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    Interview: Delving into the darker side of hospitality

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    Lia Burge on her Vault Festival show, Crying into Bins

    Our latest interview for the upcoming Vault Festival is with Lia Burge. In February Lia is bringing her show Crying into Bins to the Festival, which is all about working in hospitality. The show is a spoken word performance full of the horrors Lia has seen first hand. We’re sure it’s one that will resonate with many people who have found themselves in the service industry at one time or another, and even if you don’t have that experience, we reckon it could be a real eye opener! If nothing else, we reckon you should go just to find out about the Margaret Thatcher memorial dinner!

    Crying Into Bins is playing 11, 12 and 18 February and you can book those tickets here.

    Crying into Bins is quite the title. What was the inspiration behind it?

    My friend had a full-on nervous breakdown at the end of a shift one night – just cracked. She was fingering béarnaise sauce out of ramekins into a food waste bin at the time (an activity anyone who’s worked in hospitality will recognise with a withering groan). The next think we knew she was on the floor sobbing, shaking – the works. It was simultaneously one of the funniest and most disturbing things I’ve ever witnessed. 

    And what can people expect if they get along to see the show in February?

    Something a bit different in terms of style I think. Somewhere between theatre and spoken word poetry. In any case, plenty of laughs and a lot to think about. I wrote it to offer a bit of catharsis to hospitality workers, and to explore how working in service can change and shape you as a person. 

    So, is it all based on things you really saw and experienced whilst working in hospitality or have you used some creative licence to embellish a few events?

    There are things in the piece that people will think I’ve made up. But I’m sorry to say that every single story, quote and moment of Crying into Bins is true and happened either to me or one of my colleagues.

    Care to share any of the real horror stories you experienced then which we might hear about in the show?

    If we’re talking tangible horror, my first thought is the time a pigeon got into the venue and was shot down with a BB gun just before the guests arrived. Its blood and guts smattered over 1500 champagne glasses we’d just laid out to pour. But if we’re talking psychological horror, I’ll just say these four words: Margaret Thatcher memorial dinner… You’ll have to come to the show to find out what happened with that one.

    Is it your first time performing in something you’ve written then? What made you decide it was time to write your own show?

    It is. I’ve been avoiding the obligatory ‘one woman show’ for years. I love being in a company, and I could never seem to write a decent play anyway, so it never appealed. But when I got into spoken word in 2018, I found a format that made sense for the way I write, and people really seemed to respond to the way I performed my poetry. It’s just storytelling really, but it has an extra bit of magic that brings it to life. I realise now all the training and my experience with Shakespeare and modern rhythmical plays must have sunk into my soul over the years!

    We’re big fans of spoken word – do you feel this is a theatre genre that is getting more popular at the moment?

    I do think spoken word is getting more popular, and it’s a real mixed bag out there. There are incredible life changing poets like Salena Godden and Kae Tempest, and then there are just people getting up and speaking their truth into a microphone. The latter isn’t often high art, but I think it’s popular because it facilitates creative expression. I’m sort of playing around with the standard ‘spoken word’ delivery and pushing back a little against the penchant poets seem to have for trying to imitate Kae – who is extraordinary… but inimitable. I love poets who use their own voice to tell their story – that’s what’s interesting to me. 

    You have taken part in Hammer & Tongue’s National Slam competitions. What are they then and how does taking part in those compare to putting on your own show?

    Well, a poetry slam is where competitors have three minutes to speak their poem – no singing, no props, no music. Usually the audience will be doing the scoring, so whether you win or not can have a lot to do with who’s out there! For me, it all started by accident when I told a poet friend of mine a story about an unfortunate toilet accident on the back of a horse during the Euros in 1996. She said “that’s a slam winning poem, write it!” I wrote it, I won my first slam, and then I was off! There is of course something more terrifying about getting up there as yourself as opposed to a character in a play. But once you’ve done your bit you can sit down again! Putting on your own show is a massive pressure in so many ways, but I’m looking forward to bringing the two worlds together and seeing what happens.

    Are the Vault dates the first outing for the show or have you been testing it out elsewhere?

    I’ve tested out bits and pieces at poetry nights and at a brilliant scratch night called Scratch Meet in Brighton, which I highly recommend. To be honest I did it to get my friends off my back about writing the piece in full, but the response was great – I think that’s because so many people have worked in hospitality over the years, which makes it highly relatable.

    And as the show is about hospitality, when you are a big star of the stage what would you like included in your own rider?

