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      Interview: Delivering For Arcola Outside

      by

      Director Nico Rao Pimparé on Rainer

      Arcola Outside 1 – 18 June

      We’ve all heard of the gig economy, a labour market characterized by the prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work as opposed to permanent jobs. It’s certainly not new, but it is something that is becoming more and more normal in today’s ever-changing society.

      One of the big drivers that has grown the gig economy is our desire to have everything delivered immediately. Not just your Amazon parcel, but takeaways and last minute groceries needed for tonight’s dinner. Which leads us nicely to Rainer, a new play coming to Arcola Theatre Outside in June. It’s about a solitary delivery rider called Rainer, the type you probably see passing you on the street all the time but never really think about once out of sight. The play followers Rainer as she cycles from job to job, creating stories in her head to help pass the time. But what happens when someone close disappears, and what effect does such a job have on someone’s mental health?

      We slipped on our lycra shorts, hopped on our bike and headed out to meet up with director, Nico Rao Pimparé to ask more about the play.

      What is it about Max Wilkinson’s writing that attracted you to direct Rainer?

      Max has a unique, poetic and witty approach to text. His plays are as funny and incisive as they are dramatic. Rainer is the story of a young woman who stands for thousands of Millenial Londoners who love the city, but cannot seem to find their place in it. When first reading the script, I felt that Max had captured a very real part of London, that I belong to, and that I never see in TV, film or theatre. His frenetic, non-realistic writing mirrors the cynicism, but also the exuberance of our generation. Its disjointed nature makes it all the more closer to life.

      The play feels as if it is going to be set very much on the streets, and Rainer will be doing a lot of cycling. How do you plan to portray this on a stage?

      Rainer (the name of our protagonist in Rainer), does indeed do a lot of cycling! But I might disappoint you here – we don’t actually have a bike on stage. The story focusses on Rainer’s emotional and mental journey, on her friends, her family, her boss, her therapist and her love life. You will feel like you have travelled from the grimiest streets to the most exclusive parties, to clubs, to parks, and to chicken shops.

      From reading the press release, the play feels a mix between a look at the loneliness of the job and a tale of a missing person, what is it we can really expect when we come to see the play?

      Expect to laugh, cry and be moved by Rainer. The play does not tell you what to think. It is not an academic study. It is simply the story of one woman, struggling to find a direction in life, sometimes struggling to keep on going, and yet finding the resilience and humour to persist. Rainer is much more than a delivery rider – her brazenness and her curious and satirical outlook on life paint an unexpected and rebellious portrait of London. Expect to fall in love with Rainer, and to hate her. I can’t tell you too much without spoilers, but I know for certain you’ll see something you’ve never seen before.

      She is a delivery rider, which Max has experience of doing as a job – have you discussed the job with him so you can get those small details into your directing?

      Of course. And so has our actor, Sorcha Kennedy. But the reality is that most of us, me included, have lived under the poverty line (currently set at £276/week) for many years. That’s the real issue. The mentality and outlook on life that comes with that kind of subsistence living, is the more nuanced and complex thing to look at. You can’t make it up. We have a twisted view of poverty in this country, we don’t realise how eclectic and varied the people who live below the poverty line are. I have lived in squats, eaten food out of bins, and preferred walking to taking the bus to save money. I won’t speak for others, but I can guarantee that that’s the norm in our industry, and for many young people currently living in London. There are too many depictions of Millennials in the culture that romanticise their mode of life, and not enough that give an honest and realistic picture of what their life is really like. Understanding that picture is what I have in common with Max, and what attracted me to this project in the first place.

      Do you have much contact with Max as you rehearse the play, or is their role as writer now done and you keep them at arm’s length? Are writers all different in how they get involved at this stage?

      Max and I do like to discuss and collaborate. This project was first born as a work-in-progress showing last October. The script has gone through many transformations, which I have read and given feedback on. Similarly, I’m keen to get Max’s opinion on my work – he’ll see a couple of run-throughs during rehearsals. But for the most part, he sticks to writing and I stick to directing!

      How are you planning to get Rainer’s daydreaming across to an audience?

      Through the magic of theatre! No – seriously, the whole piece is like a very long daydream. It is monologue, so it lets us into Rainer’s thoughts and lets her dream with her.  But I can’t tell you too much without revealing the plot. Sorry. You’ll have to come and see it!

      It’s probably safe to say delivery riders are almost invisible to most of us, out of our thoughts the moment they are out of sight. Has working on this play given you a new appreciation for them?

      Yes. And I think it does to most people who’ve worked on the play or seen it. The world of delivery drivers is fascinating – you can have anyone from a Colombian PhD student to a mother of three trying to make ends meet. And more broadly the play gives you an insight into the psychology and the intensity of the gig economy, and of what it is like to be young and broke in London.

      The play is going to be on at Arcola Outside – does this space feel appropriate in gicing the impression of being out on the streets of London?

      Yes – the space has been an amazing find for this play. The sights and sounds of London provide the backdrop for our play. Sometimes you won’t even be able to tell whether a sound is sound design or actually a helicopter flying overhead. Also – the sun sets over the course of the play, so you begin in broad day light and end in a much more intimate, dramatic environment. All of these are really very exciting challenges to work with. The play is about the city, and distinctly set in the city. It’s very appropriate. But don’t let the ‘outside’ space worry you too much – it is a gorgeous, covered and very cosy venue!

      Our thanks to Nico for taking time out of his day to chat with us.

      Rainer will play at Arcola Outside from 1 – 18 June. Further information and bookings can be found here. More

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      Interview: Is It A Film? Is It A Play? No It’s the Adaptation Game

      by

      The Adaptation Game with Sam Briggs and Maddie Gray

      Those of you keeping up with what we are up to here at ET will have hopefully seen (and listened) to our recent podcast recording with the team at Chewboy Productions, where they told us all about the upcoming ChewFest. And you will have also seen the recent interview with Gutter Street, one of the companies putting on a night at the festival.

