Interview: Josie Underwood, Follow Suit

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Silent Faces was founded at Goldsmiths in 2015 by Josie Underwood, Cordelia Stevenson and Jay Wakely, with the aim of making brave, ridiculous, unique and challenging theatre. Their show Follow Suit was nominated for the Brighton Fringe Award for Best Young Production in 2016, and now heads north to Edinburgh’s Pleasance Courtyard.

“People should see Follow Suit because it’s ridiculous and funny, with a bit of liberal rage thrown in,” says co-founder Josie. “It’s a darkly comic take on the morally neglectful world of high finance, four clowns in an office distracting themselves in the most ridiculous ways possible from the skeletons in their stationery cupboard.

“We wanted to make a show that tackled a big issue like corporate responsibility, through clown and comedy. It seems a bizarre idea to smash together clowning with corporations, but it was a challenge we were excited to undertake! We love clown and physical theatre, but also want to make work that challenges, all the while entertaining its audience.”

With just a few days to go until their Edinburgh debut, Silent Faces are looking forward to the experience, and particularly seeing audiences’ reactions to the show. “We’ve worked on this production for so long, and we are incredibly excited to share it with the wonderful audiences that flock to Edinburgh Fringe,” says Josie. 

“And there are so many other shows that we’re excited to see this year: Superbolt’s two shows, Mental by Kane Power Theatre, Gecko, Different Party and Trygve vs a Baby, and so much more. We’re also gutted that we won’t be able to see Not I by Touretteshero – which looks right up our street and we will definitely be encouraging everyone to see!”

Silent Faces aim to make their work accessible to as many people as possible, and Follow Suit was recently included in a round-up of Disability Arts International’s picks of the Fringe 2017. It does come with a bit of a health warning for younger audience members, though: “It’s not for kids, because it does get a bit gruesome, but we think anyone would enjoy Follow Suit,” says Josie. “As an integrated company of disabled and non-disabled artists, we were really keen to make work that is accessible to all adult audiences – and as a show that relies mainly on comedy and physicality, Follow Suit is accessible to an international audience.

“Above all else, we hope audiences will be entertained. While the content is in essence political, we don’t want to stand on a soap box and shove our views down our audiences’ throats. Instead we want them to enjoy the comedy, the silliness and the journey that our clowns go on.”

Follow Suit is at Pleasance Courtyard (venue 33) from 2nd-28th August (not 9th, 14th, 15th, 21st) at 12.45pm.

Interview: Jodi Burgess, SECRETS

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“We all lie,” says Jodi Burgess, founder of Secret Hour Theatre, who bring their show SECRETS to the Lion and Unicorn on 8th August. “We all try and protect ourselves. We all have more than one persona. Each of the four short plays in SECRETS responds to this behaviour. They explore why we keep secrets, their consequences, and whether our lives would really be better for telling the truth. Perhaps keeping a secret is sometimes the best option.”

SECRETS will showcase four unique pieces of new writing by emerging writers. “The pieces, consisting of two monologues and two duologues, are interwoven to create a seamless performance,” explains Jodi. “Each piece will reveal an important secret; shedding light on how secrets can excite, damage, challenge, surprise and change lives.

“The stories include a challenging black comedy about gender and the sexualisation of the female body; a grisly tale motivated by love; an edgy comedy exploring the personal life of a politician; and a heart-warming journey of a daughter’s self-discovery and acceptance.

“We hope SECRETS will be relatable, challenging and surprising. It’s also a chance to see and support the work of talented and generous writers, directors and actors.”

The show’s four writers are Gregory Skulnick, Ben Francis, Megan Fellows and Alexis Boddy. “They all met the theme SECRETS with a particularly imaginative response and, most importantly, their work felt like it needed to be told,” says Jodi. “They also stood out for their distinctive voices and for taking risks in their work. The reveal of the secret is perfectly judged in all pieces, maintaining intrigue throughout.”

Jodi’s directing one of the four – Alexis Boddy’s Mote in Your Eye – as part of an all-female directing team. “Our directors were primarily chosen for their talented approach and for being well-matched to the piece,” she says. “However, we also recognise gender inequality in the arts and we’re proud to encourage and support female talent.”

SECRETS can be seen for one night only as part of the Camden Fringe 2017, and the company are proud and excited to be involved. “We’re particularly looking forward to seeing as many of this year’s shows as we can. The festival provides such a diverse and positive experience of performance in all its forms.”

Secret Hour Theatre initially started as a solitary idea. Jodi explains, “I wanted to create a company that brings writers, actors and directors together to put new voices on stage. So I leapt into making it happen. Since the initial idea, I have been lucky enough to find and collaborate with artists who have put their faith in the concept and believed in the show.