    Hahaha! I’m not sure… sparkling water? Whatever it was, I’d thank the person who brought it to me effusively.

    Thanks to Lia for taking time out of her day to chat to us. Crying into Bins plays at Vault Festival on 11, 12 and 18 February, at 3.10pm each day. More information and bookings can be found here.

    You can also keep up to date with Lia and hear about forthcoming shows via her Twitter account here. More

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      Interview: Let’s Take A Brief Moment For This

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      Writer Judi Amato talks to us about For a Brief Moment and Never Again Since

      When we came across Judi Amato‘s honesty in talking openly about the financial challenges faced in bringing a show to the VAULT Festival it certainly caught out attention, raising that always tricking subject of money and the arts. It seemed a good enough reason to grab some time with Judi to chat about her upcoming show For A Brief Moment and Never Again Since, to find out not just about the financial difficultes but more importantly, the show itself.

      Hi Judi, Could you introduce yourself and tell us a little about the show?

      My name is Judi Amato and I’m the writer and producer of For a Brief Moment and Never Again Since. The play revolves around a young couple and how their lives are affected when one of them goes to jail for a highly publicised crime. The play aims to offer an insight into the complexities of relationships within the prison system, and how the family members of convicts are often assumed to share their guilt, to have known about their crimes or to condone it somehow.

      Was there a particular case or incident that inspired the show then?

      I came across a podcast by a woman whose husband was in prison. Throughout the podcast she mentioned again and again the stigma and backlash she’d been facing since her husband’s arrest: the constant accusations of having been complicit, of having enjoyed the results of his crimes, the way even some family members had become suspicious of her. This prompted a wider research into crimes and the way the family members of convicts (and in particularly women) are often dragged through the mud and looked at with suspicion based on the assumption that “they must’ve known”. I can remember cases in which I myself have thought “well there is no way you wouldn’t notice if your spouse did this”. Why would I think that? Why would anyone? That’s the assumption I wanted to question in myself and others. So the play wasn’t inspired by a particular case, but rather by the fallacy of guilt by association itself.

      The show is directed by Lisa Miller who is on her third season directing at Vault Festival. That sounds like some great experience to have onboard?

      Photo Credit @ Henry Roberts

      Lisa is an incredible human. Having her on board as director and dramaturg has been the best part of this generally incredible experience. She is passionate, brilliant, and she loves the play. Her background and lived experiences share similarities with the characters’, so she brings a real honesty to it. You can tell she wants it to be the best it can be, and that she’s putting her whole heart in it – and donating her time. Someone like her did not need to do that. I’m grateful to have her. And since this is my first experience and I’ve found myself having to produce the play, her knowledge has made the process a thousand times easier.

      We’d love to ask about a Tweet you posted recently

      We are about 80 tickets from breaking even. At times it feels daunting, at times it feels within reach. Both times I’ll talk about it, because maybe I wouldn’t be so scared if other creatives had talked to me about the process. #openbooks #theatremaking— Judi (@Judi_Writes) January 5, 2023

      What are the challenges that a show like yours faces in coming to the VAULT Festival?

      Honestly there’s a million challenges. Your first time showcasing your work is bound to be nerve-wrecking. Now add the lack of funding, and all of a sudden you are wearing all the different hats. I can’t focus on the jitters because I have to produce, invite people, monitor our sales, ensure complete transparency in our books, do all our P&P… It’s overwhelming. I wake up and check our income. I’ve been picking up a lot more shifts at work just in case we don’t break even. All the while I am teaching myself how to do all these things. So it can be extremely challenging. But I have to say, we’ve been lucky because we’ve had some complete strangers offer their help. So it has also shown me there’s a lot of solidarity between new creatives.

      As for the tweet you mentioned… People will showcase their wins and hide their losses. It’s self-preserving, and it makes sense when we are constantly judged on how much we achieve. But it’s extremely discouraging for people trying to get into the industry. If nobody talks about the rejections, the months you are too drained to write, the terror of losing all of your money if you don’t break even, then people like me coming into the industry might think they are the only ones experiencing it. They might feel very alone, or scared to ask for help – because if nobody else is struggling, then surely that means you are the one doing it wrong. But I’m too much of an oversharer to keep the process for myself, so I’ll be as honest as I can and hope it helps someone out there – and if I take a hit because of it… I think it’s still worth doing.

      Is this a conversation that you think should be happening more widely among creatives to help or even just reassure younger or up and coming creatives?