      But in our continuing attempt to become the unofficial publication of choice for ChewFest, we didn’t want to stop at just those two interviews. Which led us to The Adaptation Game. A joint venture between Visability Film Festival and Yellow Hat Productions, it is described as an evening of transmedia storytelling, an integrayion of film and theatre, breathing new life into some of their favourite films of the past two years by adapting them for the stage!

      No, we wasn’t too sure what transmedia storytelling was either, so what better way to find out more than by asking those behind it. It was our pleasure then to catch up with Sam Briggs, writer and co-director for Visability Film Festival, and Maddie Gray, DIrector and co-founder of Yellow Hat Productions.

      What exactly can we expect from an evening of “integrated film and theatre”?

      SB – The fantastic thing about an evening of integrated film and theatre is that you’ll be getting award winning short films and bold new theatre presented side by side. In the case of The Adaptation Game this means watching the short films Bulldog, Glaucon, and To The Dusty Sea, immediately followed by a new chapter in their stories presented as stage adaptations. A ‘remix’ of the stories, if you like, but told in a new medium, live in front of you.

      MG – A night at The Adaptation Game aka an evening of integrated film and theatre will bring you an exciting and eclectic mix of the mediums of film and live performance. Visability Film Festival have chosen three award winning short films and together with multidisciplinary arts company Yellow Hat Theatre have adapted them for the stage.

      So we’ll be watching the short film and then a theatre piece will follow on? Will it be taking just the theme or be almost as an extension of the short film?

      MG – Each theatre piece will take a different approach to the process of adaptation and the theatre performances will be an expansion and further exploration of the themes and ideas in the films. They exist within the world of the films and as standalone works. We didn’t want to take a literal and formulaic approach to the adaptations but instead found ways to bring out the situations, ideas and characters exploring events post-films.

      SB – For example, the play Caved In, will involve a character from the experimental film, Glaucon, watching his own death on screen and coming to terms with it. Buckle up.

      Is this something you’ve done before, or something you’ve wanted to try out for a while now?

      SB – We were really fortunate to be asked to be a part of Chewfest. Having had great success during the first two years of Visability Film Festival, the question instantly became ‘how can we do something different?’ for what would be our 3rd edition. I’ve been fascinated by Adaptation Theory since studying Adaptation and Transmedia Storytelling as a creative writing module at UEA some years ago. I instantly thought of Yellow Hat Productions and their theatre expertise to help me get this fresh new idea off the ground.

      MG – We were very excited when Visability film festival came to us with this idea as it sounded right up our street. We’re buzzing to host a night alongside them as part of Chewfest. This is our first venture as a company, but as freelance creatives, working in the theatre industry adapting and devising work inspired by original material is very much something we’ve done before and something we love doing.  Working across medias was an exciting prospect for us as our background lies mostly in theatre and we were intrigued to find out how we could explore the essence of these wonderful short films and transport them into a live theatrical space 

      And how have you selected the three short films that we’ll be seeing?

      SB – Visability Film Festival has been blessed to have some truly outstanding films submitted over the past two years. Between them, the three films we’ve chosen have played at huge BAFTA-qualifying festivals, including Norwich Film Festival and Manchester International Film Festival, as well as winning several awards at our own festival. At Visability, we like to focus on films that have the potential to bring about meaningful social change. Through its re-evaluation of the stereotypes surrounding UK rough sleepers, the short film Bulldog was instantly high on our list of films to adapt. 

      MG – We’ve been fans of Visability Film Festival since its inception and when Sam brought us a selection of the award winning shorts it was a difficult choice.

      We also share a passion for creating work for social change so choosing our first short Bulldog, an exploration around the stereotypes of rough sleepers seemed a no brainer. The style and the rhythm of the piece plays such an instrumental role in the overall effect and really makes an audience question their held beliefs and prejudices. We were excited to see where that would take us as we moulded these ideas for the stage.

      To The Dusty Sea, an animated short exploring the relationships of a family in turmoil was also a very easy choice as it is both incredibly beautiful and moving and offers such rich material to work from. 

      Finally Glaucon, an experimental mask work piece inspired by Plato’s Republic and allegory of the cave was a clear choice as the style was so different to most of what we had seen before. It really creates an otherworldly atmosphere and brings an audience right down into the cave with it.

      We wanted all the films to come from different genres and explore varying ideas and themes whilst also complimenting each other as a whole collection.

      SB – Really we’re just grateful that each filmmaker agreed to hand over their babies to us so that we could tell the next chapter in the amazing stories they started.

      Is the plan to enhance the original short films, or to make us view them in alternative ways?

      SB – Both! It’s important for us as creatives that these new plays hold up on their own. But at the same time, by being performed alongside screenings of their original films, we actively want to encourage audiences to feel as though the pieces are in constant conversation and open for reinterpretation.

      MG -Absolutely, both. We’ve taken the short films as starting blocks for our theatrical work so as to keep the essence of the short but freedom for us to play and explore with character, situation and idea. We hope that seeing these works side by side adds a whole extra dimension to each.

      What made you want to take part in ChewFest? Is this type of event good for experimenting and putting your work in front of new audiences?

      SB – Exactly that. We’ve been massively grateful for the success of Visability in its first two years but are constantly on the lookout for something new that we can do with it. Chewfest has given us that opportunity. 

      MG – This kind of platform is perfect for emerging creatives to test out new work and new ways of collaborating and experimenting. We are very grateful to Chewboy Productions and Visability Film Festival for providing the opportunity to do that. We’ve been fans of Chewboy for a while and having the opportunity to be a part of their next project is super exciting. We can’t wait to see what the other companies taking part bring to the table! 

      And do you see the short plays themselves ever taking on their own life away from the film, or do you imagine they would always need to play together?

      SB – The hope is that by playing them together with the films we’re offering audiences something new and original. Each play definitely has the potential to stand alone and be developed further, but for me, the uniqueness of our interdisciplinary approach is what makes them so exciting.

      MG – Each theatre piece, despite being able to stand alone is intrinsically tied to the short films they were inspired by. I think there is certainly potential for these pieces to develop further independently but I think watching them alongside the films will be so much more impactful and interesting. 

      What else do you have planned after your participation in ChewFest?

