British Theatre Guide podcast

At the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester on 13 November 2017, the winners were announced of the sixth biennial Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting. The winners of three Judges’ Prizes of £8,000 each were announced as Tim Foley for his play Electric Rosary, Laurie Nunn for King Brown and Sharon Clark for Plow. The £16,000 top prize went to the play Heartworm by Tim X Atack, who had just worked at the Royal Exchange as sound designer for a production of Jubilee based on the Derek Jarman film. In this episode, you can hear the moment when Tim was announced as the winner followed by our interview with him about the play, his work in general and what winning the prize will mean to him. For more information about the Bruntwood Prize including advice for playwrights, see writeaplay.co.uk. Tim Atack’s company Sleepdogs can be found at sleepdogs.org.

1 Des 201727min

BTG's Mark Smith speaks to acclaimed director Sally Cookson about her forthcoming production of family classic The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. The show is set to transform the West Yorkshire Playhouse's main theatre, the Quarry, into an in-the-round stage for the first time in the venue's history. Speaking towards the end of the company's seven-week creative process, Cookson talks about the "dark days" you can have when devising, as well as the process's moments of joy and inspiration. She discusses what it was that triggered her excitement about adapting this well-loved children's book, as well as her shifting role in the rehearsal room as she works with a range of inventive individuals from different performance traditions. "I go into rehearsals not knowing. It is terrifying, devising, nail-biting. But it's thrilling. You offer up a challenge: how are we going to do this? And you get fifteen brilliant ideas." (Photo of Sally Cookson by Anthony Robling)

10 Nov 201714min

Mark Smith talks to producer John Tomlinson about SBC Theatre, the company he co-created and which has recently become the UK’s first "Theatre Company of Sanctuary". This status recognises the company's work with, about and for those seeking sanctuary in the UK. John is also Associate Producer at York Theatre Royal, working on in-house shows such as the massive community production Everything Is Possible as well as helping with the programming of other events at the theatre. John discusses the evolution of SBC into a politically engaged company seeking to raise awareness of the often shocking hardships and issues faced by asylum seekers and refugees. Starting with 2016's Tanja, tackling the stories of women held at Yarl's Wood detention centre, John and his collaborators have aimed to reach beyond conventional theatre spaces in raising awareness and starting conversations with a diverse range of people. "It felt like when we had Emily as part of this piece that we had really unlocked what Yarl's Wood is and what it stands for as part of our society. [...] Ultimately this is a story that we had to tell, and she had to be part of it."

3 Nov 201719min

As part of its A Revolution Betrayed? spring and summer season across its film, art and theatre programmes, commemorating the centenary of the Russian Revolution, HOME Manchester will present a new production of Anton Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya directed by the centre’s Artistic Director for Theatre, Walter Meierjohann. BTG editor David Chadderton spoke to Walter in a dressing room at HOME just over a week before the production opened about his take on this classic play, Chekhov's comedy, multi-layered structure and political foresight and the relevance to audiences today of a play depicting people on the brink of major but unknown change. HOME’s production of Uncle Vanya by Anton Chekhov in a version by Andrew Upton will run at HOME Manchester from 3 to 25 November 2017.

25 Okt 20170s

Mark Smith talks to emerging director Julia Levai and York Theatre Royal Associate Director Juliet Forster about the theatre's TakeOver Festival. The festival pairs Theatre Royal staff with emerging artists aged between 12 and 26 in a mentoring relationship which enables the younger artists to curate and run a week-long festival. As the Artistic Director of this year's festival, Julia Levai has curated a selection of works around the theme of "Walls", as well as devising a show of her own. The pair discuss the state of UK theatre for a director at the beginning of their career, and Julia provides comparisons between British theatre and the scene in her native Budapest. They also consider what the York Theatre Royal does for emerging artists, as well as what TakeOver has done for the York Theatre Royal in effecting tangible organisational change. TakeOver is about "opening the door and giving opportunity and giving a platform for different voices... and really letting people make their own work and do their own thing as a result of it." It runs from 22 to 28 October 2017 at the York Theatre Royal

17 Okt 201727min

Adam Penford has taken over as artistic director of Nottingham Playhouse. The 37-year-old had been working as a freelance director and replaces Giles Croft who had been at the helm of the Playhouse for the past 18 years. Penford tells BTG's Midlands editor Steve Orme that he was thrilled to have been given the job. (Photo of Adam Penford is by Creative by Wren)

14 Okt 201724min

Director Max Stafford-Clarke has revived for his theatre company Out of Joint Andrea Dunbar’s play Rita, Sue and Bob Too, which he directed originally while Artistic Director of the Royal Court in London in 1982, working closely with the 19-year-old playwright. BTG editor David Chadderton spoke to lead actors Taj Atwal (Rita), Gemma Dobson (Sue) and James Atherton (Bob) during the production's initial run at the Octagon Theatre Bolton about the play and the issues it raises, the politics of the council estate in the 1980s, Max Stafford-Clark's rehearsal methods, the unsexiness of a sex scene and a call for a Royal Court of the north. Rita, Sue and Bob Too is produced by Out of Joint, Royal Court Theatre and Octagon Theatre Bolton and co-directed by Max Stafford-Clark & Kate Wasserberg. It opened at Octagon Theatre Bolton on 6 September 2017 before moving on to Harrogate Theatre, Bristol Old Vic, Liverpool Playhouse, Warwick Arts Centre, Oxford Playhouse, Royal Theatre Northampton, Cast Doncaster, York Theatre Royal, Derby Theatre, Royal Court Theatre, Lawrence Batley Theatre in Huddersfield and Theatr Clwyd in Mold, where it will end its run on 10 February 2018. (Production photo of Gemma Dobson, James Atherton and Taj Atwal by Richard Davenport)

4 Okt 201739min

Derby Theatre is to produce Neil Bartlett's adaptation of Charles Dickens's Great Expectations directed by artistic director Sarah Brigham. BTG's Midlands editor Steve Orme spoke during rehearsals to Sarah about the production and about her choice of cast, before chatting to Geoffrey Breton who plays Pip and Kate Spencer who plays Estella about their roles. The production runs at Derby Theatre from 29 September to 21 October 2017.

29 Sep 201728min