Summer 2012 Archives – KDC Theatre - Central London based amateur theatre group

KDC Summer Devised Piece

Following on from the success of the Spring devised piece, ‘Visited’, we are launching an unique new project that will give a group of dedicated actors the chance to be involved in the creation of two original, site- specific plays.

Two separate casts will each work with a director and devise a one act ‘Splinter pieces’ based on the scripts of the main shows, Electra and Bones, focusing on any element of the play which they find interesting e.g the time period, a theme, character etc. The project will be both creative and challenging, with each actor being given the opportunity to experience a range of theatre styles and exercises.

The splinter pieces will be performed together in outdoor spaces on Friday 2nd,Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th August.

Rehearsals will begin on Thursday 6th June and will be every Thursday and Sunday in June and Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays from July. Actors cast will need to be available from 4pm on the first performance nigh,t Friday 2nd August. Due to the tight time constraints of the project we ask that actors can commit to the entire rehearsal period.

Casting is via email and will be open from 9pm on Sunday 19th May until 9pm on Monday 20th May. After the deadline, all applicants will be put into a hat and names drawn at random until all available slots have been filled, this is to ensure the process is fair and everyone has an equal chance to take part. Each play will have a maximum of 6 actors.

Email the directors; Trina Hasthorpe and Kim Morrison at: devised@kdctheatre.com to apply or for further information. Please note applications will not be accepted until 9pm on Sunday 19th!

Sister Mary Ignatius Cast List

Cath Ion (Philomena):

Originally from Shropshire West Midlands, Catherine trained at Salford University where she performed at the Comedy Store Manchester. Since moving to London last year she has also appeared as Livia in The Tamer Tamed (a sequel to The Taming of the Shrew), produced by the KDC Theatre. In between acting Catherine is a baker at Ham House and is trying to write her own comedy stuff.

Kevin Morin (Gary):

Kevin is making his first appearance on stage in London here in the role of Gary. He comes from Boston, MA where over the course of the past 10 years he has worked as an actor, director, producer, set builder, and sound designer. Favorite roles are Alex in The Little Dog Laughed and Rudy in Bent. Kevin’s day job in the market research industry is the reason he’s here in London in the first place. Without it he would not have found this wonderful opportunity.”

Fiona O’Sullivan (Sister Mary):

Fiona has wanted to act for as long as she can remember. She appeared in several university productions whilst at medical school, including Gwendolyn in ‘The importance of Being Earnest’ and Beverly in ‘Abigail’s Party’. She was a member of the Irish Universities Theatre Company who, in 1988, toured the east coast of the US on a memorable U-Haul road trip. Fitting theatre around her work as a doctor, she subsequently appeared with Red Kettle Theatre Company in Waterford and with Spotlight Theatre on the Dublin fringe circuit. In 2000 Fiona trained with The Actors Company Hoxton, playing the role of Chorus in Jean Anouilh’s ‘Antigone’ at Jermyn Street Theatre. This is her first performance with KDC Theatre.

Caleb Watson (Thomas):

8-year-old Caleb makes his debut in the fantabulous production of Sister Mary. Cheeky and fun-loving Caleb is a world travelled well-rounded child who has taken to acting like a fish to water. He is avid car geek, able to tell you all you need to know about classic to concept cars., and has a collection of over 300 diecast cars from around the globe. Caleb is currently learning to play the guitar and violin. He has often being likened to Jim Parsons for his geekness and Matt Lantern for his handsomeness.

Anna Whitelock (Diane)

Anna has been involved in theatre for over 10 years in Toronto and London both on stage and behind the scenes. She has acted in a number of productions playing roles which include Miss Tilehouse in The Sea by Edward Bond, Margot Frank in the KDC production of The Diary of Anne Frank and Kate in The Taming of the Shrew. She got the part of Diane because she also has no sense of humour.

Oliver Wilson (Aloysius):

You will have heard Oliver as BBC Radio Ones Entertainment presenter and also seen him on screen presenting for the Inside Out current affairs programme on BBC North West. He spent two and a half years at the BBC before joining The Actors Centre Covent Garden and then The Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre in Los Angeles. There he studied acting and traded presenting for his true passion of acting. This is Oliver’s first acting role after completing studies at both schools.