“Our aims are to make work that is new, unusual and brave. We are particularly interested in stories that are unexplored on stage and from underrepresented voices. New writing is responsive, unique and has limitless potential. It often reflects what we are experiencing now and, as these experiences are ephemeral both on and off stage, new work will never stop needing to be explored, performed and felt in new ways. Supporting this work can only encourage new writers to continue to create it.”

Book now for SECRETS at the Lion and Unicorn Theatre on 8th August, and keep up to date with Secret Hour Theatre on Twitter @secrethrtheatre.

Interview: Henry Moss, Quadruple Threat

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Following a sell-out run at the Sydney Fringe Festival, Australian musical theatre performer Henry Moss returns to Islington’s Hen and Chickens next weekend with his one-man show Quadruple Threat. Londoners have two opportunities left to see the show described in a rave five-star review from LondonTheatre1 as a “delightful and delectable exploration of the cut-throat and ever-unforgiving entertainment industry”.

In the show, Henry – who also writes and directs – plays Sir Harry Ledgerman, a musical theatre star and national treasure, who after a public mental breakdown is desperate to revamp his career. 

Photo credit: Seann Miley Moore

“Quadruple Threat may be the campest 45 minutes of your life,” says Henry, whose influences include Graham Norton and Australian comedian Chris Lilley, of the TV series Summer Heights High. “I don’t stop to take a breath. I play egomaniac Harry Ledgerman – the struggling artist we all know, who aims to promote his tell-all celebrity memoir Quadruple Threat by hosting a series of motivational workshops – as well as his obnoxious guest speakers, LA bombshell Brandi Straussberg and quintessential Aussie bloke Bruce McDingy, who each claim they have the secret to success. I also morph into Oprah Winfrey, Hugh Jackman, Graham Norton and Dame Judi Dench.”

The show features dozens of musical theatre hits, all performed by Henry, accompanied by renowned cabaret pianist Sarah Bodalbhai. “I saw Sarah play at a hip hop gig last October,” says Henry. “I contacted her straight away and we met to discuss the show. Sarah is an incredible and versatile pianist who effortlessly improvises and segues from song to song. I am so lucky to have her accompany me. We get on like a house on fire, and the audience loves the battered and long-lasting relationship between Harry and Sarah.”

So is Quadruple Threat just a show for musical theatre fans? “Of course not,” says Henry. “It’s for any one who loves satire, has had their own series of knock backs and is intrigued by the madness that is showbiz.

“Musical theatre fans will recognise hits packed into the cabaret, but there are many pop hits from Stevie Wonder, Britney Spears, Ray Charles and Edith Piaf to name a few – that the audience recognise, roll their eyes and get the irony as I burst into these show stoppers.

“My favourite is probably my 1996 Judi Dench rendition of Send In the Clowns – it comes to Harry in the show as he feels he has ‘mis-timed his life’. There’s a hilarious tension between the tragedy of the music contrasted to Harry being so ridiculous and neurotic.”

As for Henry’s top tip for making it in showbiz? “I’ll let you know when I get there… In the mean time – a great fake tan and a whole lot of hairspray.”

Catch Quadruple Threat at the Hen and Chickens on 5th and 6th August at 3pm.

Interview: Joanna Turner, Baseless Fabric

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“Our first scene pops up in a pub or café. The opera singers look like normal people having a drink and then start singing their conversation – so for people who don’t know the performance is about to take place it’s a bit of a surprise!”

Joanna Turner is Artistic Director of UK-based promenade theatre and opera company, Baseless Fabric. Following the success of their 2016 street opera production, Drifting Dragons, they’re about to hit the high street once again with a new production of Mozart’s Cosi Fan Tutte.

“The first scene lasts about ten minutes and then the characters move to a new location, usually a supermarket or library, where they meet up with other characters for the next scene and then onto another location,” explains Joanna. “So people are free to follow the whole story of our characters around the high street or just the short section where they come across us.

“The performances take place in eight different locations across our home borough of Merton, South London, which has huge economic and social differences west to east, so allows us to bring opera directly to where people are going about their daily lives and give people who may otherwise never have the opportunity to experience opera the chance to see it. Last year we did a new opera, Drifting Dragons, inspired by local people’s stories, and had amazing reactions from people – especially those who’d never experienced opera before, didn’t know that what we were performing was opera and were astounded at how loud our singers were! It was wonderful to see their initial bemusement turn to interest and then absolutely engaged with the story and the performances.”

