to you, is just a day in the life to someone else and part of life is using humour to get you through it. You might connect with one of the stories on a personal level, or you might simply enjoy an encounter with a world that seems far removed. There is however a trigger warning for both simple and complex PTSD triggers. Bring an open and questioning mind, Sold By Mama is non-linear and non-typical storytelling. The women are quick witted and sharp. You need a bit of that yourself to keep up amidst their hustle. They are playing the game as much as it is playing them, so don’t let them play you. 

      What has brought you to London, and more specifically Camden for August then?

      After training in New York / Los Angeles, I moved to London to deepen my acting practice in techniques I hadn’t yet explored. London is now home and Camden a beautiful opportunity to share exciting new work alongside artists who are doing the same.

      You are writer, director and actor, how do you ensure there is release from what appears to be a very intense experience, do you have someone else just watching over proceedings as you put it all together to keep you sane?

      With a project like Sold By Mama – I remind myself that this is an art, let go of perfect, forgive myself for anything that may or may not happen and pursue excellence with all I’ve got.  I am solo on this project, but I do have a core of very close relationships who not only provide me with release through their love and encouragement, but help me with things like poster design, cutting my ideas down to size, and a roof over my head. The work is just as much about relishing preparation and enjoying this one precious life in the process, even when the going gets tough. Freelancing as a creative has instilled fantastic work ethic, resourcefulness and resilience in me, but there is only so much one person can do.  I would love to work with a team, but it needs to be the right team, which is something I am seeking in an agent.  

      Is this play’s themes something you hope to explore further in the future?

      The wonderful thing about immersing yourself in things that interest you are that they tend to resurface with new faces in different seasons of life. Sold By Mama touches on so many themes common to so many which I am bound to explore in future roles. There is a very powerful exchange that can happen between performer and audience, my hope is that the work I do reaches the people who need it most. 

      And besides your own play, are you hoping to get out and see some other work whilst the festival is on during August?  Any recommendations?

      Yes!  Amongst so many talented artists, I would love to see Dog/Actor, Tree Confessions, By The Light of The Moon, We’ve Seen Enough, Roll The Dice, Bird Mouth Collective. 

      Many thanks to Dominique for her time to talk about what we reckon will be a powerful piece of theatre.

      You can book tickets via Camden Fringe’s website here.

      You can also find out more about Dominique on her own website here. More

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      Interview: Bringing Oxbridge to Camden

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      Katherine Stockton on her play Colloquium, playing as part of Camden Fringe

      We all know the phrase Oxbridge, a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most famous universities in the United Kingdom. It’s a phrase that will conjure up different images to different people. To some a mark of quality, to others it may mean elitism.

      Katherine Stockton’s Colloquium takes us into that world, exploring the lives of stuffy Professors, pompous Candidates, and struggling Students, all suffering under the regime of pressuring higher education.

      The play is one of the first on at this year’s Camden Fringe, with performances 1 to 4 August at Hen and Chickens Theatre. It also then plays for two nights at Kensington’s Golden Goose Theatre (5 and 6 August). Tickets for both venues can be found here.

      Always wanting to further educate ourselves, we thought we’d put on our finest gowns and mortarboard and spend an afternoon in the study with Katherine to talk more about her play.

      The play takes us into the world of our finest places of study, what can you tell us about the play and the characters we’re going to meet?

      The play is most essentially a pulling back of the curtain on the mythic and hidden world of these elite institutions, yes. We are going to meet Alfred; a Professor of English in his last year before retirement, obsessed with leaving a form of legacy behind, Bennett; a junior Professor of English hoping to take Alfred’s job next year, Ben; a seventeen-year-old applicant who has been all but groomed for the interview process, Alice; an applicant to whom this world seems bewildering, George; a PhD student struggling to reconcile his relationship with his working-class, pub quiz loving step-dad, and Anna; a PhD student whose mental health is suffering to the point of giving up on her academic dreams.

      And is the play a one-person show portraying the various characters we encounter, or do you have an ensemble?

      We have a very talented ensemble who are able to bring their own distinct voices to each character who struggle with the pressures of elite education in similar ways, yet often take very different approaches to coping with those pressures.

      You didn’t study at either of the Oxbridge universities, what made you decide to set a play there?

      It didn’t matter so much to place a play where I’ve known. To me, and to most teenagers who go through the UCAS process, Oxbridge is a symbol – a monolith – of excellence. You either make it – become part of the symbol – or live forever outside it. It is the great divider of applicants. Therefore, it felt natural to set a drama within its walls.