      SB – This year it seems like Visability have been moving into unchartered waters at every turn. Recently we’ve been accepting applications for the VFF Short Film Fund. This is our way of giving back to filmmakers and supporting the emergence of new and exciting work that seeks to utilise film as a tool for positive societal change, by offering funding to filmmakers whose work we love. MG – Here at Yellow Hat Productions we are getting into the swing of things as we navigate the waters of company life. Our debut play Still Alive Mate by Theo Toksvig Stewart was due to premier at the Vault festival in January 2022, which was sadly postponed due to Covid 19. So we are busy working behind the scenes to bring back this much anticipated show. In the summer we are filming our first short film and are currently developing a podcast. 

      Our thanks to Sam and Maddie for the time to chat to us.

      The Adaptation Game plays as part of ChewFest on Tuesday 24 May. The festival runs from 23 – 29 May at Lion and Unicorn Theatre.

      Tickets and details of all the evenings can be found here. More

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      Interview: Going From Online to Onstage Looking for a Hat

      by

      Sam Wilde on the I Want My Hat Back Trilogy

      Think back to the dark depths of Covid lockdown: thousands of parents all over the UK were stuck at home with young children. They had to educate and entertain them, read to them, create – without access to shops or theatre. How on Earth to do that?? Then suddenly one day a bear arrived on our screens and everything changed. The fabulous picture book I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen was adapted as an online puppet show by Designer Sam Wilde and Director Ian Nicholson. Suddenly, everyone was enjoying watching it, and many of the families made their own theatres out of cardboard and scraps from around the house, filming their own stories. Two more fabulous shows followed, as creativity and fun became possible again! 

      Fast forward to this summer, and Little Angel Theatre will now be presenting the Hat Back books not on the small screen but on a full-sized stage. We were delighted to be able to ask Sam Wilde about what we might expect when the bear re-emerges from his hibernation.

      Sam, the reaction to the Hat Back shows in lockdown was simply phenomenal, wasn’t it? Just how widespread was the response?

      It certainly was, I mean, it changed everything! Not only was it seen 400,000 plus times in over 50 countries, but we were best shows of lockdown in The Stage, The Guardian, The Metro, and featured in the BBC and The New York Times. Ian got recognised in the street!

      It reminded me of how important stories and art can be. I’d been working in theatre for ten years at that point and I have to admit had become quite… complacent isn’t the right word, but I’d certainly lost a little faith. When this came along, we were all stuck inside and suddenly there was something NEW, not something big and flashy, not something that took hundreds of people and required motion capture technology, but something new that was made by three guys chatting over Zoom and with whatever materials I found lying around; something you could do too. That felt important. It felt like a declaration of the importance and power of art and the artist at a time when we could all do with a little… new. Then when we announced the next shows suddenly there was something to look forward to as well. Saying that now feels like it’s such a little thing, but at the time, for me at least, it was massive. It helped.

      It looks like you made the original set and all the characters on a shoestring, from cardboard, glue and sticks; was it all really created from such basic items? And is that how people were able to get so involved in the sensation at home?

      Absolutely! I mean, I do tend to have a lot of cardboard knocking around the house. I’ve been making things out of cardboard for years and years. I’ve got two kids and have taken the idea that “they’d rather play with the box than the toy” to the extreme, constantly making them cardboard castles, cars… I made a rabbit during lockdown so they could have a cardboard pet! But I think the first three shows cost £30 in total, and that was mainly postage (I made them in Bristol and posted them to Ian to film in his living room).

      When people started making their own shows, the joy and privilege I felt – it still makes me giddy that I was a small part of that! That was more important to me than the shows were I think.

      Cardboard is such a joy to work with, and it’s become such a big part of my life. I find such freedom in it because you don’t need special tools to work with it; you don’t need to worry about spoiling it as people literally give it away! If you’d have told me back when we did Hat Back that a year later I’d use some old cardboard boxes to do a window display at Fortnum & Masons, and then the year after that I’d take some moving boxes and make puppets for The Globe’s Christmas show… well I don’t know if I’d have believed you. I love me some cardboard. Just like me it’s all about play and questions!

      So not only do you use recyclable materials to create, but now Bear himself is being recycled, and moving up to the big stage! Is the design of the production rather more complicated now? And larger??

      Larger is without question, more complicated, and I don’t think as… simple maybe. So much of the joy of the original shows was that people found it accessible. I’m not about to take that away from the process. It’s not really a show, it’s more an offering. It’s like ‘I’ve done this, now it’s your turn, what can you do?’ We’re not hiding any tricks, everything’s on show: it’s an open book that I hope people read and borrow some of how we did it!

      That being said, we worked out there’s a new puppet about every 30 seconds of the show… so it’s by no means simple!

      And what about the cast? Have you recycled that as well?

      Ha, we do have a wonderful wonderful cast on board. Ian’s going to be doing some of the shows again of course, but he’s going to be sharing the role with the incredible Simon Lyshon, who is a joy to work with! He’s a really brave creative, always there with an offer and an idea. We’ve also got Imogen Khan, who is far from recycled, she’s brand spanking new! She is a recent graduate from Rose Bruford and is just perfect! Easily one of the top ten actors I’ve ever worked with. Everyone should hire her for everything, only don’t, because we need her!

      As wonderful as Imogen and Simon are (and they are!) I don’t think any of us would have felt right without Ian doing at least some of the shows. He’s an inspiring, driven, conscientious creative and a very dear friend. None of this could have happened without him! He’s like the Christopher Nolan of wonderfulness!

      I also just want to add a shout out to Sherry Coenen, our fantastic lighting designer, Tish Mantripp, who worked with me as a puppet maker and Alana Ashley, who assisted me on the project and is a paragon of everything I want to be as a creative: she is moral, thorough, informed, talented and above all joyful – the perfect mix of craftsperson and artist! So often, backstage roles are overlooked in the press and excitement approaching a show and they (we) are such an important part of it all, so I wanted to make sure they were all mentioned!

      Will there be musical accompaniment to the adventures in the wood?