      Absolutely. New creatives are making such a difference in the industry anyway – they cast differently, they talk about money more openly, advocate for more diversity at all levels. But we’re also all fighting against the fact that there’s hardly any space for us, and even less money going around. So of course talking about your struggles feels terrifying, because if people begin to see you as “weak”, then there’s a hundred other people desperate to do what you do. But when you do talk about it absolutely makes a difference. And if we all start doing it, then that shows the downside of the industry – but also that you can overcome it, and that struggling doesn’t change your worth.

      Photo Credit @ Henry Roberts

      Photo Credit @ Henry Roberts

      How have rehearsals been so far?

      We had one rehearsal at Stratford East – the venue donated the space to us, and it was an amazing place to rehearse in. We got to take some incredible rehearsal shots in a place that looked and felt lively and professional, so we are very grateful for their help. All our other rehearsals have been at The Questors in Ealing. I wrote to them shortly after being denied funding, terrified of having to find affordable spaces in London to rehearse, and they couldn’t have been more accommodating. They gave us an amazing price, they let us rehearse later than their closing time, and have generally been brilliant help for us. We’ll be back.

      What’s next for you and for For A Brief Moment?

      Exciting news – we’ve been offered a transfer to a theatre for a short run! I’m not sure I can be more specific at the moment, but follow our socials for the announcement coming soon.

      Finally, do you have any recommendations for other shows to check out at VAULT Festival?

      SO MANY. Caligula and the Sea, Butchered (check out our interview here), Honour-Bound, Caceroleo, Hyena, Thirst, Right of Way, Sluts with Consoles, In Good Spirits, I F*cked You in My Spaceship, The Good Women, Gray Area, No I.D. – I’ll have to clone myself to see them all!

      Our thanks to Judi for taking the time to have a chat with us. For a Brief Moment and Never Again Since plays VAULT Festival 2023 on 28 and 29 January. Further information and tickets can be found here. More

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      Interview: A Bucket Load Of Butchery

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      Nic Lawton and Ezre Holland on Butchered.

      We were excited by Expial Atrocious‘ trailer for BUTCHERED which plays the first weekend of VAULT Festival (28 & 29 January). Defying the the old aphorism about watching the sausage being made we caught up with co-artistic directors Nic Lawton and Ezra Holland to find out a little more about their show, their experiences with butchery and some of their VAULT Festival highlights.

      [embedded content]

      First off, tell us a bit about BUTCHERED? What can audiences expect in the Vaults in January?

      “BUTCHERED” is a physical, absurdist horror unlike anything you’ve seen or heard before. Set in a dingy kitchen basement, Master Sausage only knows one thing. Eat, sleep, sausage, repeat. They cannot imagine their life beyond the butchery. But when a babbling, fresh-faced Apprentice arrives, a harsh reality is brought with them. As tensions rise, sinister questions rear their heads. What does it mean to be happy? Is there more to life than this? What’s in those sausages anyway?

      If audiences want to see a show that is visually and audibly immersive and will leave them thinking “what the f*ck?”, then have we got the show for you… Expect stomach-churning sound design, a heart-felt reimagining of absurdist theatre and the want to have a shower afterwards.

      Have either of you worked in a kitchen – should we be worried that “BUTCHERED” might be based on your real-life kitchen experiences?

      Ez: I worked in my mum’s cafe when I was younger but luckily the kitchen in BUTCHERED isn’t one that we would experience in real life (or at least you hope it wouldn’t) However, I did make a trip to my favourite butchers at Greendale Farm Shop down in Devon to learn how sausages are made and it was certainly an eye opening experience. The butchers there were incredible and even let me go into the big carcass room! It was amazing but I wouldn’t be surprised if they were slightly confused by my enthusiasm!

      “BUTCHERED” is less about haunting kitchens and more about the things that haunt our characters. Being stuck in an endless work cycle, struggling to voice your passions and doing what you need to do before you can do what you want to do are some of the main themes in the show – themes that we feel everyone can relate to in some way.

      BUTCHERED is the second show from Expial Atrocious, right?

      Yes, our first show as a company was a digital production we wrote, filmed and edited ourselves called Hear. Speak. See. for Edinburgh Fringe’s online festival in 2021. It’s a very weird and wonderful show and spearheaded our journey to find our niche. We started leaning into the horror side of theatre from that point, and after a long discussion about creating a thrilling narrative, poignant imagery and a shockingly emotional conclusion in a room full of whiteboards, “BUTCHERED” was born. It’s Hear. Speak. See.’s big, scary brother and we adore it.