      There’s talk of balancing the conflicting hopes of education: to teach for the exam, for success, or to teach for life. Does the play answer which you feel is more vital or just highlight the contradictions that exist?

      The play highlights how impossible both of the strategies are. Under capitalism, under our data-driven, results-driven society, where everything must be quantified and scaled, you cannot teach for life. You must teach for an exam. But you also cannot hope to produce educated, well-rounded citizens of the world if you only take this method. Whichever is ‘better’ cannot be discerned until we realise how to actually do either.

      Do you feel as a country we often give too much reverence just because someone studied at one of the elite universities?

      As someone who did not study there; it is almost impossible to say. Maybe the undergraduates of Oxford did get much better quality teaching than I did at Warwick. I will never be able to know for sure because I wasn’t there. I think it’s that wall that separates the two worlds that the play wants to look at most.

      You’ve clearly looked at their processes deeply to put this play together, do you feel that the universities have changed or is there still a lot of unnecessary tradition at play within them?

      The pomp and ceremony, razzle dazzle of the place is absurd to me. Almost cultish. I am sure those memories of sitting down in gowns and hats to banquets stay with you for life, embedding in you a network and a sense of loyalty that will carry you through your career for as long as you choose to tug on the strings of that network. I feel as though the ritualistic nature of Oxbridge is very much still in place.

      The show has already performed at Bread and Roses, has it changed much since then? Did you learn anything at that run?

      I certainly did. That run was a comedy with dramatic elements. I realised that the themes I want to tackle – how we venerate exceptionalism, the authority of tradition vs. the inevitability of progress, elitism, class, politics, etc – they all leant themselves much better to a drama. A drama with hilarious bits, but a drama nonetheless.

      Why should we come and see Colloquium then?

      Currently, there’s nothing quite like Colloquium out there. It dissects, with wit, and intelligence and humanity, a certain place and time that has yet to be visited on the British stage since the works of Alan Bennett. Come and see it for that.

      And as it’s Camden Fringe, with so much else going on, do you have any recommendations of other shows we should see as well as Colloquium?

      Boiling Frog is a digital event and so accessible to all. It explores the trauma of witnessing the horrific Australian Black Summer Bushfires of 2019/20 using the monologue form. Definitely one I will be looking out for.

      Thanks to Katherine for finding the time to chat to us about Colloquium. You can find out more about the play and book tickets at Katherine’s website here.

      Colloquium plays as part of Camden Fringe at The Hen and Chickens Theatre, 1 – 4 August. More details here and Golden Goose Theatre 5 – 6 August, more info here. More

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      Interview: Taking a short trip to Barcelona for Just Sayin’

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      Tina Zucco talks to us about new play, Just Sayin’

      Tina Zucco’s Just Sayin’ is heading to Islington’s The Hope Theatre as part of this year’s Camden Fringe. Yes, we know, Islington isn’t technically in Camden, but hey, it’s a growing festival, it needs all the space it can get! 

      The play follows Cat, new to Barcelona and eager to find love. But when she starts to do voluntary work in the homeless community, it makes her question what it is she really wants from life.

      It certainly looks to contain themes we’re always pleased to see covered, so we couldn’t resist the opportunity to grab some time with Tina and find out more.

      Lovely to meet you Tina – first things first, how much of you is there in your character Cat? Are you from Barcelona originally?

      Thank you so much for having me! It’s great having the chance to talk about Cat and Just Sayin’ in general because this show has been a part of my life for a year now and I’m so excited any time I get to share it with more people!

      I would say that Cat(erina) is 50% me, and 50% my best friend… Although I did live in Barcelona for a while, the character of Cat and her story was actually inspired by my best friend, an Italian girl, working in Barcelona, and volunteering with the homeless community there. But then, all of Cat’s flaws and quirks come from me, and she has some of my interests too, like the fact that she loves salsa dancing and watching Vampire Diaries is definitely something we have in common. 

      But Is London your home now? And do you still feel it is as much home now as when you first arrived, hope Brexit hasn’t affected your love of our wonderful city?

      London is my home and I love it! I’ve been in the UK for about 6 years now and I’ve had the chance to live in York, Manchester and now London! Brexit was a bit of a shock because the referendum happened just after I got accepted into university in the UK so I feared I wasn’t going to feel welcomed. But all of the wonderful people I met in England never made me feel unwanted, everyone is lovely and polite, which is one thing I love about the UK! But it is a bit saddening that other Italians now can’t just as easily move here and start a new life.