While Drifting Dragons was written to be performed on the high street, the audience reaction was so positive that this year the company have been inspired to try a classic. “Cosi is an opera that I know very well – I was Assistant Director on Opera North’s production a few years ago – and so I already had ideas about how to cut it down, how to re-imagine scenes in a modern context and I’d actually already directed two scenes in a site-specific context at Opera North for Leeds Light Night,” says Joanna. “We did the boys’ opening trio over a pint in the pub – which will be similar to our starting scene – and the girls’ duet, choosing which new boy to flirt with, in a library. So although re-imagining the whole opera for the high street, including cutting it down, writing a new modern English libretto and Leo Geyer arranging the music for three instruments has been a huge amount of work, it was a continuation of these ideas.”

Reducing a three-hour opera to a performance that lasts about an hour has required the team to take some ruthless decisions. “We’ve basically cut anything that doesn’t move the plot forward,” Joanna explains. “There are some gorgeous bits of music in Cosi but they don’t do anything to move the plot forward so they’ve all gone, particularly lots of arias. Most of the ensembles are in but often edited down. One of the main characters, Despina, has been cut – traditionally she’s the girls’ maid, and in a modern high street context she seemed a bit unnecessary, so that was another way to cut out quite a lot of material.”

Joanna’s no stranger to presenting opera in pop-up site-specific contexts, with freelance directing experience that includes the Cosi scenes for Opera North and a project for Welsh National Opera called Nine Stories High, the Wrexham Soap Opera: “Once a month for nine months a short opera scene happened in a high street business in Wrexham – in the shopping centre, Tescos, a bowling alley – and was also filmed and put on YouTube with a jingle so people could watch it live or online like watching a soap opera,” she says. “I loved those projects because the audiences you were reaching were different to regular opera-goers; seeing the reactions from people who’ve never heard an opera singer live before – and so up close to them – plus seeing them get caught up in the storytelling is absolutely thrilling.

“I also enjoy the logistics of promenade performance, which while crazy to work out can be so creative for the storytelling and provide such an enjoyable audience experience. So after freelance pop-up opera work that took place in one location, when we set up the company and were creating promenade theatre work, we wanted to see if we could make promenade opera happen in different places along the high street. Presenting opera in this way also allows us to make relationships with a large number of different local businesses, as the scene in each is so short, and so allows us to reach a large number of people.”

The production is free and unticketed, and the company hope to reach as many local people as possible – particularly those who’ve never seen opera before. “We really want to give people who might never otherwise experience opera a chance to do so. If you already love opera and want to come and see our re-imagining for the high street, that of course is great too, but for opera-lovers it’s aimed at people who enjoy seeing operas cut drastically and re-imagined unexpectedly – this isn’t a production for purists!”

And for those who are new to opera and may be unsure what to expect, Joanna has some advice: “Don’t worry if you can’t hear or understand absolutely all the words all the time. Opera singing is unusual and it can be difficult to hear all the words all the time if you’re not used to it, and especially as sometimes there’s different people all singing different words at the same time! We work hard with the singers to make the words as clear as we can, but don’t worry if you don’t hear absolutely all the words all the time – as hopefully, if I’ve done my job making the storytelling clear, you should be able to understand what’s going on and follow the story – just concentrate on that, and as your ears tune in you’ll hear more and more words.”

Above all, Joanna and the team are looking forward to seeing the audience’s reactions to their new production. “Last year we had such wonderful reactions from people who told us afterwards they’d never seen or heard anything like it before and really loved it,” she says. “And as we’ve been going round the different businesses to get permission to perform there this year, I’ve been overwhelmed with the number of people who’ve said last year it was absolutely amazing and they definitely want us back. So I really hope all the crazy logistics of adapting a classic to the high street work as well as our new piece and people enjoy it as much as last year – and we reach even more people who’ve never experienced opera before.”

As a company, Baseless Fabric’s aim is to engage people to see theatre and opera in unusual ways and to see the world around them in new ways: “One of our reviewers last year described us as ‘a unique company who create unique experiences’ (Everything Theatre) and that’s pretty much the best compliment we could ask for,” says Joanna. “By presenting opera and theatre in promenade and site-specific formats, we want to engage people with art forms they might not otherwise have the initial inclination or opportunity to experience, which also enables them to see and experience their local area in new ways – if you see opera in your local supermarket, or experience theatre through a mobile app while following a character through the park and hear her thoughts on what she sees (our A Secret Life in 2016), that allows you to see the world around you with fresh eyes. Opera in particular is frequently seen as elitist, expensive or not relevant and we want to show that it doesn’t have to be any of these things.