      It sounds to us like playing the “Pit” in The Vaults might fit really well with your themes and your atmosphere, would that be fair?

      That’s spot-on! As the show is set underground, this will be the first time we’ll get to perform it beneath the surface… We can’t wait to truly immerse the audiences at VAULT Festival in the world of Master Sausage and their Apprentice, in the place where our show is meant to be. It’s dark, it’s dingy, it’s home.

      Photo credit @ Moments to Media

      Photo credit @ Moments to Media

      In 2022, BUTCHERED went to Edinburgh Fringe, how did that go? Have you continued to develop the show since then?

      Edinburgh Fringe was the best experience we’ve ever had. We had a blast and audiences from varying backgrounds and theatrical tastes took something from the show, which is exactly what we were hoping for! This may be a monster of a show with what seems to be a slightly ridiculous premise, but the message is universal and important.

      The show will always receive tweaks here and there, and Edinburgh was a great time for us to receive feedback, especially from fellow artists who we met there and are still in contact with today. Overall, Edinburgh was filled with happy crying, lots of nerves and a bucket load of butchery and we couldn’t have asked for a better experience to kickstart the show!

      Your trailer highlights some of the physical storytelling in BUTCHERED and suggests plenty of work has gone into your choreography, can you talk a little about that?

      We love working physically when devising, and we thrive in the development of finding a language for a performance. “BUTCHERED”’s language contains a heaping of dynamic physical theatre, an abstracted sense of time and is set to a killer soundtrack. We’re all about the sounds and the visuals in this show, as we relish in creating lasting moments for our audiences while presenting the familiar in unfamiliar ways. That’s a big part of our company’s practice – showing how the scariest being on the planet doesn’t live under your bed. The monster is man itself.

      What’s next for both BUTCHERED and for Expial Atrocious?

      We had a small taste of Edinburgh Fringe last year and are hungry for more. We’ve got plans to make “BUTCHERED” even bigger and better and have a longer run at EdFringe 2023. We’d also love to tour the show to venues who support new writing, fringe theatre and something very out of the ordinary.

      As for the company, we want to keep pushing and making even more nightmarish theatre.

      Finally, do you have any recommendations for other shows to check out at VAULT Festival?

      We recommend Holly Delefortrie’s Sex-Ed Revisited, (you can find our interview with Holly here) “Caceroleo” by Rhys Hastings and Nastazja Domaradzka, “Sluts with Consoles” by our good friends Dogmouth Theatre and the incredible Ugly Bucket with their techno, emotional masterpiece “Good Grief.”

      Our thanks to Nic and Ezra for finding time to chat with us. Butchered plays VAULT Festival 28 and 29 January, further information and tickets can be found here. We are looking forward to meeting Master Sausage so do check back for our Everything Theatre review. More

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      Interview: Lining up with Emilia Teglia

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      Emilia Teglia chats about On The Line

      Writer and Director Emilia Teglia has developed On The Line with participants from Camden’s Action Youth Boxing Intervention. It plays at Stanley Arts in January and VAULT Festival in February, and we caught up with her to find out more.

      Tell us a little about On The Line. What can audiences expect?

      You’ll be hanging out with Tia and Kai, lifelong friends who’ve grown up on the same council estate. They’ll chat to you about that mad day they skipped school to go to the new schoolmate Sienna’s mansion – because “someone’s got to check it ain’t just Tik Tok filters” – and how their lives changed forever that day.

      On the Line is a Gen-Y play. It’s fast-paced with twists and turns, wit, deep themes, banter and emotion, and all told in contemporary London slang. It’s immediate and honest. It’s a bit like scrolling through your Instagram feed but it’s real. It’s based on the real experiences of a group of young people from Camden’s Action Youth Boxing Intervention.

      (c) Alex Brenner

      On The Line deals with a lot of socially relevant themes. Can you give us some insight into these and the importance of sharing them?

      It’s about growing up at the bottom of the social ladder whilst having to negotiate life-long loyalties, family values, aspirations, and handed-down generational trauma. It’s also about the real barriers to social mobility, the complex experiences of individuals behind the statistics. In Camden, like in other areas of London, the rich and poor gap is widening but is not unusual to see a student from a very wealthy family sitting next to a student living in poverty.