Katherine Wootton (Director)

After assistant-directing Tamer Tamed with KDC, Katherine was hungry for more. She is thrilled to be directing one of her favourite plays this season. When not throwing herself into theatre, she is to be found working at the BBC, practising Hapkido, or making short films.

Helen Jackson (AD)

After studying English and Drama at university and mucking about a bit, Helen came to London from oop north many moons ago in search of streets paved with gold. She didn’t find gold but she did discover lots of fantastic theatre. This is the fourth time Helen has been involved in a KDC play but her first time behind the scenes. Helen has previously treaded the boards in A Clockwork Orange, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Tamer Tamed and she has really enjoyed her assistant directorial debut. Her guilty pleasures include wine, Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey ice cream, more wine, and the odd bit of musical theatre.

Peter Cabrera (Producer)

Sister Mary… is the first show Peter has produced for KDC Theatre. He began acting at school and University, appearing as Orlando in a University of York Drama Society production of As You Like It. Since moving to London he has also appeared as Jacques in The Tamer Tamed (a sequel to The Taming of the Shrew), produced by KDC. He is currently appearing in George Bernard Shaw’s The Man of Destiny at the Bridewell Theatre. In between appearances, Peter works in central London for an executive search firm. He lives in North London with a lizard.

Amended 7 October 2017 to remove image

Conference Call Cast List

Jeremy Small (Martin Mills)

Jeremy has appeared in numerous amateur productions, including Twelfth Night, Blood Wedding and A Child’s Christmas In Wales. The former BBC broadcast journalist works as a medical administrator at Guy’s Hospital. He hopes to become a professional actor. This is the second KDC show in which Jeremy, 30, has performed. He played Petruchio in John Fletcher’s The Tamer Tamed in April this year.

Samantha Merrydew (Doctor Walmer)

Samantha’s love for acting started at school, where she studied drama. Her first role was playing an impish version of Lampito in Lysistrata.

After focusing on writing and film making at Brighton College of Technology, and then the University of Sussex, Samantha went back to her acting roots at the age of 23 when she was cast as the Third Witch in a feature adaptation of Macbeth, alongside Anthony Head: http://sleepnomore.net/

Samantha then went on to study Acting at City Lit, with performances in The Mercy Seat (playing Abby Prescott) and The Odd Couple (playing Cecily Pigeon).

Doctor Walmer is a warmly refreshing role that Samantha has enjoyed developing; channelling a gentle and committed woman who is also part of a powerful and enigmatic force when placed with the other two doctors.

Samantha is 31 and lives in North London with her partner, David. She works in TV Post Production and Compliance.

March Fothergill (Doctor Deal)

March is currently a student at King’s College London studying Hispanic Studies with English. She caught the acting bug from a very young age after following her mother to many a rehearsal for am-dram productions. This is her last production before departing on her ‘study abroad’ year.

Alex Waddington (Doctor Rye)

Throughout her formative years at a girls’ school, Alex longed for one thing – to be cast in a female role. As a girl of above average height, compliments in the vein of ‘but you make such a good man!’, were of little consolation to her frustrated ambitions. However, since joining KDC this year, Alex is that little bit closer to realising her dream. In Measure for Measure’ earlier this year, Alex was given a small female role (alongside a male one of course), and Conference Call sees her playing a female character throughout, albeit an imaginary one. It may have taken 30 years, but it looks like Alex’s time has finally come…

Andy Rushforth (Priest)

Andy is a wannabe Welshman. After spending an idyllic childhood in Newport his life took an urban turn to the bright lights of London. There he discovered the joys of Greco wrestling and jewellery-making. His love of acting stems from being a show-off and an unhealthy obsession with Mike Yarwood.

Nic Clark (Martin Mills’s Boss)

Nic feels life has somewhat cheated him. Despite living in the South West, Wales, the West Midlands and now London he possesses no accent whatsoever apart from a tendency to rolling his r’s. As his role in this play is silent this can neither be confirmed or denied unless you buy me a drink in the bar afterwards…

Helen Niland (Director)

Amy Jackson (Assistant Director)

This is my first time as an AD with KDC and it’s been a fantastic experience – due to the imagination, fun and general crazyness injected by Helen, the cast and our film crew. I play Martin Mills’ wife which was a interesting challenge and presents itself in the form of our video montage interspersed during the play.