“Baseless Fabric is also a Shakespeare quotation about theatrical magic, something appearing real but isn’t and being gone in an instant, which seems appropriate for our site-specific work. One moment we’re singing in the supermarket, the next we’re gone and the supermarket is back to normal, but the people who saw us won’t forget that experience.

“We want to create work that has a strong focus with our local area, builds a relationship with the people in that area and engages them with art forms that they might not ordinarily experience. We’re a registered charity and engaging with our local community is integral to our work, whether that’s workshops teaching young people about opera, or interviewing elderly people about their memories of being a teenager, and running workshops at schools with teenagers about their relationships with their grandparents and how being a teenager differs then to now (all of which inspired our creation of A Secret Life). We’re also very interested in engaging people with their area’s forgotten history in an unusual theatrical format, and presenting work in public spaces that allows people to see those spaces and the possibilities of theatre and opera in new ways.”

Look out for Cosi Fan Tutte in various locations around Merton from 27th July-6th August. Check the Baseless Fabric website for details; all performances are free and unticketed.

Interview: Andrew Maddock and Niall Phillips, Olympilads

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Lonesome Schoolboy Productions are director Niall Phillips and writer Andrew Maddock. Following their acclaimed collaborations on In/Out (A Feeling) and He(Art), in August they return with Olympilads, a new play inspired by the legacy of London 2012, which was selected to be part of Scott Ellis’ first season as Artistic Director of Theatre N16.

“At its most base level and without giving a hell of a lot away, Olympilads is about three siblings, trying to bring their family back together under the backdrop of the Olympic Games,” explains Andrew, one of The Independent‘s Playwrights to Dominate 2017. “It’s a piece about family loyalty and about making the right decisions.

“I originally wrote the play in 2012 as an almost cynical response to the mood in London. I’m a Londoner and while I enjoyed the spirit of the Games and what it represented, I really resented the message being delivered, which was that the Games were going to leave this lasting legacy on the normal working people of London, especially our most vulnerable. Five years removed, I see lots of new buildings, new housing that only the select few can participate in. I see lots of disparity, I actually see London 2012 being a catalyst to remove a lot of people from where they were born and bred.”

Andrew wants his audiences to question the motives of the characters and put themselves in their shoes: “There are decisions made that I think in a normal, loving, safe environment, someone would never have to make,” he says. “I always want an audience member to put themselves in the shoes of a person who might not have the life they’ve had and try and see it from their perspective.”

Niall founded Lonesome Schoolboy in 2010. “Lonesome was set up with a dream to create exciting work, meet new people and be in charge of what happens next,” he says. “This industry is very tough, it’s a waiting game. I’m the least patient person I know, I want it now – so the best way was to be the person to start the process.

“The aim has never changed, to make excellent work and also to give opportunities to people starting out, the people that really want it, the driven and the passionate. We always incorporate special needs within our projects and get issues on stage we really care about. That will never change.”

Andrew continues, “I met Niall when I performed my debut show The Me Plays at The Old Red Lion. We’ve been collaborating since 2015 and I’ve enjoyed every second, we have so much in common as friends and then theatrically can have so many disagreements, in the best possible way. He challenges the way I see theatre and vice versa. But we do agree on a common thing, which is making sure we’re putting on the best possible product we can with the tools we have available to us!”

Olympilads marks the start of Lonesome Schoolboy’s summer season of new writing, which also includes the premiere of Turkey by new associate writer Frankie Meredith. Niall explains: “So we have two brand new plays that we are delighted to be bringing to the stage. But alongside that we are offering the free workshops that get loads of people together and making work!”

“These are just something we wanted to do to meet new likeminded people,” adds Andrew. “We cast two parts in Olympilads straight out of the workshop. I’m not a massive fan of ‘auditioning’ as someone who entered the industry as an actor, I find it a crap process. I also see a lot of the same faces when we put something out for an audition, and I really want to be as diverse as I can in our choices. I always want to see the right person for the part, but from a broader spectrum.

“I want to see people work in the room with other people, I want to know who they are as a person. Especially as we make and produce our own work, we answer to nobody at the moment – which means I can meet an exciting actor, have an idea for their voice and get about writing it. Olympilads went through a complete rewrite, simply based on our casting. I’m really excited about it.

“So why should people take part? We’ll always have a free workshop in our line of activities, so it’s accessible and it’s a chance to meet other people, network and interact. It’s kind of the whole reason why I wanted to get into this profession.”

“We’ll also be doing Q&A sessions and new writing nights based on the pieces we will present,” concludes Niall. “We want to get out there and get to know loads of creatives, make new friends and spread the positive vibes that sometimes this industry drains out of you.”

Olympilads runs at Theatre N16 from 8th-26th August.