      In the woods, the desert and under the sea! We’ve got the AMAZING Jim Whitcher back, who did the incredible music in the original production. There were times where he’d get the recording the night before it went live and he’d just make magic happen overnight!

      It’s also worth mentioning that when we made the original shows Jim and I had actually never met. We made those shows as a team of three and two of us had never even had a conversation! We have met since, and I’m pleased to say the man’s character and rhythm are just as beautiful as his tunes. I find it impossible to say enough kind things about Jim; he’s just an inspiration and a gentleman!

      This is a trilogy of the books, so are they going to be staged consecutively, one after another, or will you merge the stories into one ongoing tale?

      Ahhhh!! Now that would be telling! You’ll just have to come to see the show and find out!

      One thing that I will say is that Jon Klassen, the author and illustrator, has created three perfect, perfect books, so we’ve tried our best to add only what was necessary to put them on stage. If it’s not, broke don’t fix it!

      You published lots of online activities for the original streamed versions; will they be available for this run as well?

      Not only available but essential! There’ll be activities that are freely available for sure, but what was so beautiful about the originals is that people made puppets and did their own shows. The show lived beyond the four walls of the screen and it felt like we all – Ian, Jim, myself, the audience at home as well as everyone at Little Angel (who are without a doubt the best, most exciting, kindest and most wonderful theatre in the UK! The impact and help they offered us all, not only through Hat Back, but all of the shows and activities they provided during the pandemic should have got them all knighted!) – we all made this vast web of a show together. It felt like a collaboration with the whole planet. This time we’d love to try and get a flavour of that as well. You can make the puppets, bring them along and be part of the show with us!

      I’ve even had a haircut. The amount of people who messaged me after seeing those making videos telling me I needed a haircut was unreal!

      We’d like to thank Sam for taking the time to chat with us about this exciting new production at the Little Angel Theatre, which runs from 21 May – 31 July. The I Want My Hat Back Trilogy is aimed at ages 3 – 6 and runs for approximately 45 minutes. You can find out more about it and how to buy tickets here. More

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      Interview: We Promised To Call Back, Honest We Did

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      Ponder Productions’ Can I Call You Back at Peckham Fringe

      We have to apologise to Emily Rennie and Phoebe White, who make up Ponder Productions. We asked them if they would like to do an interview back in April, then someone in our team misplaced the email. We won’t mention names, but they have been severely reprimanded and forced to watch a West Musical as punishment. Ironically, the show in question is called Can I Call You Back?, something we failed to do originally!

      But having finally got back in touch, we were delighted to sit down with them and find out more about their show that is playing at Peckham Fringe 18 & 19 May.

      Can I Call You Back?

      It’s August 2016, one of the hottest summers on record, and Steph hasn’t left her room in two weeks. For the seventh time in eight years, her medication has stopped working. With University looming and big plans to become THE It Girl, Steph has limited time for contemplation. How did she get back to this place? Who CARES about psoriasis, anyway? And will that constant Skype call ever stop ringing? This coming-of-age comedy explores visible auto-immune disorders, female body image, and overcoming all kinds of grief. 

      The show focuses on a woman with psoriasis, an auto-immune disorder. What made you decide to follow that route?

      Emily: I’ve had severe psoriasis for over a decade – it genuinely seemed to happen to me overnight. To suddenly have a demanding auto-immune disorder that affects so many aspects of your life at age ten was tough, and at times extremely isolating. I’ve been a theatre-lover for as long as I can remember, and have always been writing things down. The idea of making a show where an awkward teenager was coping with her illness – amongst other things – was something I’d wanted to do for years but never really had the courage. Then one day I just thought: who else is going to do it but me? So I bit the bullet, and here we are!

      On top of auto-immune disorder, there are themes of female body image. How important is it to tackle this subject and hopefully show an audience that there isn’t one size fits all?

      Phoebe: The debate on how the female body should or shouldn’t look feels like an ever-changing argument I’ve heard throughout my life. I think especially for young people, the pressure to fit in, and be liked, can feel all-encompassing and when you add on the pressure to look a certain way in order to achieve that it can become a dangerous road to go down. I think a show like this one allows the audience to empathise with the character Steph as we see her buy into the beauty standards, however as she begins to deconstruct them it creates the space for audience members to allow that same empathy for themselves.

      Emily: When I first got diagnosed, I was aware I looked and felt very different to all my friends. I’d rake through all these beauty magazines desperately looking for somebody like me. It can really have such a massive impact on you, this idea of ‘perfect’ skin. There’s no such thing! Even now that I’m on medication and look relatively clear-skinned, those things can stick with you. Embracing imperfection is tough in today’s society, but it’s so important, which is something that Steph unpacks during her journey. 

      Is the play aimed at a younger audience due to those central themes or do you feel it will resonate with any audience?

      Phoebe: I believe that the play is able to resonate with most audiences. We tackle grief and body issues throughout the show as well as issues around self esteem. I believe it’s one of those shows that you will be able to relate to on some foundation either having experienced some of these themes yourself or knowing someone that has. To me the show feels very bitter-sweet and nostalgic as it reminds me of all those awkward phases I went through in school trying to figure out who I really was. We wanted to hone in on that tone and include humour and nostalgia to offset the more serious moments. 

      Is Peckham Fringe the show’s debut?

      Phoebe: So we were lucky enough to show it in the Golden Goose Theatre for a two day run back in February, which was very nerve-wracking as it was not only the first time an audience saw it, but the first time we ourselves were able to view it on a stage rather than a living room which had been our working rehearsal space. It was great to see such a warm and positive reaction from the audience and then be given this second opportunity. 

      And this festival is rather new, how important are the opportunities they provide to new theatre companies such as Ponder Productions?

      Phoebe: I believe that opportunities like this are the foundations of the theatre world. When you take a chance on a smaller show with a lesser known company I believe it always feels like a slightly more intimate experience. I myself have loved going to see work of new companies, writers, or actors and watched their show grow and blossom. It provides opportunities to get your work out there and a platform to network and to do what it is all us creatives love to do: create. 

