Jason Salmon, director of the show that heralds our permanent return to the Old Fire Station in West Norwood, introduces us to a world where communication is challenged. Tell us about the premise of the play It follows the relationship of Bernadette and Oliver as they struggle to come to terms with a new law that has been introduced which limits what people can say to 140 words per day. What’s been the challenge in directing it? A big challenge has […]
Simon Gleisner, director of our next production, talks about God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza, which runs from October 31, to November 4 at Stanley Halls What attracted you to this particular play? It’s a bit different from your last SLT outing! It may seem very different at first glance, but there is a common thread. My last outing was a classic British farce, and although God of Carnage is much darker, it is still very funny and (without giving […]
Bryon Fear spoke with Caroline Beckett and asked her to describe her experiences making her directorial debut for SLT. This is your first time as a director even though you’ve performed many times as an actor. What made you want to direct? I’ve been assistant director a few times, and after really enjoying doing Stones in his Pockets last year I just thought I’d give it a go. As much as anything else I wanted to see if I could […]
A view of the upcoming theatrical shenanigans by Bertie Wooster When Jeeves shimmied in this morning, bearing the customary a.m. reviver, he murmured something about penning a few words on the subject of my forthcoming theatrical adventure. I knocked back the concoction (a family recipe he will not be induced to share with me, though I am confident tomato juice must feature somewhere on the list of ingredients), felt the mental upheaval that is a natural consequence of a convivial […]
Blue Stockings by Jessica Swale runs September 5-9 in the Upper Hall at Stanley Halls. We spoke with director Lily Ann Green and some of her cast about the play, its themes and staging a story that gives insight to the historic changes that were taking place in a college in Cambridge in 1896. What are the themes explored in the play? The play is set in 1896 and follows a group of young women and their teachers, all based […]
Director Charlotte Benstead talks about her latest production, showing next week in the Upper Hall at Stanley Halls. So Charlotte, whatever possessed you to want to direct a show about a girl with a dead dad and an overbearing mother?! Ha! I guess it’s good to work with what you know. Jim Cartwright’s writing is so good – funny and moving and honest. The play is essentially about being stuck in grief. It is about relationships, friendships, regret and ambition […]
We interview director Colleen Batson about her SLT debut and her play in our 2017 Season, Forget-Me-Not Lane by Peter Nichols which opens next week on Tuesday June 13 at Stanley Halls. What made you decide to direct this play? I’ve directed a Peter Nichols play before, So Long Life, and it had stayed with me. When I was looking for my first play at SLT, I was very happy to hear that he was a well-regarded playwright. What are the […]
Creating a Victorian Zoo set in St. Petersburg which houses a giant and somewhat hungry crocodile is not something you do ordinarily, but creating theatre is never an ordinary experience and that’s what we have have done for our production of The Crocodile which opens tomorrow night. Penned by Peep Show writer Tom Basden, the play tells the story of struggling actor Ivan Matveitch and the day his fortunes ironically change for the better when he is eaten alive by a crocodile. It is […]
SLT’s production next week is a dramatic staging of a series of poems by Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy. The collection of poems were first published in 1999 as The World’s Wife, an anthology of work which re-examines myths and legends which traditionally have focus actively on a male protagonist. Duffy looks at these notable stories with a fresh pair of eyes and with a mix of historical context and imagination asks the reader to see the women in the stories, often subverting the […]
I first saw this show at the Edinburgh Fringe in August 2011, and again at the St James’ theatre in Victoria in early 2015. I absolutely loved its wit, humour and staging. Co-created by Sarah Thom and Sarah Toogood (who played all four parts) and their director James Greaves through Foursight Theatre, the play is not yet published, but it’s an imaginative show with a script full of snappy dialogue and some great jokes. Not to be confused with Jess […]