      The awareness is painful. Armani*, an outspoken sixteen-year-old girl living in an overcrowded situation, put this plainly during the writing process: “Our school is basically a prison for poor kids with the random children of famous leftie actors or Labour politicians.” Her brother Tyrese*, who has ADHD and a history of gang affiliation, talks about some of the richest streets in the borough. His eyes sparkle as he describes the flashy ‘whips’ (cars) and the ‘cribs’ (houses). Then he gets gloomy. He says: “this level of rich makes me feel sad. There’s people who’ve got too much, and we got jack.” All this is in On The Line, verbatim.

      You have a fabulous promo image for your show – it really caught the team’s eye here. How did the design come together?

      I’m glad you are curious about the image. People say it makes total sense after watching the play, so I’m not going to give too many spoilers.

      Photo: Paul Grieve, Giorgia Valentino  Design: Max Batty

      Like the rest of On The Line’s creative process, the design developed collaboratively. We wanted to show the ‘fish out of water’ essence of the story and at the same time the grit and the harshness of Tia and Kai’s background, as well as their playfulness. For the photo, I approached Paul Grieve, a street photographer that has a talent for capturing defiance, humour and tenderness in his portraits of everyday people. That was important because we also needed to convey the amazing friendship between the two protagonists and their ‘one front’ against adversity. Props were lent by friends and sourced by our amazing Assistant Stage Manager Andreea Pieleanu. We shot on Chalcots Estate in Camden, the actual setting of the play. Our leading actress Giorgia Valentino, who is also an incredibly talented portrait photographer took the headshot of Zacchaeus Kayode which ended up in the final image. Then Max Batty did the magic with his graphics. Max has been designing Odd Eyes Theatre’s posters and book covers for the past ten years and was immediately on board with the concept and aesthetic. It takes a village…

      On The Line has been touring around schools and we’ve seen some great feedback. How has that been, and are there any differences between playing in schools and playing in theatre venues?

      Huge differences! To begin with, theatre audiences come with a completely different attitude. They’ve bought their ticket and are determined to have a good time, a return on their investment. They’re easy. They respond, react, suspend disbelief immediately and get lost into the world of the play.

      In schools, we are playing to groups of teenagers who have often only experienced theatre as part of their statutory education: they are somehow compelled to watch it: it’s not a choice. So that’s already setting their attitude in a different way. They sit down, legs stretched, arms crossed or in their pockets, looking unfazed with a ‘show me what you’ve got’ kind of attitude. And then they hear the language, they start to get the story, the familiar Drill and R&B tunes come up, they get the jokes. You see them start leaning forward, elbowing each other, laughing, gasping, and they can’t get enough of it. Teachers turn to the low achieving students to ask the meaning of some of the words. It’s all in London slang – finally something they’re masters at.

      Most importantly, school performances are followed by Odd Eyes’ Creative Debate workshops. The students have a chance to let us know what they think of the issues in the play and develop scenes and short plays based on their response to the story and on their personal experience. Some of their stories go on to be developed professionally, and this is how On The Line was developed.

      Finally, what is next for On The Line and Odd Eyes Theatre?

      More theatre and school tours and a screen adaptation of On The Line. The film will be another great opportunity to involve young people in the rewriting process and as cast. Funders, producers and schools interested in partnering with us, get in touch!

      *Names have been changed to maintain confidentiality

      Our thanks to Emilia for taking the time to chat with us. You can find out more information about Odd Eyes Theatre on their website.

      On The Line plays at Stanley Arts on Thursday 19 January (tickets and info) and VAULT Festival on Saturday 11 February (tickets and info). More

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      Interview: Crowdfunding Buff

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      Scott Le Crass on bring Buff to Vault Festival via crowdfunding.

      Fresh from success with Harry’s Christmas at the King’s Head Theatre, director Scott Le Crass is crowdfunding for his next project, Buff at VAULT Festival. We caught up with Scott to talk about his next show, find out about the challenges that small shows face right now, and the support that VAULT Festival gives to all the artists bringing shows to the festival this year.

      It’s great to have a chance to chat Scott. Could you introduce yourself and tell us a little about Buff?

      I’m a queer, working class director and dramaturg from Birmingham. I’ve directed quite a few one person plays, notably last year Rose at Park Theatre [see our five star review here] and Harry’s Christmas at King’s Head Theatre as well as Sid back in 2016. I’m interested in the actor/audience relationship in one person pieces. I’m interested in creating intimacy, a sense of voyeurism and a time that feels like just having a chat with someone, or watching a piece of stand up. 

