new writing

Mythosphere, Stone Nest

Mythosphere: Magical Russian-UK theatre production opens at Stone Nest | Stage Chat

by Laura Kressly

This luxurious, multimedia production about magical worlds, the ability to access them, and how society as a whole regards magic is a sensory feast and provokes reflection on the status quo. However, it has a troubling heart. In the programme notes for Mythosphere, director, writer and producer Inna Dulerayn explains how she was inspired by Leonora Carrington, a surrealist artist and activist. Dulerayn writes, “reading about her experience in a mental asylum made me look deep into the nature of mental disorders, discovering their similarities with states of spiritual enlightenment and the phenomenon of extrasensory abilities”. This comment, and the show’s story, make it clear that underlying the production’s beautiful exterior there are dangerous ideas about mental health that could have scary repercussions.

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Feature | Bringing Characters to Life

https://images.cm.archant.co.uk/resource/responsive-image/8290230/article-lead-image/lg/4/image5.jpg

by Laura Kressly

Passion Fruit is very much Dior Clarke’s story, but it’s not a solo performance. Though the first rehearsal I observed consisted of the director Melina Namdar solely working with Clarke, the second included actor Hayden Mampasi, who takes on a varied collection of supporting characters. In this rehearsal, director Melina Namdar uses a range of exercises to develop Mampasi’s characterisations and ensure the people he plays are distinct from each other. It’s an intense day full of work on the details that bring characters to life on stage, showcases Namdar’s expansive director toolkit, and the techniques that actors use to bring characters to life.

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Small Changes, Omnibus Theatre

Theatre review: Small Change at Omnibus Theatre

by Diana Miranda

Both Barrels Theatre’s revival of Peter Gill’s 1976 Small Changes looks back to postwar Cardiff through the eyes of two Catholic, working-class families. Gill’s narrative provides a layer of evocative lyricism scattered throughout the memories of two men, giving a poetic undertone to a realistic play.

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Afterparty, Edinburgh Festival Fringe

It's the humanity which counts': AFTERPARTY – Edinburgh Fringe | My Theatre Mates

by Diana Miranda

A group of friends gets ready for the party of a lifetime once their exams are over. The occasion calls for the opportunity to dress up, drink up, and get carried away by summer plans as the stepping stone for the future. The party scales up, and they end up breaking into their school. Blackout. Not the theatre kind. The drunk kind.

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For All the Love You Lost, Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Fundraiser by Morosophy Productions : Morosophy Productions goes to Edinburgh Fringe!

by Diana Miranda

Written and directed by Joshua Thomas, For All the Love You Lost is a sincerely moving piece coloured by passages of spoken word poetry and physical theatre. Despite focusing on contemporary dating, it succeeds in portraying the emotional value in connections beyond romantic love.

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Plasters, Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Interesting & heartfelt': PLASTERS – Edinburgh Fringe | My Theatre Mates

by Diana Miranda

This piece of new writing follows a young woman (Emma Tadmor) who explores what loving someone means as she tries to make sense of her relationship’s crumbling. The story unravels through metatheatrical transitions spread throughout the show that allow her to navigate the issue as herself and as the character she plays. She is joined by her partner (Julian Chesshire) during a show’s rehearsals that depict a couple who recently moved into a new flat. It’s a bit difficult to tell the difference between when they’re in character and out, and it takes a while to understand the relationship’s subplot when they’re off stage. However, the main essence is clear in both scenarios: the failure to communicate their feelings and the bitterness and frustration that entails.

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May Queen, Paines Plough Roundabout

MAY QUEEN - Paines Plough

by Laura Kressly

Leigh’s doing her GCSEs but all she and the girls at school can talk about is the upcoming May Day event, where Leigh’s playing the May queen. She can’t wait to wear the dress she was allowed to choose herself, and wave from the float whilst the entire city of Coventry comes out to watch. What she doesn’t realise is that at 16 years old, Leigh’s had enough of boys and men consuming her body.

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Lovefool, Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Lovefool – Bread and Roses, London - The Reviews Hub

by Diana Miranda

What does dating mean for someone who grew up when cassettes were a thing and fell in love before the era of dating apps? Rachel has just separated from her husband and is back at her mum’s, surrounded by boxes containing memorabilia from the nineties. Among those treasures, she re-discovers Sugar magazine, the ultimate guide to tackling dating. However, being single some twenty years later – when Bumble replaces phone calls – poses a few challenges. 

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Feature | Making Passion Fruit

PASSION FRUIT Tickets, Multiple Dates - London | OutSavvy

by Laura Kressly

Despite the best of intentions, working with friends doesn’t always turn out well. It can lead to crossed boundaries, arguments, and environments that make others uncomfortable. Work can be sidelined by inside jokes and messing about. Additionally, being mates doesn’t mean you have the same creative vision. However, none of this is the case with actor/writer Dior Clarke and director Melina Namdar. The close friends and creative associates are working together on the premiere of Clarke’s autobiographical, coming-of-age story Passion Fruit, about growing up in north London as a Black, gay man.

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Madhouse, Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Edinburgh Fringe set to return for 2021 festival

by Diana Miranda

Welcome to the madhouse, a place of chaos and confusion, typical of student house-sharing. A group of six friends gives a bittersweet glimpse of early adulthood, a path as messy as the kitchen table around which they party, study, and share their stories.

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