Outside of KDC, I have been a member of the Ealing Beaufort Players for several years and work in Communications for an alcohol company.

Enjoy the show!

Matthew Partridge (Producer)

Conference Call is Matthew’s eighth KDC production, and his third with Helen Niland. He has done everything from working backstage on Double Falsehood (Summer 2010) to directing The Tamer Tamed (Spring 2012). He is a Senior Writer for MoneyWeek magazine and has a PhD from the London School of Economics.

Nick Franco (Film Director)
Director and producer Nick Franco founded 1185films in 2003 where he has married a talented team of collaborators, both emerging and established, within his creative East London co-operative.

Nick directs, coordinates and produces film projects with high quality production values, from low budget productions to multi-million pound projects. He has worked with a range of artists including Cara Seymour, Stephen Tompkinson, Suggs, Bill Wyman, Gary Whelan, Scott Williams, Lisa Stansfield and UB40.

As a producer he has an innate and in-depth understanding of business and legal affairs, he is meticulous with budgets, he has a great visual flare and he can tell a story with empathy.

Lamberto Mongiorgi (Film Editor)
Lamberto is an Italian director, first assistant director and camera operator based in London.

He first gained experience at the famous Cinecittà Studios in Rome and he has worked on many productions including commercials (McDonalds, UniEuro), documentaries, shorts, animation 3D and corporate videos, both in Italy and in the UK.

Career highlights include 3D stereoscopic work for Marche: Land of Magic, a RAINBOW CGI production. Today he is a cinematographer, camera operator and editor at 1185films, where he has worked for eighteen months.

Stanley Llewellyn Ellis (Film Producer)
Stanley was born in Oxford but raised in Connecticut, USA, where he earned a degree in politics at the University of Connecticut. He returned to the UK aged 26 to pursue a career in film, inspired by the movie Blade Runner.

After gaining a Higher National Certificate in film at South Thames College while managing the Metro cinema in London’s West End, he went on to assistant direct three feature films and numerous television programmes and advertisements.

During his time in London, Stanley has written several feature length and short films scripts. He has also directed a number of short films, including Friends, Fame and Cocaine and Funny Money, plus various pop promos. Currently he is writing his first novel The Book of Us.

Fozia Khaliq (Lighting)

Fozia Khaliq has been working namely as a curator, educator and moving-image facilitator for the last 6 years. Having started her career in the East London art scene as a gallerist, Fozia forged an identity for herself as an arts instigator and producer through the gradual shift into participatory, public and educational arts.

Independently she has curated the exhibition By-Product at Nettie Horn and a series of exhibitions at V42 Gallery in Slovenia where she was for some time the Artistic Director.

Hannah Spearing (Make Up)

David Balfour (Film Operator)

As far back as he can remember, David has always wanted to be a film operator. To him, being a film operator was better than being President of the United States. When not being a civil servant David enjoys bakery and classic cars.

Zoe Ashdown (Costume)

Zoe started off as a History student at Durham University, but after graduating discovered a passion for costume history. So she got degree greedy and decided to get another one, this time in Costume Design for Stage and Screen at the Arts Institute in Bournemouth. After two years of hard slog and a few interesting jobs here and there on films and in theatre, Zoe decided not to return as she was offered a job at Les Miserables at the Queen’s Theatre in the West End, and she’s been there ever since. Zoe has greatly enjoyed working with KDC once again as it gives her the opportunity to flex her creative bits and pieces, and wishes to thank Helen for all her help and support.

David Crackles (Sound)

Last call for Pub Quiz Champion – Dev Blog 5

A scene from Pub Quiz Champion, the Studio Piece in Summer 2012

Pub Quiz Champion has its last showing this Sunday (July 20th) at 6:30pm at the Etcetera theatre.

So why a pub quiz?

The question I’ve not been asked, but I’m sure some readers of this blog have been wondering is: given all the wild and varied settings we explored in the early stages of the process, why did we take forward something as mundane as a pub quiz?

