• Advertise
  • Request Review
  • Write for Us
  • Privacy
  • Login

Theatre Bubble

The UK Theatre Network

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Reviews
  • News
  • Features
  • Spotlight
  • Opinions
  • Interviews
  • Guides
  • Tickets

Stomping Ground: StoneCrabs Young Directors’ Festival

March 23, 2017 by Olivia Coxhead Leave a Comment

Each year, London theatre company StoneCrabs selects 9 talented young directors for a six month professional development programme. They receive mentoring and training from industry professionals in production, project management and theatre directing. Stomping Ground is their graduation ceremony, for which each participant gets to direct an hour long piece of theatre of their choosing, with professional actors. You can support StoneCrabs in this worthy cause via their kickstarter.

The Shawl by David Mamet, Directed by Francine Morgan

Mamet’s short four act play relies strongly on the ability of the director to balance the fraud pyschic’s bald-faced probing with his victim’s naivety and belief in him and his ‘powers’. Morgan skillfully draws tension between the three opposing characters, all locked in a moral battle of exploitation, and neatly refers the audience to the self delusions we all carry, through John’s (Alec Gray) steady decline into self-doubt and hatred.

Initially the production ran quite one-note, but Nicola Peluso brought some volume in the last act to lift the pace of the narrative. Morgan allows Mamet’s words to give the audience what they want – to see behind a psychic fake’s tricks, and to find the rational logic in supernatural phenomena. Some loosening up of the language could be beneficial in any future performances, as at times it felt like the cast were spelling out each stutter and half finished word, and a more relaxed approach with the script could lend the piece more realism.

Cast: Alec Gray, Nicola Peluso, Sean James

Counting Stars by Atiha Sen Gupta, Directed by Emily Marshall

Following two simultaneous and interweaving storylines from lovers Sophie and Abiodun, Counting Stars is a powerfully tragic comedy about working in a club toilet in Woolwich. Director Emily Marshall’s stage and movement direction is intelligent, drawing a character forward to focus the audience during moments of intensity, whilst keeping the unspeaking cast member active and engaged without pulling attention with some great non-verbal ‘business’.

With excellent comic timing and ability to switch through multiple characters (and accents) flawlessly, cast members Rebecca Omogbehin and Joseph Rowe are definitely ones-to-watch. Marshall has clearly worked well with her cast, and the production reaps the benefits as a result. I felt like I could have watched this at the Soho Theatre, it was so well pulled together. Everything had been considered and chosen, from sound to stage design, from movement to direction, to create a perfect storm of emotional realism.

Cast:Rebecca Omogbehin, Joseph Rowe

The End of All Miracles by Paulo Santoro, Directed by Fernanda Mandagará

Starting off in very high spirits, with an audience-participation conga line, The End of all Miracles transforms into a much heavier, darker examination of getting the most out of life, and reliving old memories at the end of your life. Director Fernanda Mandagará marshalls cast members Bridget Wood and Peter McVea through their meandering, tangential conversation, whilst Alexandra Dias provides non-verbal support as, alternately, a nurse and a prostitute.

Despite experiencing some lighting cue difficulties and a bit of a problem with lines, Mandagará clearly has some very creative ideas, with bold staging decisions, inventive sound and light effects, and a full dance number keeping the audience engaged. Occasionally needing a little more animation or change of tempo, the production could benefit from cutting back a little on extras and focusing on transmitting the core message of the piece.

Cast: Alexandra Dias, Bridget Wood, Peter McVea

Captain Amazing by Alistair McDowall, Directed by Luke Howarth

Howarth’s one man show is a tour de force, following a father’s retreat into fantasy after his life doesn’t turn out the way he wanted. Directing in the round is incredibly demanding on the director’s ability to be inventive and make full use of the space, and Howarth excels , even throwing in some puppetry directing for good measure. Adam Trussell as Captain Amazing throws himself around the stage with endless energy, using a sparse set of cardboard boxes and a takeaway coffee cup to race through scenes with multiple characters, all played with a twitch of his body and subtle inflection of voice.

Jessica Warshaw puppeteers Captain Amazing’s young daughter Emily with pleasing simplicity, matching Trussell’s voice well. Whilst the initial introduction to the puppet (a tugging of a bunch of balloons out of a box) was delightfully comic and accomplished the setting of physical boundaries, it felt quite stand-alone. It would have benefited from connecting to the rest of the story. Trussell’s physical placement of different characters in the same scene became muddled at times, but overall Howarth took on a challenging script and created a mesmerizing, high-octane piece of theatre.