      Emily, you write and perform the piece, but hand the directing duties over to Phoebe White – is it important to have someone else add a creative eye that way?

      Emily: It’s absolutely so important! This play wouldn’t be what it is without Phoebe’s incredible insight and input – I couldn’t do this without her! Of course it helps that we’re such close friends already, so Phoebe knows all about the challenges that come with this auto-immune condition, and how important it felt to showcase on the stage. On a practical side I think it’s also so important to have another creative eye on the project, especially if it’s a piece you’ve written. It’s easy to become blase – or even bored – with your own work. Just because we’re so used to it ourselves doesn’t mean it’ll make sense to everyone! 

      You are doing two nights, does that allow you the chance to put on a new show and test it out first before you decide where to take it next?

      Phoebe: The wonderful thing with theatre is no show will be exactly the same. As soon as the audience sits down they become as much a part of the show as the acting and directing. So much of this show is a conversation with the audience so it is imperative to find that rapport with each audience and let them into the world much like you would find the same relationship in a stand up performance. Having done this show before we were able to see any scenes that needed tweaking and it’s been a pleasure to watch Emily feed off audience reactions and try new things on the night that suit that audience.

      Emily: Audience interaction is so fun, especially in the more surreal scenes. On our last performance I ad-libbed…a lot. I’m going to have to actually stick to the script this time around.

      Thanks again to Emily and Phoebe for both their patience in waiting for us to get back to them and for the time to chat to us finally.

      Can I Call You Back plays at Peckham Fringe 18 and 19 May. Further information and bookings can be found here. More

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      Interview: From France. With Love

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      Charis Ainslie and Sibylla Archdale Kalid on This Last Piece of Sky

      This Last Piece of Sky is set across two cities, following two young people. The first is Louis, who finds himself in hospital as his family cannot cope with his behaviour, and it’s here he dreams of a girl called Sarah. The second person just so happens to be called Sarah, and she also is causing her family anguish due to her behaviour at school. But what is it that connects the two?

      The play is from French writer Kevin Keiss. But don’t panic, Charis Ainslie has translated it into English for us, and along with director Sibylla Archdale Kalid, is now bringing it to The Space next week. We catch up with both of them in this interview to find out why they think audiences are going to love this play.

      Our knowledge of French theatre is, to be honest, lacking, so we thought we’d ask Charis and Sibylla to give us a little education.

      Bonjour, mesdames… ok, that’s the limit of our French*, but we guess you speak it?

      Charis: Yes, I’ve been visiting France since my early teens and lived there for two years. As a translator, I’m working with it in written form pretty much all the time, and I’m currently working with three French writers so am getting to speak it a lot more.

      So what first attracted you both to this French play?

      Charis: I loved the mysterious feel of it. It’s quite poetic, but it also has a real sense of urgency to it. When I first read it I couldn’t wait to find out what would happen. The characters are brilliant – right from the start I could hear what the characters would sound like in English, and that’s really exciting. I particularly loved the character of Granpy. He initially comes across as a cantankerous old man, always finding fault with his grandchildren. But as soon as the family is threatened, it becomes clear that he’s fiercely loyal and will do anything to defend them.

      Sibylla: The first time I read it I was left with a lot of questions and a lot of images in my head of the key moments in the play; a TV that won’t tune in, a young person’s scribblings on a wall, a family walking to a bus stop. The text is fairly sparse and doesn’t explain itself, so it was a tantalising creative challenge to get under its skin and fill in the gaps.

      How easy is it to translate a play such as this? Do you have to alter much to keep the lyrical flow of the original?

      Charis: The writer, Kevin Keiss, uses language creatively to create the ‘other-wordliness’ of the play and in particular to convey the mental state of the main character, Louis. Louis believes he has discovered the secret of the universe, and his language expresses both his wonder – in flowing, lyrical passages – and his sense of frustration and despair – when his speech becomes clipped and truncated, marked by abrupt hiatuses. The biggest challenge was to recreate that without worrying that it sounded ‘off’ or awkward. Once I gave myself permission to recreate the strangeness of the language, I really enjoyed playing around with the poetry of it and recreating its rhythms.

      The play explores mental fragility in young people, is this a theme that is the same whether it’s France on England?

      Charis: I think it is, yes. Although Louis is depicted as a mathematical genius, there’s a truth beneath that romanticised version of neurodiversity. The isolation. The medical world’s preoccupation with diagnosis. The sense that no-one is actually listening to you and what you have to say – if you could even put it into words. There’s also something hugely relatable in the way Louis’s family responds to him – their concern, and their sense of powerlessness as they try to support him. And after the last two years there’s something universal in the feelings of isolation depicted on stage. But there’s also a sense of solace created by the unlikely friendship of these two young people, without the play ever descending to offer solutions or trite answers.

      Sibylla: I think what’s so compelling about the play is that it’s not clear that it is about mental fragility; is Louis mentally unwell, or is he on to something that the rest of us are too close-minded to entertain? Either way, as Charis says, the resulting experience of isolation is close to the bone at the moment, whichever side of the channel you live on.

      The play is set across two locations, one of which has experienced a military coup, is this based on real events or pure fiction?

      To answer this, it’s helpful to start with Louis’s experience. Louis is discovering – or at least suspects – that the universe does not operate along our accepted notions of space and time. It’s significant that, while nobody believes him, the world of the play confirms his suspicions. We’re invited to believe in a world that could be tomorrow or yesterday, that has echoes of real events but could also be presaging the future. The clues in the play don’t necessarily point to a real place or a given reality but invite us to believe in something we can’t explain. In that sense, we inhabit Louis’s world.

      Have you thought how you plan to portray two separate locations when you are at The Space?

      Sibylla: One of the challenges of staging the play has been depicting two distinct locations whilst also allowing for the increasingly fluid boundaries between them as the story goes on. Technology – a TV, phones – have been a useful way of delineating different time periods, and our design consultant, David Medina Aguila, has carefully designed the costumes to use colour and period details to indicate different times and places. The script itself also helps in this sense, as the tone and energy of the scenes set in the two places are notably distinct from each other.

