British Theatre Guide podcast

Mark Smith talks to Juliet Forster, Associate Director of York Theatre Royal, and Katie Posner, Associate Director of Pilot Theatre, about their latest large-scale community production, Everything Is Possible: The York Suffragettes. This new play is written by Bridget Foreman and based on the true stories of militant suffragettes in York, centring on the real-life figure of Annie Seymour Pearson. The role is to be played by award-winning actress Barbara Marten, who also unearthed the stories and presented the project to the theatre. Forster and Posner talk about their work together on a number of large-scale productions, the research behind this latest collaboration, and the links they've been finding between the century-old story of the Suffrage movement and present-day political contexts. A co-production between York Theatre Royal and Pilot Theatre, Everything is Possible runs from 20 June to 1 July at York Theatre Royal. "There's a real feeling of dissatisfaction with political systems, and one response to that is to go 'what's the point in voting then?'... but another is to exercise our voice and to make some noise."

12 Jun 201718min

Mark Smith talks to artist and performance maker Ellie Harrison about her interactive installation work The Unfair. This is part of her ambitious long-running project The Grief Series, which aims to offer playful and open artistic environments for the contemplation of taboo subjects such as loss and grief in many forms. The Unfair examines the anger which might be associated with a range of such experiences, and gives visitors an opportunity to vent their frustrations through fun and games which play humorously upon vintage fairground imagery. There's popcorn, Angry Jenga, and a karaoke booth complete with punchbag so you can box your way through your choice of anger-releasing song. The Unfair runs at Kirkstall Abbey, Leeds, from 9-14 May. Entrance is free. It then runs at the Brighton Festival from 18-21 May. Entrance is pay what you feel.

8 Mai 201718min

Timberlake Wertenbaker was commissioned by the Octagon Theatre in Bolton to write Winter Hill, named after a local landmark most famous for its TV mast. BTG editor David Chadderton spoke to Timberlake when she had spent nearly a week in rehearsals for the play in Bolton, and then a couple of weeks later to three of the cast: Cathy Tyson, Souad Faress and Janet Henfry. Winter Hill by Timberlake Wertenbaker will be at the Octagon Theatre in Bolton from 11 May to 3 June 2017. (Photo of the Winter Hill cast in rehearsal by Ray Jefferson, Bolton Camera Club)

2 Mai 201743min

In 1992, Barrie Rutter directed and played the title role in Shakespeare’s Richard III for what became the inaugural production of Northern Broadsides. Twenty-five years later, he is directing Mat Fraser as Richard for Hull’s 2017 City of Culture. In this episode, David Chadderton speaks to Barrie about a quarter of a century of Broadsides, his own forthright views on how to direct and perform Shakespeare and on returning to the city where he grew up for this anniversary production. Richard III will run at Hull Truck Theatre from 4 to 27 May 2017. It will then have a short run at the Viaduct Theatre in Halifax from 30 May to 3 June. (Photo of Barrie Rutter at Dean Clough, Halifax by Kay Burnett)

26 Apr 201724min

Mark Smith talks to RashDash's Helen Goalen and Abbi Greenland about The Darkest Corners, a bold new commission for Transform Festival about fear and feminism on the streets. The award-winning theatremakers also discuss their recent productions We Want You To Watch and Two Man Show and how their work blends the political and the personal. "If we're going to bring this down one brick at a time, we're going to need to do it all together." The Darkest Corners runs at the Transform Festival in a site-specific location in Holbeck from 20 to 22 April.

17 Apr 201721min

BTG's Mark Smith talks to Amy Letman about Leeds's international Transform Festival, her career as a producer, and how to get into festival programming. Transform Festival 2017 runs from 19-22 April in venues across Leeds, with a full programme available on the Transform web site.

14 Apr 201720min

Highlights of the launch event for the Manchester International Festival 2017, held in Manchester on 9 March 2017. Introduced by new MIF artistic director John McGrath, this episode also features announcements from festival participants including actress Jane Horrocks, playwright Simon Stephens, Underworld’s Karl Hyde, Frantic Assembly’s Scott Graham, artists Yael Bartana and Phil Collins and New Order’s Bernard Sumner, amongst others. MIF 2017 will take place from 29 June to 16 July 2017 at locations all over Manchester. Image from MIF launch: L - R, Karl Hyde, Scott Graham, Simon Stephens, Yael Bartana, John McGrath, Phil Collins, Stephen Mallinder, Nick Vivian, Jane Horrocks, Bernard Sumner, Raymond Yiu, Sue Buckmaster, Joe Duddell, Tom Chapman, Graham Massey Credit Joel Chester Fildes

27 Mar 201737min

Midlands editor Steve Orme talks to Lekan Lawal, who is making his main stage directorial debut at Derby Theatre with Harold Pinter's Betrayal, and cast members Ben Addis (Robert), Kemi-Bo Jacobs (Emma) and Philip Correia (Jerry).

12 Mar 201722min