spring/summer season 2018 - Bristol Old Vic Theatre School

SPRING/SUMMER SEASON 2018

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WELCOME

CONTENTS

When looking through our latest

Back in more traditional theatre

brochure we hope you get as excited

surroundings, the Directors’ Cuts Season

as we are about the Spring/Summer

returns to the Wardrobe Theatre with

season – an exciting new venue,

contemporary work by Richard Bean, Jack

classic tales, heroic adventures,

Brunger, Philip Ridley, and Sam Steiner.

challenging relationships and a

Showcasing the brilliant MA Drama

boundary-pushing collaboration.

Directing students in a season of cutting-

Enjoy the work of our production

edge theatre.

Redgrave Theatre Percival Road Clifton Bristol BS8 3LE

and acting students in a wide variety of venues - in this packed

Our students can once again be seen on

season from January to July.

tour across the region. Firstly in Beowulf, which has been created especially for

We are thrilled to welcome back Bill

young audiences by Toby Hulse. In the

Alexander (RSC, Birmingham Rep)

summer we tour The Mill on the Floss,

to direct The Taming of the Shrew in

George Eliot’s unforgettable story of first

the wonderful setting of Circomedia

love, sibling rivalry and regret, which has

this February. One of Shakespeare’s

been reimagined for the stage by Helen

earliest plays and arguably his most

Edmundson.

controversial, this play-within a play concerns the passionate battle between

Building on our summer collaborations

Kate and Petruchio.

with Bristol Old Vic, for 2018 we are joined by the fantastic Diverse City, a company

Prepare yourselves to be transported

committed to diversity and equality in the

to Transylvania in March as we stage

arts. Its Co-Artistic Director Jamie Beddard

the classic novel Bram Stoker’s Dracula

will star in an ambitious new production

in a raw and sultry adaptation by Liz

of The Elephant Man directed by Lee Lyford

Lochhead. Director John Walton (Jermyn

(Bristol Old Vic, Watermill Theatre).

Street Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe) will be taking audiences on a journey from

We look forward to you joining us on our

Whitby to Count Dracula’s crumbling

theatrical adventures and thank you for

mansion, via an asylum, in an immersive

your continued support.

experience in the tunnels under Temple Meads at The Loco Klub. Wrap up warm and hold your nerve! 2

Paul Rummer Principal

Jenny Stephens Artistic Director

Circomedia St Paul’s Church Portland Square Bristol BS2 8SJ The Loco Klub Nr Temple Meads Clock Tower Yard Bristol BS1 6QH

Beowulf Redgrave Theatre The Taming of the Shrew Circomedia

4–5

Dracula The Loco Klub

8–9

6–7

Directors’ Cuts The Wardrobe Theatre

10–11

The Mill on the Floss Backwell Playhouse

12–13

The Elephant Man Bristol Old Vic

14–15

The Wardrobe Theatre The Old Market Assembly 25 West Street Old Market Bristol BS2 0DF Backwell Playhouse 25 Mariner’s Drive Backwell Somerset BS48 3HT Bristol Old Vic King Street Bristol BS1 4ED

BOOKING For full details of how to book by phone or online, please see page 19 3

BEOWULF

“A NEW PLAY RETELLING THE STORY OF THE GREATEST ANGLO-SAXON POEM”

Written and directed by Toby Hulse Inspired by the Anglo-Saxon epic Beowulf – the bravest of the Anglo-Saxon heroes, fighting flesh eating monsters and fire breathing dragons, over an inhospitable landscape, in the defence of Hrothgar, King of the Danes. Nine year old Sophie knows the story of Beowulf well. She has enjoyed sharing it many times with her mother, a professor of Old English. Together they have even learned to read a language that no one has spoken in this country for over nine hundred years.

Image: Mark Beech

But Sophie is fighting monsters of her own, monsters every bit as terrifying as those that Beowulf must face. Her mother is dying, and Sophie’s life is changing beyond her control. A new play retelling the story of the greatest Anglo-Saxon poem ever written, and exploring how we respond to death; performed in Bristol Old Vic Theatre School’s trademark mix of gripping storytelling, bold physical action, and live music, with a sprinkling of the original Old English! Anyone who was thrilled by last year’s Jason and the Argonauts will need no persuasion to join Beowulf and Sophie in this epic battle to the death. Suitable for anyone over seven with a taste for adventure! 4

Sat 3 February 2018 Sat 10 February 2018 10am Tickets £8 Redgrave Theatre Box Office: 0117 973 3955 oldvic.ac.uk 5

THE TAMING OF THE SHREW

“MY TONGUE WILL TELL THE ANGER OF MY HEART, OR ELSE MY HEART CONCEALING IT WILL BREAK.”