      Charis: We’re also going to be exploring the connections and porosity between the two worlds through sound, music and lighting. We’re working with a brilliant Sound Designer, Raffaela Pancucci, and a brilliant Lighting Designer, Catja Hamilton, and we’re very excited to see what they come up with! There’s already a strong musical motif in the play: Louis speaks of the genius of Glenn Gould – a Canadian pianist who made a famous recording of Bach’s Goldberg Variations in the 50s – and there’s a strong parallel between them: Gould was a musical genius, and a very eccentric individual. Music is also an inherent part of Sarah’s family – her grandfather was a classical violinist. One of the most poignant scenes in the play is when the family are forced to destroy their record collection because music has been banned by the regime.

      You’re taking the play to a local school after your run at the Space, what is the reason you wanted to do this?

      Charis: We want to make theatre for young people, and we want to make it accessible to everyone. The Space has strong connections to its local community, and we wanted young people there to be able to enjoy a theatre experience they might not otherwise have – to imagine other worlds and dream a little after what they’ve been through these last couple of years. It fits with our view of what theatre is about more generally. I mean, just this week people are talking about a show that’s charging £400 for a ticket! That’s the polar opposite of what we want to do. So many small theatres are putting on great work – and the Space has an incredible programme: great theatre, great acting and shows that will echo in you long after.

      Any plans for what is next for you, or this play, after this run?

      Charis: We’d love this play to have another lease of life – not least because it’s the first part of a trilogy! And I also have another play by the same writer for younger children that I need to find a home for. It’s about a boy whose father has died, and his quest to remember his father’s voice – aided and abetted by a huge whale, two beautiful golden birds and a family of guinea pigs. What’s not to love?!

      Sibylla: Working with the cast on this play has only whet my appetite to explore this play further; it’s opened up so many possibilities and strengthened my conviction that this is a furiously timely piece of work, so we hope to bring it back to audiences soon. To continue Charis’ children’s theatre theme, I’m also in development with a BSL-integrated devised piece about a female astronaut for 7-11 year olds, which I am co-directing.

      Photos from rehearsals

      Merci beaucoup pour votre temps to Charis and Sibylla. This Last Piece of Sky plays at The Space between 17 – 21 May. The play will also be livestreamed on 17 May, and available for a further two weeks on-demand following the end of the live run. Further information and bookings can be found here.

      You can follow the play’s Twitter account here to keep up to date with any further announcements.

      * We would also like to apologise to our reviewer Jane Gian for suggesting we cannot speak French. Jane is fluent and will be even be reviewing Dom Juan at The Vaults during one of its French performances this weekend. More

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      Interview: Taking a Stroll Down Gutter Street

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      Gutter Street on bringing their Street Night to ChewFest

      We had our first walk down Gutter Street last year with Feathers. At the time we weren’t aware of the company, but the play certainly had us interested in future work. We also had no idea about their Gutter Street Nights. But Chewboy Productions were singing their praises during a recording of our podcast, and informed us that they would be taking over the Friday night of the upcoming ChewFest at Lion and Unicorn. So it seemed the perfect opportunity to delve into their world and find out just what it is that they have planned.

      It was our pleasure then to chat with co-founders, Leo Flanagan, Isobel Warner and Josh Barrow and ask, just where is Gutter Street?

      What do you have planned for ChewFest?

      We’re going to be bringing Gutter Street Nights to ChewFest. Our monthly new writing night for musicians, poets, actors, comedians and all manner of artists. We ask five featured performers to create or curate a piece of work centred around one central theme, this month’s theme is ‘Homeward’. We then do a little pub quiz and open the stage for the audience to jump up and share whatever they like on our open mic. We usually host these nights at our spiritual home of Green Note in Camden but we’re excited to travel up the northern line one stop to Kentish Town and bring Gutter Street Nights to the Lion and Unicorn Theatre!

      How have you gone about selecting the five creatives for the night?

      For this particular event we have asked five artists who have all performed with us at some point over the last few years. We usually programme creatives from those who have reached out to us or chatted to us on one of our nights. Our aim with the whole company is to build a community and develop real relationships with creatives. It’s great when someone has come down to one of our nights to support a friend and on a whim jumps up on the open mic, and then the next month they’re sharing their first bit of writing as a featured performer with us.

      Do you help with input and advice along the way?

      We don’t really involve ourselves with the writers pieces. We do strive to get at least one first time writer at every one of our nights, people who have flirted with the idea of writing something of their own but never got round to it. We’re always there for those creatives and if they would like a bit of support or guidance we’re more than happy to help and provide a bit of feedback but really the first time we’re seeing their pieces are when they’re on stage!

      Your own work is all based along your fictional “Gutter Street”, does this mean they are all based on the same dystopian world that existed in Feathers?

      All of our plays and stories do take place in our fictional ‘Gutter Street’ world, but we’ve given this world a very wide timeline of 10,000 years to fill! Feathers takes place somewhere along this timeline and we do have other plays and tales that take place around the same time, but our next story could be 1000 years before the events of Feathers. We didn’t want the plays to be direct continuations or sequels/prequals but anthologies. Individual fables that if you were to watch one on their own you’d enjoy the story presented to you, but if you had seen a few and connected with some of the moral questions, myths and background set up, you may walk away with a different experience to someone who hasn’t.  

      Is ChewFest a great opportunity to get your work seen by a new audience?

      Absolutely! We are all massive fans of the work that ChewBoy put on and when they asked us to produce one of our ‘Gutter Street Nights’ for the festival we had to jump at the chance. It’s also a great challenge to adapt from our regular venue (Green Note) which is so ingrained into the DNA of our nights to the beautiful black box space of The Lion and Unicorn. We hope that our regulars feel the vibe and personality of Green Note bleeding through at the Lion and Unicorn this month and that newcomers get a real flavour of our regular nights.

      And you promise an open mic slot at the end of your evening at ChewFest, is that something you normally do, do you get many takers then?