Cast: Adam Trussell, Jessica Warshaw

After Liverpool by James Saunders, Directed by Sam Luffman

After Liverpool is incredibly dialogue rich, exploring in minutia the multitude of small things that can irritate, and even end, a relationship. Luffman has staged this piece well, with two microphones and two chairs each taking an opposite corner of the 4-point stage in the round. Focusing the piece into the corners can occasionally lead to actors playing the ‘plate balancing game’, whereby they follow each other across diametrically opposed corners, making movements predictable or staid. There were points at which the audience would have welcomed more variety of movement, but the on-stage chemistry of Hollie Hales and Stephen Papaioannou kept our focus on course.

Hales is particularly noteworthy for her expressive performance, and both cast members dealt well with being undressed for significant periods of the show. The piece gave the strong impression that Luffman had created a safe environment with which to explore the more challenging parts of the narrative.

Cast: Hollie Hales, Stephen Papaioannou

The Open Couple by Dario Fo, Directed by Alex Prescot

Dario Fo’s piece doesn’t just break the fourth wall, it uses the audience to mediate a couple’s marital struggles, and in select cases to participate in the action itself. Acknowledging the stage, set and their own characterisation, Rebecca Crankshaw and Pete Picton were a well matched team for this dark comedy. Director Alex Prescot has a pleasingly imaginative approach to props, with a hairdryer used alternately as a gun, wind from an open window and finally an actual hairdryer.

Unfortunately, it didn’t feel like the round stage was used to its full potential – knowingly or not, the cast members chased themselves anti-clockwise for a significant portion of the show, and it would have been effective to switch this up at poignant moments, perhaps to mirror the shifting power dynamics in the couple. Crankshaw feels like a very safe pair of hands, she maintained pace and clarity, driving the show forward to its climactic conclusion. Picton made a potentially unlikeable character endearing, managing to bring the audience onto his side with bumbling charm. The Open Couple can be unforgiving on its director, as it constantly switches up the characters’ relationships with the audience, but Prescot clearly had a strong handle on how to make the production succeed.

Cast: Rebecca Crankshaw, Pete Picton

Author: Olivia CoxheadOlivia has worked as a production manager in open air touring theatre, and currently loves being an audience member who doesn't have to bring an umbrella and a plastic poncho to every show

Filed Under: Review Tagged With: Albany, Deptford, Emerging Artists, Festival, Lewisham, Stomping Ground, Stonecrabs, The Albany, Young Directors

Join the discussion Cancel reply

INTERVIEW / Plain Heroines talks SCRATCHES at VAULT Festival 2023

We spoke to director Gabrielle Bird from Plain Heroines about taking part in VAULT Festival 2023 with their show SCRATCHES   Tell us [Read More]

INTERVIEW / Anthony Clark on SHE

Anthony Clark is the writer of SHE, a new show interweaving the stories of 14 different women in their twenties, [Read More]

INTERVIEW / Thick ‘n’ Fast talks General Secretary at VAULT Festival

We spoke to co-writers and performers Cassie Symes and Georgina Thomas about taking part in VAULT Festival 2023 with their [Read More]

NEWS / Too Much World at Once tour announced

Set against a backdrop of the climate crisis, the debut from Papatango shortlisted writer Billie Collins is a lyrical coming [Read More]

INTERVIEW / Ian Nicholas talks The Elephant Song

Ian Nicholas is a theatre producer, running OnBook Theatre alongside director Jason Moore. He talks here about their next production, [Read More]

Top Posts & Pages

  • Hotel- a new play by Polly Stenham at The Shed, National Theatre
  • Spotlight On: The London Clown Festival
  • London Clown Festival Coming to, well, London
  • Willy Hudson on Welcome Home
  • Athena Stevens on seeing what you’ve turned a blind eye to
  • Is this the real location of Ambridge?
  • Ed Fringe 2016: Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons at Summerhall Roundabout
  • Southwold Summer Theatre Season 2022
  • Interview with Theresa Heskins, co-director of "Astley's Astounding Adventures"
  • VAULT Festival unveils 2018 programme!
  • Olivia Coxhead
    Editor

  • March 23rd, 2017
  • comment iconNo Comments
  • FacebookTweetLinkedInEmail

    Newsletter

    Enjoyed what you've read? Get even more great content directly to your inbox - Completely Free

    About Theatre Bubble

    Theatre Bubble is the news, review and blogging site created by Blue Pie Media and run by a dedicated team of outstanding editors and writers: we're always looking for new contributors - to find out more click here.

    Contact Us

    News: news@theatrebubble.com
    Reviews: reviews@theatrebubble.com
    Website: webmaster@theatrebubble.com

    Privacy Policy

    Copyright © 2023 · Blue Pie Media

     

    Loading Comments...
     

      Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

      Email sent!