While our process focuses a lot on settings at the beginning – and that’s important to give the actors context to work in – in truth the ultimate success of the play relies on drawing the audience into the characters and their relationships with each other.

The second studio piece, Last Order, started with a single two-hander scene between a crippled husband returned from war to the wife he left behind. The third studio piece, The Words I Keep Secret, started with a simple family dinner between a mother, son and daughter in a restaurant. It was the relationships, rather than the settings, that provided our way into the story. In several ways, Pub Quiz Champion combines both the relationship hook of these pieces and the exploration of individual character that powered the first studio piece, Ups & Downs.

For the relationship we have the triangle between current pub quiz champion Steve (created by Francis Whittaker), his long-term girlfriend Alice (created by Maeve McClenaghan) and his quiz-mate / old school-friend Lauren (created by Kim Morrison). It was clear from the first improvisation that the veiled tensions between these characters had stage potential.

For the characters we have a diverse array of old quiz-hands and new talent. All drama is rooted in contrast and – after we’d chosen the pub quiz setting – we quickly established that we wanted to highlight the contrast between the characters’ professional or home lives and the people they became in the heated rivalry of the quiz. We have Donovan (created by Ivo Dinkov), a therapist who’s great at giving advice but unable to take it; Collette (created by Vanessa Okello) whose professional veneer conceals a woman of passionate determination; the fun-loving Jodie (created by Fiona Thomas) whose pranks are a release valve from her dark daily life; and the local barfly Clive (created by James Tully) who struggles between his weakness and his faded nobility.

A Number Cast List

Bernard – Govind Hodgson
This is Govind’s sixth amateur production in the UK and his third with KDC Theatre. Previous roles have included Jack in My Boy Jack and Stiva in Anna Karenena, as well as appearing in KDC Theatre’s 70^th anniversary show, The Long Run. Govind has also performed for KDC at the Edinburgh Festival with Ups and Downs. For this play, Govind has had to shave his beloved beard.

Salter – Bernard O’Sullivan
This is Bernard’s first production with KDC theatre. He has trained with The Actors Company from 2005-2006. Since then he has appeared in a number of short films and plays, most recently as Doctor Wickert in Abby Msann’s Judgment At Nuremberg.

Assistant Director – Ciara Robley
Producer – Sian Wright

F**kArt Cast List

Frank/Simon – Michael Johnston
Michael was born in Northern Ireland, at a young age he started taking part in amateur dramatics and by the time he reached university he had created a backlog of amateur and semi professional experience. At university he studied drama and graduated with honours, after this he started working professionally as an actor and work shop facilitator. Two years later and Michael decided he needed a bigger challenge and moved to London where he became involved with KDC theatre, and the rest is yet to be written.

Nadia – Lisa Moore
Lisa spent years wishing she was involved in acting but only plucked up the courage last year, when she completing some courses with City Academy and got her first role with KDC, as cross-dressing Charlotte in She Ventures and He Wins. She’s since been in another production, Nailing Jelly to a Tree; a series of playlettes devised by the cast, where she played a number of characters ranging from a Scouse wag to a gay man. She’s really happy to have got the part of Nadia and has since been trying to explain to friends and family that F**kArt is not what it sounds like!

Eric – Nick Dastoor
Nick is quite the veteran of KDC productions now, having acted in not just one, but two productions before this: the restoration comedy She Ventures And He Wins and the portmanteau comedy-drama Summers Gone. After psychoanalytic sex comedy, he feels the time is right for a move into heavy, tragic work influenced by Ingmar Bergman … No, he is happy playing the fool.