      We do an open mic at the end of every ‘Gutter Street Nights’ and it’s always such an energetic and exciting part of the evening, because it’s full of creatives who didn’t really expect to perform or share that little poem they’ve had written on their notes app for months, or that song they’ve had in the back of their minds. We’re never short of people who want to get up and perform, especially after watching the first five featured performers. They’ve seen the warm, enthusiastic and vocal response from the ‘Gutter Street Nights’ audience and think ‘I fancy a bit of that!’. We also film everyone’s performances so they can take it away and use it for whatever they like, which as performers ourselves, we know is really useful.  

      Gutter Street Night Audiences

      Our thanks to Leo, Isobel and Josh for their time to chat with us. Gutter Street will be taking over the Friday Night of ChewFest. Further information and bookings can be found here. More

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      Interview: Hopping on the Kindertransport to the Little Angel

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      Smoking Apples’ Molly Freeman on Kinder at Little Angel Theatre

      Kinder is an immersive new show for children, hitting the stage of the Little Angel Theatre this May. Set just before WW2, it tells the story of a small Czech-Jewish girl called Babi, who is sent away from her home on a journey to safety in the UK.

      We had a chat with Director Molly Freeman of Smoking Apples, the award-winning puppetry and visual theatre company, who have created this intriguing production, to find out more.

      So Molly, Kinder is about the Czech Kindertransport rather than the more familiar German one. Did they both happen at the same time? Why have you chosen to explore the Czech one?

      The Kindertransport in Germany and Czechoslovakia, took place at the same time, yes. This was all just before the outbreak of WW2, in 1938. The catalyst for this movement was Kristellnacht, where the Nazis undertook violent acts against Jewish people and businesses in Germany.

      A lot of people are familiar with the German Kindertransport, but Europe and the Jewish communities were very connected so word got out elsewhere that these violent acts were taking place. As a result, the British authorities allowed minors to seek refuge and enter Great Britain from Germany and German-annexed territories, which Czechoslovakia fell under.

      We wanted to explore the Czech Kindertransport for a number of reasons. Firstly, there can often be a sense of compartmentalisation with these stories, as in, ‘oh that happened in Germany because that’s where the war started’. But we wanted to reflect that the repercussions of the early situation in Germany had a ripple effect across Europe, impacting and affecting a huge number of people elsewhere. Secondly, the Czech Kindertransport was instigated by Sir Nicholas Winton, a British man, and myself and my co-artistic directors, Matt and Hattie used to live in Prague, so it felt like we would be able to tell this story from a place of understanding, in terms of the locations and cultures.

      I understand you have rather an unusual immersive space for the show. Can you tell us a bit about it and how the audience fit in?

      The space is a freestanding, self-sufficient box structure. The audience are seated inside and the performers play from the outside of the box inwards, through a series of hatches and openings. The set allows us to be completely in control of the show environment and to reflect the visceral nature of Babi’s journey; her excitement, bombardment and, at times, fear of it all. It also means that wherever we take the show, the audience can always have the same experience, whether that’s in a theatre, a community centre or a school hall.

      Smoking Apples are renowned for their fabulous puppetry work: I was very impressed with your giant walking tree last summer! What kind of puppets are in this show? And why use puppetry rather than just do a straight play?

      Ah yes, that was our Arbor, the tree! He’s pretty hard to miss! Kinder uses a combination of table-top bunraku-style puppetry, shadow puppetry and object manipulation. We are a puppetry company but we always ask ourselves ‘why puppets?’ at the start of every show. For Kinder, it allows us to jump backwards and forwards in the timeline of Babi’s story, but the form itself allows us to bring new resonance to actions. Across her journey, the actions that both Babi and the people she encounters around her are magnified and this helps the audience to focus on them as catalysts. When an actor performs an action, you read it as a whole but you may miss the importance of it because it is natural and already in human form. When a puppet performs an action, it is magnified because of the effort and care that has to be taken in order for it to do it.

      Are there any other interesting or unusual production features you can tell us about?

      In Kinder we are, for the first time, using a combination of shadow puppets, silhouette and OHP puppetry to form our overall shadow puppetry strand. This is a fairly new system of working for us but enables us to have a more film-like quality to the work.

      We’ve also taken inspiration from Czech illustrators, such as Miroslav Sasek, to create illustrated backgrounds for the shadow puppetry, so there is additional visual depth there. Czech illustration, as a broad style, is very striking and often warps scale and perception, which felt appropriate as a reflection of Babi’s young mind. We also use verbatim throughout the show, so there are segments of stories from real people who were evacuated on Kindertransport trains. The Voice/Vision Holocaust Survivor Oral History Archive kindly gave us permission to use them and the piece would be very different without those.

      What themes does the show explore? Presumably, it’s not just a bleak and depressing war story?

      Not at all! Mostly, Kinder is about hope and about how the acts of kindness that Babi encounter along the way really do make all the difference to her; in fact, they save her. Of course, there is difficult content in there and we wouldn’t be doing the story justice if we didn’t cover that, but it’s a tale of humanity, in all its various forms. For me, that’s what’s so compelling, particularly in light of the situation in Ukraine. Despite nationality, despite culture, despite race, despite religion; what binds us is that we are human and if we can hold on to that, kindness will prevail.

      You’ve made a show for older children, age 11-16, which is brilliant to see, as teenagers can often miss out on this kind of really creative, visual theatre. Is Kinder just for schools, or for wider family groups?

      We wanted to make a show specifically for teenagers because as you say, they’re often missed out.  We regularly work with young people, so something the story focuses on is this idea of identity and what that means. Teenagers are often asked to make really tricky calls on their futures; who they are, what they want to be. But ultimately, it’s sometimes OK to not have all the answers, to change your mind, or to just not know.

      We’ve also reflected the age group in the actual construction and presentation of the work. Sometimes shows can feel physically and emotionally very distant, making them hard to engage with. By placing the audience literally in the centre of the action and actively removing the preconceived notion of sitting still and being quiet, we hope that their engagement and investment will be much greater. Kinder is definitely something that wider family groups can enjoy though, and whilst we wouldn’t recommend it for younger audiences, it’s a great show for families, as familial ties are at the heart of our story and you see Babi as a grandmother, revisiting her past with her Grandson.