By William Shakespeare Directed by Bill Alexander A group of aristocrats come across a sleeping drunken beggar, Christopher Sly, and decide to play a trick on him. They wake Sly and pretend that he is a lord and for his benefit a company of players will act out The Taming of the Shrew. This play-within-the play concerns the passionate battle between two of Shakespeare’s most unforgettable characters – Kate and Petruchio. The Taming of the Shrew is one of Shakespeare’s earliest plays and one of his most controversial.

Image: Hide the Shark

As Sly and the aristocrats watch the play it becomes increasingly relevant to their own lives. They become more deeply involved scene by scene in ways they could not possibly have imagined.

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Sat 17 – Sat 24 Feb Eves: 7.30pm Tue 20 / Thu 22 & Sat 24 mats: 2.30pm

They are to learn about the strangeness and unpredictability of love, the mystery of living purely in the moment and the magical, transformative nature of theatre itself.

Tickets: £17 full £12 concession Age guidance: 12yrs+

In the extraordinary setting of St Paul’s Church, Circomedia, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School aim to bring you a production that will radically alter your view in this subversive but enlightening masterpiece by the young Shakespeare.

Circomedia Box Office: 0117 973 3955 oldvic.ac.uk 7

“…YOU GOT TO LISTEN, HELP ME OR HE GET IN.”

DRACULA By Bram Stoker Adapted by Liz Lochhead Directed by John Walton Experience the terror of Bram Stoker’s Dracula in this eerie and immersive production deep in the underground caverns of Temple Meads station. Solicitor Jonathan Harker arrives at Count Dracula’s crumbling mansion deep in Transylvania to provide legal assistance. The Count has bought a castle next to an asylum in England and plans to travel over to take up his new residence.


Back in England at the asylum an inmate is refusing hospital food, living off insects and birds whilst babbling about his master who is coming with the promise of eternal life.

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Then, as a storm rages in the dead of night a black ship heads towards the English coast… Poetic and psychologically gripping, Liz Lochhead’s Dracula is a raw and sultry stage adaptation of Bram Stoker’s hugely influential novel. It was first performed at the Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, on 13 March 1985.

Please note: This is a promenadestyle immersive performance. There will be seating around for those that need it as we move through the tunnels. After the interval the audience will have the opportunity to sit for a significant portion of the action. There is disabled access but the floor is uneven in places and some parts of the show will be in limited lighting. We encourage you to wear sturdy shoes and wrap up warm in dark coloured clothing. We kindly request that high heels are not worn. Ushers will be on hand should you need assistance.

Fri 9 – Sat 17 March Eves: 7.30pm Sat 10: 3pm & 8pm Thu 15 & Sat 17 mats: 2.30pm Tickets: £17 full £12 concession Age guidance: 12yrs+ The Loco Klub Box Office: 0117 973 3955 oldvic.ac.uk 9

DIREC TORS’ CUTS 2018 10

DIRECTORS’ CUTS LEMONS, LEMONS, LEMONS, LEMONS, LEMONS BY SAM STEINER Directed by Caroline Lang Designed by Emily Leonard Tue 1 – Sat 5 May

The average person will speak 123,205,750 words in a lifetime. But what if there were a limit? Oliver and Bernadette are about to find out. Sam Steiner’s awardwinning play imagines a world where we’re forced to say less. It’s about what we say and how we say it; about the things we can only hear in the silence.

KISS ME

BY RICHARD BEAN Directed by Katharine Farmer Designed by Daniel Scott Tue 15 – Sat 19 May A desperate woman. A chivalrous man. And a forbidden kiss that changes everything. Richard Bean’s new play is a beautiful and unorthodox love story about two people struggling to escape the guilt and ghosts of the past, set against the shifting world of London post-World War I.

FOUR PLAY

BY JAKE BRUNGER Directed by Liam Blain Designed by Stavri Papadopoulou Tue 8 – Sat 12 May

After seven and a half blissful years together Rafe and Pete’s lack of sexual experience is driving them apart. When they proposition mutual friend Michael to help them out - knowing full well that he has his own partner, Andrew - what seems like a quick fix suddenly spirals out of control. Four Play is a new comedy about sex and commitment in the twenty-first century.