      Buff is a play which the writer, Ben Fensome, and I have been developing for several years, but due to the pandemic and other reasons has had several false starts. We’re over the moon that we finally have an opportunity to premiere it at VAULT Festival. Buff is about a plus-sized gay man who has recently come out of a long term relationship. He tries to start navigating the dating world via apps, but is presented with toxic attitudes about body image. It’s about (and for) the gay people we don’t see onstage. It’s very funny and poignant. 

      Can you give us some insight into the journey of development that the script has been on?
      Ben and I had previously collaborated on his play Every Seven Years back in 2016 at the New Wimbledon Studio and we’d built a good working relationship. We hadn’t seen each for a while, but caught up one day over a cuppa as I’d had an idea for a play, and it just so happened Ben was writing a play about a very similar thing – that was Buff’s conception (we actually went through several other titles before arriving at Buff). Ben wrote a first draft, we read through it together, I shared my thoughts and he then redrafted the play. After that we did a reading with an actor, which was really useful and allowed another redraft to take place. It’s been quite a spread out process, but I think it’s important with new work not to rush a play’s development. 

      There is a Kickstarter running at the moment to support Buff’s visit to VAULT Festival. What are the challenges that a small show like this faces? How much have those challenges increased in the current economic climate?

      We do have a Kickstarter campaign running. Here is a shameless plug!

      The challenge with small shows is that lots of people are fundraising. You need to get potential backers to believe in your production in order to get behind it. Also your project needs to stand out. For me, I only try to work on plays that I believe in and which say something important about the world we live in. I hope that a potential supporter can see the need for Buff to be told and champion us. 

      Money is tight for a lot of people at the moment, so asking them to donate at a time like this presents an added challenge. Ben and I hadn’t intended on producing the play, but… here we are. That’s another story.

      We’ve created our crowdfunder to make sure that Buff simply happens. It’s not flashy in terms of production values; it’s a story which doesn’t need to rely on that. Our campaign is to pay the team and book rehearsal space. We are not paying ourselves at it currently stands. This is an added personal challenge for Ben and I. As a working class artist I don’t have the luxury of wealth to put on my own work. Without the luxury, it has embedded a resourcefulness from making a little go a long way. 

      We’ve seen a lot of shows turn to crowdfunding recently and this is the second time you’ve run a Kickstarter project yourself. Do you think we’ll see more of this in the future or do you think this is a blip due to the current cost of living crisis?

      I haven’t done a crowdfunder in a long time, and that feels very telling. Unfortunately, I think Kickstarters and other fundraising initiatives are something we are going to see a lot more of. Aside from Arts Council funding, it’s one of the few immediate ways that working class artists can make new work without a producer. 

      Could you talk a little about VAULT Festival? We’ve seen you mention them giving advice and support. How has it been bringing Buff to the Festival?

      VAULT is a wonderful festival that presents a great range of new work, in, around and under the arches in Waterloo. Their team is very supportive in every aspect of your production, from marketing through to tech. We went through an application process, which is very thorough and competitive, so we are hugely grateful for VAULT in taking Buff forwards. 

      You directed Harry’s Christmas which finished at the King’s Head Theatre on Christmas Eve. There were some great reviews including one from original author Steven Berkoff. Can you reflect a bit for us on the whole experience?

      I’m still processing the whole experience. Having Steven Berkoff see the play and be highly complimentary about my reimagining was very humbling and reassuring. I’m chuffed with the reviews and the nominations, but the audience feedback really confirmed that I’d achieved what I’d set out to do – make them think about the Harrys they know, or to reach out if they are themselves Harry. I’m very proud of what Stephen Smith [the performer] and I have made. 

      Finally, are there more plans for Buff after the VAULT Festival? And what about yourself? We know you had a really busy 2022 directing seven productions, is 2023 going to see you just as busy?

      We’d really like to take Buff further, but nothing is confirmed yet. If any theatres out there would like to give it a home then get in touch. I’ve got another show at VAULT called Thirsty by Stephanie Martin, which is a lovely new four person play about a women who has just come out of her first same sex relationship,  as well as Merboy which is a queer retelling of The Little Mermaid at The Omnibus with Campfire Theatre. 

      Our thanks to Scott for taking time to chat with us. If you’d like to help him and the team out with Buff, here is that Kickstarter link again. We wish them all the best with the crowdfunding and with the show.

      Buff plays VAULT Festival on 31 January, 1-2 and 18-19 February. Further information and tickets can be found here. There’s also more information from Buff on Twitter. More