      What do you hope your audiences will come away with from Kinder?

      As I mentioned, Kinder is a show about hope. There are joyful parts and there are sad parts, but ultimately it is a reminder of all of the things that unite us when conflict tries to divide us. Being sat inside the set, with the show taking place around you, brings a different perspective on the work, one that we hope will resonate with our audiences. 

      I believe the show is going on a journey of its own, isn’t it? Where will your tour take you?

      We’re opening the show at the Little Angel Theatre in London and then we’ll be visiting the National Holocaust Centre and Museum in Newark (near Nottingham) before heading on to Harwich Festival. We’re planning on touring Kinder fully next year and will be visiting theatres, schools, festivals and community centres.

      Many thanks to Molly for taking the time to talk to us. Kinder is on at the Little Angel Studios from 12–14 May, and is aimed at ages 11-16. Further information and bookings can be found here.

      The show will also play National Holocaust Centre & Museum 31 May & 1 June, then Harwich Festival, Harwich on 30 June & 1 July More

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      Interview: Face Off with Fight or Flight

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      Jess Barton & Ross Kernahan on Don’t Forget My Face

      Don’t Forget My Face was such a success last year when it played at the Lion and Unicorn Theatre that they have been invited back for a second run (17 – 21 May, tickets here)

      The show sees twins Rhea and Jack share everything together, hardly ever apart. But what happens when one of them gets the opportunity to move on, and break that special bond they have always had?

      And as here at ET we aren’t afraid to jump on a bandwagon if we feel it’s going our way, we thought this would be the perfect time then to catch up Fight or Flight‘s Jess Barton and Ross Kernahan, the people behind (and in front) of the show, to find out why we should get along to see the show now we’ve been given a second chance.

      How good does it feel to get invited back to the Lion and Unicorn then?

      It feels great! As associate artists of the theatre it’s amazing for there to be a home for our work, and to have the space to experiment and play with new ideas. David [Bardy], and the rest of the L&U team, have always been incredibly supportive of us and other companies in creating the work that we want to make first! We’re so delighted to be invited back after our last run was jinxed by the Omnicron wave, and for audiences to have another opportunity to join us! 

      The show is about twins – is that something either of you have experience of? Or if not, what brought you to writing a play about them?

      We’re not twins, but we both have siblings, and there are definitely parts of our own sibling relationships written into Jack and Rhea. However we were mostly interested in the idea of two people with near identical upbringings who react to life events unfolding around them in a very different way – there’s also something fascinating in the way we can remember a shared memory so differently! We wanted their sense of shared identity to be put into flux, to challenge their similarities and begin to embrace being different people. Many of us, ourselves included, rely on family a great deal to get through modern life – we think we cannot know anyone any better – and yet these people will still surprise you about who they really are and what they share with you.

      As well as writing the play together, Ross acts (alongside Aimee Kember) and Jess directs; how easy is it to be subjective when you are so heavily involved to be able to see when maybe things aren’t quite right and need a little tinkering?

      We’ve been working together for nearly a decade now – which makes the play’s theme of turning 30 feel all too familiar! – and have learnt to trust each other’s instincts, as they’re usually very similar to what the other is thinking. We also made sure to invite an outside pair of eyes into the room –  our dramaturg, Farah Najib, came in and asked all the big questions to keep us honest.

      What has been particularly enjoyable about making this show ourselves, is the freedom to play and develop the piece as we go. We learnt a few years ago that we really enjoy challenging and interrogating a show and its characters – so we’re constantly learning and finding new things within the script. It’s always a joy when something catches us by surprise!

      For those who didn’t see the show the first time at Lion and Unicorn, what can we expect if we come this time?

      We hope you’ll laugh, and cry, and ultimately be entertained – but also come away with a different appreciation of the people who support us through life! This is a play that celebrates the small moments that exist within the really big ones, whilst also confronting how overwhelming life can be. It was important to us to acknowledge how global events – and the habit of constant media consumption, and seemingly endless doomscrolling – can destabilise a person’s mental health, and how that is a very valid experience. When combined with our own, often non vocalised personal crises such as loss, family tragedy etc it can lead to explosive and mentally damaging behaviour – which you may witness when you see the show!

      Ultimately, this is a play about questioning the version of yourself that you present to the world, learning to live with grief, and figuring out how to challenge the pressures of societal expectation!

      Have you made any major changes from the original version you put on stage the first night?

      Since our last run we’ve been able to step back and look at what worked and didn’t work as well. We never had an R&D session when creating this show, it was put together rather quickly! So our first run was extremely useful in gauging audiences’ responses, and also in revealing things to us that perhaps we didn’t see at first! Since then we have been able to look at the script and address some imbalances, refocus some themes that didn’t get the limelight they deserved, and hone the story down to be what we really wanted it to be. 

      A second run at Lion and Unicorn, so obviously some mutual appreciation between you and the venue. What is it that makes this theatre such a fantastic place to put on a show?

      The London fringe theatre scene is always evolving, and despite the incredible hardships these venues have faced over the last few years the ones that survive seem to be shifting for the better: lower/zero hire costs, more production support, more interest in new work etc – it’s great to see – but these are things the Lion & Unicorn has been doing for years thanks to its AD David Brady. Their motto ‘be who you want to be’ feels very apt – in our experience, we have always felt in complete control of the show when we are in their venue. It’s a wonderfully open place to work, and allows us and other companies to be bold and take risks, which is exactly what theatre should be doing in our opinion. We just feel incredibly lucky that the theatre likes our work and continues to support us in doing what we do. 

      Is this the last hooray for Don’t Forget My Face then, or do you have further plans for it?

      We shall see!

      And if not this show, what do you have in the pipeline next then?

      We have hopes of creating something new later in the year – although what that might be is anyone’s guess right now! We will have to see if the rest of 2022 has something that will inspire us – for better or worse! 

      Our thanks to Jess and Ross for taking time out of their busy day to chat with us. Don’t Forget My Face will play at Lion and Unicorn Theatre between 17 and 21 May. Further information and bookings can be found here. More