      Your new play is Just Sayin’ – what drew you to write a play that seems to be very much about homelessness? Is this a subject close to your heart?

      Like I mentioned earlier, this play is inspired by my best friend, Carlotta. She volunteers with a local Christian charity to help the homeless every Sunday, and when she started talking to me about it, her eyes had a wonderful spark in them, you could see how happy she was to be making a different in people’s lives, and how great she felt to be meeting all these different unique people every Sunday. 

      One day we were having a drink in Barcelona and one of the regulars that she sees quite often during her time with the charity came to talk to her, to catch up and ask for her help for a problem he was having, and I realised how she was actually building very personal relationships with many of them. That’s when I decided to start writing Just Sayin’. It actually had a working title of “Carlotta” for about 6 months.

      Did you do much research into the subject, do you think people aren’t aware of just how much of a problem homelessness is?

      Once I left Barcelona I still called Carlotta every Monday night. She would tell me about who she had met that week and the stories she’d heard. I started writing down everything she was saying. So that was the beginning of the research project. I wanted to make sure that all of the homeless characters Cat meets in her journey were real people and not just cliches.

      Needless to say, the more I would hear about these people the more I got into tackling the problem of homelessness in the UK. I found a director who was also active in helping the homeless. We then picked London and Brighton as the places to stage Just Sayin’ because both of these cities have an incredibly high percentage of homeless people.

      We don’t expect our play to change the world, but we do hope we can make a small difference, so we partnered with Beam who run individual fundraisers to help people get off the streets, and we’re fundraising for them on the days of our show, hoping to raise enough to help at least one person start a new life.

      It’s also about how your actions can make a difference in someone else’s life, is this something you’ve experienced. Is it more about the small things we do, or are you hoping people might think much bigger – such as going out to volunteer?

      I think it’s definitely about the little things. If we could just inspire our audience to be nice and kind, to acknowledge the people asking for help and honestly thinking is there anything I can do for them now? Like, maybe I don’t have change on me, but I’m going into Tesco, is there anything they need? Literally one smile can go a long way, so yeah, we can’t change the world, but we can try to change the mood of the people who inhabit it.

      What can we expect from the play, are you going to tug on the heartstrings or just planning to make us laugh?

      Well, I’m a massive fan of comedy. I think people remember things that make them laugh, so you can expect laughter for sure. But ultimately, we talk about some serious stuff, so there will be some heartfelt moments that will make our audience reflect, maybe even feel something they wouldn’t have expected to feel when coming into the theatre.

      Camden Fringe is looking very big and bold this year, how excited are you to be part of it, and are there any other shows you’ve got your eye on and hope to see?

      I am both excited and terrified to be part of the Camden Fringe this year. The thing I love the most about London is its theatre scene and I couldn’t be more thrilled to be part of it. But the competition is extremely high and I myself have a growing list of shows I want to watch! I’ll definitely start with Someone Else’s Shoes because it opens the festival and it’s put on by a group of young artists, which is something I always admire! Then I’ll catch Hooks and Hookups which is on the same days as me at the Hope Theatre. (You can listen to our interview with the creatives of Hoops and Hookups here.) One other show I would recommend is Blue Balloons Pink which is also at the Hope Theatre and I’ve had the pleasure to catch at the Brighton Fringe. It’s also a new piece of writing full of twists! 

      With so much to see, why should we make sure Just Sayin’ is on the top of the list of shows that should be seen at the festival this year then?

      All I’ll say is that if you’re looking for a new, fresh, one-woman show that will make you forget you’re in London and transport you to the magical Barcelona for one hour, then come watch Just Sayin’, and you will not be disappointed! 

      Honestly, I am so grateful I had female creatives such as Lara Cosmetatos, the director, and Siân Elissa and Tee, the producer and designer, working with me on Just Sayin’. They all brought something wonderful and unique to the team and the show, and we were all amazed when we were nominated for Best Play at the Brighton Fringe. It was the first time we were all working together and seeing the results, and the way our first audience reacted to the show, was really gratifying! 

      As always, our thanks to Tina for finding the time to chat to us about her play.

      You can catch Just Sayin’ at The Hope Theatre between 12 and 14 August at 9pm. Further information and tickets here.