Electra – Aruna Buchanan Brown
Ever the Drama Queen it’s no surprise that Aruna ran away to join the theatre! Highlights include Oscar Wilde’s Salome (Rock Opera) at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and of course, A Clockwork Orange and Anna Karenina for KDC. Production credits include Buddy, Jailhouse Rock and Blair on Broadway in the West End. Aruna is excited for another foray into the KDC world – you know what they say “3rd time’s a prostitute!” or something like that…

Director – Juliet Colbert
‘F**kArt’ is Juliet’s directorial debut. She has worked on two previous KDC productions; as costume assistant on ‘Talking Heads’ and as assistant director on ‘Measure for Measure’ last season. Though she developed an interest in theatre back in her school days, Juliet hadn’t been directly involved in any theatre work for over 10 years before a friend introduced her to KDC last summer. Having worked as an English and Drama teacher, working on plays with many teenagers over the previous 4 years, directing was inevitably going to be the end goal and it didn’t take long to gain the experience and confidence to get there. Working with actors is not that dissimilar from working with teenagers after all, right?!

Assistant Director – Carrie Johnson
Carrie is a familiar face with KDC but has taken a break from acting this season to AD. Previous roles with KDC include; Hermia in Mid Summer Night’s Dream, Dowdy in She Ventures and He Wins, Ursula in Ups and Downs and Fran in Stags and Hens. She is also currently rehearsing for the Olympics Opening Ceremony where she will be dancing under Danny Boyle’s direction (and hopefully getting some directing tips)

Carrie’s only hope for ADing is that she doesn’t treat the cast like 5 year olds as she’s far more used to directing children’s theatre; then again…

A Number

Bernard Salter has learned a disturbing truth. He is not alone. A number of copies of him exist in the world and his own presence among them gives him pause. The only person he feels he can turn to is his father, but does he want comfort or answers. And what happens when another Bernard appears on the scene?

To put it bluntly, this is a play about cloning.
To put another spin on it, this is a play about identity.
With yet another spin, this play is about father/child dynamics.
The play itself, like the subject matter, is able to take on so many different identities.

The play debuted at the Royal Court Theatre in London on 23 September 2002 and starred Michael Gambon and Daniel Craig.

F**kArt

Sex sells and no one knows this better than Simon, cousin and silent partner in the business that is ‘Frank the artist’. Though Simon and Eric, Frank’s brother, may not approve of Frank’s questionable approach to production, Simon knows that “people like filth” and that the art world and the general public are always ready to buy into that.

F**kArt is a provocative, dark satire on the state of the art world. The play explores the relationship between art and sex and in doing so, questions the morality of the society we live in.

Summer Season Posters

Help us to publicise the summer season shows by downloading, printing and proudly displaying the posters:

A Number and F**kArt Poster

Conference Call and Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All For You Poster

Pub Quiz Champion (The Devised Piece) Poster

Studio Piece Summer 2012 – Dev Blog 4

Arthur Zacharias as Anatole, Beril Kaya as Justine and Tracie Laurinaitis as Summer
in a scene from Last Order, the Studio Piece in Spring 2010

Guest blog – Trina Hasthorpe Assistant Director

Hi, I’m Trina. I’m the Assistant Director of the devised piece: the newly-announced Pub Quiz Champion.

Staring at the web of multi-coloured scrawl on reams of A3 that are the fruits of our labour from the first devising session, I had my doubts. Reading through the character descriptions, setting notes, questions, answers, demands, and trying to follow the arrows that snake between them had me thinking – How could these disparate ideas generated by 7 strangers possibly evolve in a few short weeks to be a script – let alone a staged show?

At the halfway point now, with first draft in hand and a full run scheduled for our evening rehearsal, I am absolved of all doubt. In fact, my doubt dissipated weeks ago as I watched the actors, guided by Richard, bounce confidently and skilfully between a multitude of diverse and largely off-the-wall scenarios: bourgeois households to alien territories to lands of talking animals to the behind-the-scenes of a comedy club. I’ve seen reluctant farmers feed guerrilla armies, innocent husbands poisoned by spurned lovers, backroom witches tempt lonely priests and the elusive Danny Jones break more hearts than you can poke a stick at, but finally our story has found its home – in the more conventional yet highly entertaining setting of a local pub quiz.

The devising process that Richard has developed can be frustrating: having to let go of particular ideas about stories and characters is difficult at times, but the process relies on relinquishing control of the direction of the plot and dialogue decisions in order to give the actors free reign. And it pays dividends – the resulting script is funny without being affected, heartfelt without being cliché and honest without being boring. What was once scrawl is now a play – and a bloody good one at that.