TENDER NAPALM

BY PHILIP RIDLEY Directed by Evan Lordan Designed by Caitlin Abbott Tue 22 – Sat 26 May A couple share the greatest love story ever told, but most of it is complete horse$%&#. The bits of truth that shine through in the stories they tell each other are stained by tragedy, but that’s okay. They love dark places; it’s there that they can find the light.

Tue 1 – Sat 26 May Eves: 7.30pm Sat mats: 2.30pm All Tickets: £10 Season Ticket: £35* *book at same time for all four shows and save £5

Wardrobe Theatre Box Office: 0117 973 3955 oldvic.ac.uk 11

THE MILL ON THE FLOSS

“THEY HAD ENTERED THE THORNY WILDERNESS, AND THE GOLDEN GATES OF THEIR CHILDHOOD HAD FOR EVER CLOSED BEHIND THEM.”

WEST COUNTRY TOUR 2018

Evening Standard

“…not only re-invents the novel, but pushes the boat out theatrically way beyond its usual moorings…” The Guardian

“An intensely moving dramatisation – stylised, but free of empty theatrics.”

By George Eliot Adapted by Helen Edmundson Directed by Paul Clarkson In this fluid and visceral re-imagining, Helen Edmundson (Queen Anne, Coram Boy, The Heresy of Love) turns George Eliot’s unforgettable story of first love, sibling rivalry and regret into a wonderfully theatrical examination of the psyche of one of classic literature’s most charismatic heroines.

The Times

FURTHER TOUR DATES TO BE ANNOUNCED

Brought up at Dorlcote Mill, Maggie Tulliver worships her brother Tom and is desperate to win the approval of her parents, but her passionate, wayward nature and her fierce intelligence bring her into constant conflict with her family.


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“With rare theatrical vibrancy, Helen Edmundson’s free adaptation distils the essence of George Eliot’s feminist novel.”

As she reaches adulthood, the clash between their expectations and her desires is painfully played out as she finds herself torn between her relationships with three very different men: her proud and stubborn brother Tom; hunchbacked Phillip Wakem, the son of her family’s worst enemy; and the charismatic yet dangerous Stephen Guest.

Thu 31 May – Sat 2 June Eves: 7.30pm Sat mat: 2.30pm Tickets: £17 full £12 concession

With its poignant portrayal of sibling relationships, The Mill on the Floss is considered George Eliot’s most autobiographical novel and here Edmundson loses none of its breadth, whilst beautifully examining the complex nature of relationships and love.

Backwell Playhouse Box Office: 0117 973 3955 oldvic.ac.uk 13

THE ELEPHANT MAN

“SOMETIMES I THINK MY HEAD IS SO BIG BECAUSE IT IS SO FULL OF DREAMS.”

Written by Bernard Pomerance Directed by Lee Lyford

“The partnership [is] a worldclass platform for graduating students.” BRISTOL 24/7 on Julius Caesar

Joseph Merrick is ‘The Elephant Man’. The sordid spectacle of a travelling freak show, he moves from city to city, mercilessly put on display to the horrified delight of Victorian audiences. A London surgeon also takes a keen interest, but is soon faced with a moral dilemma – to help Merrick or to use him to advance his scientific career?

Image: Richard Brett

Inspired by the extraordinary life of a man with a facial disfigurement, Bernard Pomerance’s multiaward-winning play explores changes in perception. Merrick’s story was also recognised in David Lynch’s film starring John Hurt.

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Our ongoing partnership with Bristol Old Vic is further developed into a three-way collaboration with their new Associate Company, Diverse City, which is committed to diversity and equality in the arts. Its Co-Artistic Director Jamie Beddard (Messiah) will star in this ambitious new production, directed by Lee Lyford (The Snow Queen). This amateur production of The Elephant Man is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH, LTD.

Tue 26 June – Sat 7 July Eves: 7.30pm Thu & Sat mats: 2.30pm Tickets: £31.50 – £7.50 Bristol Old Vic Box Office: 0117 987 7877 bristololdvic.org.uk 15

FULL TIME PROFESSIONAL COURSES

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School is recognised as one of this country's leading Conservatoire Drama Schools, training students in a professional environment for careers in the Arts and Entertainment Industry. Operating on three specialist teaching sites and performing in the major producing theatre venues in Bristol and on tour, our students are trained to the highest standards for work in theatre, film or radio drama. The School has an outstanding graduate employment record and an international reputation as a centre of excellence. We have strong links with all aspects of the industry across the UK and beyond.

Visit our website for more information: oldvic.ac.uk 16

There are new opportunities for individuals and businesses to Support the Theatre School.