      The show plays after Hoops and Hookups (7pm) so we do highly recommend a double bill! You can find out more about Hoops and Hookups in our recent podcast with the writers/ performers here.

      If you want to support Just Sayin’, they have a GoFundMe page here for donations. If you donate the price of a ticket you will receive a link with the professionally filmed performance of the show when it is available. More

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      Interview: Taking A Trip Through Time with Free School Lunch

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      Free School Lunch’s Aurelia Gage on her new play, All This Must Pass

      Free School Lunch impressed us last year with their Camden Fringe offering, Sisters Of Charity. They are back again at the Fringe this year with their brand new play All This Must Pass. The play looks an epic exploration through time as a woman tries to find how she came to be.

      It certainly sounds an ambitious and exciting endeavour, and you know we love ambitious and exciting new writing here at ET. So it felt a great time to get ourselves some Free School Lunch as we sat down to chat with Aurelia to ask her about the play.

      Book tickets here.

      The play promises to cover hundreds of years, how do you manage to squeeze so much into just an hour?

      Not even an hour: 55 minutes! I wish I was a talented enough writer to do that, but it has required a generous edit. All This Must Pass tells the story of one woman travelling through time and space to discover the people that made her – it is the ultimate family reunion and because of that, it’s very exclusive. We meet celebrated heroes, despised villains, and those who history doesn’t care to remember – but all of whom serve a purpose for our main character.

      What made you want to write a play spanning centuries?

      I wanted to write about people who would/could never be put together and have them all share the same stage. For me, it was the perfect way to explore all the faucets of one person and properly articulate how they could possibly experience such a life-changing event.

      And what is it that will bind all the moments in time together?

      Every person, every decision, every moment has led to the life of our main character. She is the thread that binds them together and they, through every decision (good and bad) have created her.

      The central theme of the play is the loss of a child during pregnancy, can you tell us a little more about this theme and why you wanted to explore it in this way?

      I’ve wanted to explore child loss in my writing for a long time. I couldn’t reconcile the fact that something was so common and yet endless testimonies create a picture of an ordeal people largely navigate alone. I recently lost my father; and the outpouring of love and support was incredible, but what do you do when you’re told “it’s just one of those things” and the world moves on without you? How do you share your grief with others? How do you grieve someone you never got to know? These questions crop up in a quarter of all pregnancies, and for our main character in All This Must Pass. She is left without a map to navigate her grief and so looks to her ancestors to share their strength, their pain, and to know them in a way she couldn’t know her child.   

      Last year’s Sisters of Charity was a very Irish based play, and All This Must Pass makes mention of the Potato Famine of Ireland – is there a strong Irish feel throughout?

      Irish identity crops up in a lot of my plays, Sisters of Charity in particular was a homage to the Irish women and children who were let down so badly by the Catholic Church. We get to spend some time in Ireland (and discover the best theme park on earth) in All This Must Pass but it’s one stop on a much more expansive journey through time and space.  

      Sisters Of Charity was a fantastic play, but very dark in its themes, is All This Must Pass going to follow a similar path? And how do you avoid things becoming too bleak?

      First of all, thank you! And yes, there’s no getting away from the darker themes in both my plays. My focus as a writer is to bring light to maligned or forgotten people, but the driving force behind that is the strength, joy and humour people can show in the darkest of times. All This Must Pass in a one-woman show performed by the phenomenal Aidan Morris. Aidan is an actor, dancer and stand-up comedian; the energy she brings to the stage is just incredible. It was important for me to have a living breathing character tell this story, not just a vessel for a trauma. And as much as this is a story of grief, it is also a story of love, laughter and a good old knees-up at a family reunion.  

      Reheasal images of Aidan Morris

      The play is on at Lion and Unicorn Theatre, how much has the venues support helped (or is helping) in getting this play ready?

      Honestly, Sisters of Charity and All This Must Pass wouldn’t have happened without The Lion and Unicorn or David Brady (Artistic Director of Proforca Theatre). In 2021 we were in the midst of a pandemic (and still are), the industry was on its knees, and I had never produced my own play. There wasn’t a question too stupid or a problem too big for the theatre and its team. For an early career theatre maker like me, David and his team really gave me a roadmap for a seemingly impossible task and the all-round support of some really good people.  

      All This Must Pass plays as part of Camden Fringe between 18 – 20 August at The Lion and Unicorn Theatre. Further information and bookings can be found here. More