As Theatre School Patrons individuals can become more involved with School activities including special behind the scenes events. Photo: © Graham Burke

Our Courses: l Professional Acting (FdA) (BA Hons) l Professional Acting (MA) International l Production Arts (Stage & Screen) (BA Hons) l Production Arts (Stage) (FdA) l C ostume (FdA)+ BA(Hons) top-up l Theatre Design (MA) l S cenic Art (MA) l Drama Directing (MA) l Theatre Production Management (MA) l Film Production (MA)

GET INVOLVED AND SUPPORT THE SCHOOL Sponsoring a Theatre School production gives businesses a range of unique benefits, including:

For more information:

Amanda Boyd-McLaughlin Development and Communications Manager 0117 973 3535 [email protected]

l Hospitality opportunities for your clients and staff l Marketing and advertising to a targeted audience l As a charity we can help you to fulfil your Corporate

Social Responsibility 17

CALENDAR 2018 Beowulf Sat 3 February 10.00am Redgrave Theatre Sat 10 February Percival Road 10.00am Clifton Bristol BS8 3LE

The Taming of the Shrew February Sat 17 Circomedia Mon 19 St Paul’s Church Tue 20 2.30pm Portland Square Wed 21 Bristol BS2 8SJ Thu 22 2.30pm Fri 23 Sat 24 2.30pm

7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

Dracula March Fri 9 The Loco Klub Sat 10 3.00pm Nr Temple Meads Mon 12 Clock Tower Yard Tue 13 Bristol BS1 6QH Wed 14 Thu 15 2.30pm Fri 16 Sat 17 2.30pm

7.30pm 8.00pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

BOOKING

Beowulf / The Taming of the Shrew / Dracula / Directors’ Cuts / The Mill on the Floss: book through the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School Box Office: 0117 973 3955 / oldvic.ac.uk Our Box Office is staffed for telephone bookings Mon – Fri 11am – 2pm. Outside of these times please leave a message or book online 24/7 at oldvic.ac.uk

The Elephant Man: book through the Bristol Old Vic Box Office: 0117 987 7877 / bristololdvic.org.uk 18

Directors’ Cuts Lemons, Lemons, Wardrobe Theatre Lemons, Lemons, The Lemons The Old Market Assembly 25 West Street Old Market Bristol BS2 0DF

May Tue 1 Wed 2 Thu 3 Fri 4 Sat 5 2.30pm

7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

Four Play

Tue 8 Wed 9 Thu 10 Fri 11 Sat 12 2.30pm

7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

Kiss Me


7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

Tender Napalm


7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

The Mill on the Floss Thu 31 May 7.30pm June Backwell Playhouse Fri 1 7.30pm 25 Mariner’s Drive Sat 2 2.30pm 7.30pm Backwell Somerset BS48 3HT

The Elephant Man June Tue 26 Bristol Old Vic Wed 27 King Street Thu 28 2.30pm Bristol BS1 4ED Fri 29 Sat 30 2.30pm July Mon 2 Tue 3 Wed 4 Thu 5 2.30pm Fri 6 Sat 7 2.30pm

7.30pm 7.30pm 7.00pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 19

ENJOYED THE SHOW? WANT TO KNOW MORE? Join the Bristol Old Vic Theatre Club which has supported the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School since its foundation. Membership gives you a monthly newsletter, a full programme of events supporting Bristol Old Vic and theatre in Bristol and beyond. Our close relationship with the Theatre School would also give you: l Exclusive insight about forthcoming productions at our Directors’

and Designers’ Previews every term l Opportunities to follow the progress of acting, technical, design and

directing students l An invitation to our welcome reception for international course

students l Exclusive guided tour of the annual design students exhibition l Privileged tickets for graduating actors’ showcase preview and the BOVTS Award ceremony l Attending the annual graduating students’ party l Exclusive open rehearsals of forthcoming shows l In Conversation events with staff and students l Quiz and other social events You will be joining other members who are passionate about theatre and supporting the work of the Theatre School. Application form via our website: bristololdvictheatreclub.org.uk

“By joining the Theatre Club, you will gain great insight into how the Theatre School works and enjoy meeting its staff and students.” Paul Rummer, Principal, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School

Annual subscription £18 (£32 for two adults at same address) £8 students/under 18s

WORLD CLASS TRAINING – MADE IN BRISTOL 20

Bristol Old Vic Theatre School

@bovts oldvic.ac.uk

Design: marlesandbarclay.co.uk