Coming up at Battersea Arts Centre is the second Going Places festival - a week of events related to, and created by, care experienced people, staged to coincide with National Care Leavers Week 2018.
To find out more about the festival and its creator, I spoke to Bobbi Byrne, founder and artistic director. Read the interview here.
Going Places is on at Battersea Arts Centre from 24 Oct-3 Nov, see this page here for more info and the full line up of events.
TUESDAY 23 OCTOBER 2018 >>
Andrea Constanzo Martini/Aris Papadopoulos & Martha Pasakopoulou | The Place | 23 Oct
Loadsa good stuff on at The Place over the next week or so. And we begin with this, a double bill of fab dance duets. 'touching.just' is "a rhythmic game dealing with the absurd, idiosyncratic, awkward and episodic meetings of two performers in their effort to interact and connect", while 'Scarabeo, Angles and the Void', a slapstick-y piece about friendship. The latter of the two has its own family matinee on the 23 Oct, so I think that might be a good one for the kids this half term. Anyway, info, here for the double bill and here for the family matinee.
No Direction Home - Transporter | Camden People's Theatre | 23 Oct (pictured)
As you can tell by the title there, this is one of the opening events in CPT's No Direction Home, a festival of work exploring displacement, migration and refuge. "Maya - forever thirteen - is both ordinary and extraordinary; schoolgirl, time traveller, shaman. Tales of classroom conflicts, flights across deserts, ice cream dreams and thwarted revolutions weave together, and the local and the global, the personal and political collide". See this page here for more.
The Blue Bird | Theatre503 | 23-25 Oct
"One wintry evening Tyltyl wakes to find a hump-back figure in his bedroom. She is obviously a fairy. Tyltyl must find the bluebird that makes people happy. And he must do so before morning. Tyltyl doesn't know about bluebirds, or where he might find one but joined by his faithful pets the search begins..." Again, if you're looking for a way to entertain some younger children this October half term, and I bet there's at least a few of you out there, here's another great looking option, an adaptation of Maurice Maeterlinck's classic fairy-tale. Details here.
WEDNESDAY 24 OCTOBER 2018 >>
Forgotten | Arcola Theatre | 23 Oct-17 Oct (pictured)
"1917. Shandong Province, Northern China. Times are tough in Horse Shoe Village. Old Six and Second Moon struggle to earn enough to feed their young child. Big Dog struggles to overcome opium addiction and for Eunuch Lin, the fall of the Imperial Dynasty couldn't have come at a worse time. Could a fierce war far away in Europe present an opportunity to put both themselves and their struggling nation on its feet?" A very promising looking play, see this page here for more info.
No Direction Home - Zugunruhe | Camden People's Theatre | 23-24 Oct
Interesting word that, isn't it? Zugunruhe? And since you'll clearly want to know what it means, I googled it for you. It is German compound word consisting of Zug and Unruhe, and in ethology "it describes anxious behavior in migratory animals, especially in birds during the normal migration period". Meanwhile, this show "explores the incredible flight of a marsh warbler, the world's only bird whose song echoes its migration route". Details on it right about here.
Going Places | Battersea Arts Centre | 24 Oct-3 Nov
Right, this is a series of events, not just one event so I will start by urging you to check out the venue website to see the full schedule. It's a short season of shows, workshops, talks and installations in celebration of National Care Leavers Week 2018, which takes its name from the words of a poem by Lemn Sissay: "I think I'll paint roads on my front room walls to convince myself that I am going places". Head to this listing here for all the info.
THURSDAY 25 OCTOBER 2018 >>
I Wish I Was A Mountain | Battersea Arts Centre | 24-26 Oct (pictured)
"On the day of the famous annual fair, the town of Faldum receives an unexpected visit. A wanderer offers to grant a wish to anyone who wants one. Before long, the city is transformed. Mansions stand where mud huts once squatted, and beggars ride around in horse drawn carriages. And one man wishes to be turned into a mountain". Another suggestion for a child-focused event in recognition of the fact that it's half term and you may be looking for ways to entertain the kids. Expect good things from former Glastonbury Poetry Slam Champion Toby Thompson. See this page here for more.
Princess Charming | Ovalhouse | 23-27 Oct
And another - yes, another - family friendly show, this time a cabaret exploring gender stereotypes and the intense pressure that's on children (and humans in general, to be fair) to conform to standards of approved modes of masculine or feminine behaviour. "We don't like being told what to do. Some boys like pink. Some girls like football. Whatever. We're here to sing, shout, stamp, dance, dress up. And be ourselves". And quite right too. Details here.
No Direction Home - Belong | Camden People's Theatre | 26 Oct
"Zambian born, London based choreographer Lindy Nsingo presents a series of powerful, energetic and soulful performances that blends contemporary dance, text and music. Using voice recordings from her family and traditional Zambian song, join Lindy for an evening of dance, informed by ideas of migration and of responding to a foreign space". Another promising looking pick from CPT's No Direction Home season, book your tickets here.
FRIDAY 26 OCTOBER 2018 >>
No Direction Home - Adventures In Black and White | Camden People's Theatre | 24-26 Oct (pictured)
"Stasys and Lilly face each other, unwilling to talk about their exile. But from within the spaces between their words and the seams that hold their patchwork clothes together, images come to life". A study of the parallel lives of two exiled people, one in Siberia, the other in Sussex. Promises to be a "thoughtful and mischievous" piece featuring story-telling, sound and imagescapes, translations, blurry photographs and, um, cake. More info right about here.
Silk Road | The Place | 26-27 Oct
This sounds like a fascinatingly fusion-y sort of dance piece, in which Flamenco meets Kathak. Expect "a fascinating exploration of the rituals along nomadic routes, conjuring images of the pilgrims, monks, traders and urban dwellers who made their way from China to the Iberian Peninsula". See the venue website here for details.
Boundaries | Omnibus Theatre | 23-28 Oct
"Diane is a happy, fulfilled woman in her middle years. On a trip to visit her mum, memories of her youth come flooding by. Before she was Diane, she was Daniel". An exploration of harassment and hate crime, developed from real witness testimony by women and LGBT people. Click this link here for more.
SATURDAY 27 OCTOBER 2018 >>
Fake News | Waterloo East Theatre | 23-28 Oct
"A young journalist lands a dream internship at the country's biggest online news company. But a few months into the role - in a hasty bid to find a major scoop that will go viral - he inadvertently publishes a catastrophic error that risks unhinging his entire career. Is he about to lose it all - or is there no such thing as bad publicity?" This has already won some positive critiques, and sounds rather good. See this page here for info.
No Direction Home - Where We Began | Camden People's Theatre | 26-28 Oct (pictured)
Another pick from CPT's No Direction Home season and one which offers a "wild and vivid vision of the future" depicted by a team of international performers via the media of storytelling, movement and live music. "When every citizen is ordered to return to their place of birth, 'Where We Began' examines where we could end up". See the venue website here for details.
White Teeth | Kiln Theatre | 26 Oct-22 Dec
You can't have failed to have heard of the novel by Zadie Smith, and it's adapted for the stage here by acclaimed playwright Stephen Sharkey. "You're in Kilburn. Melting pot where nothing's actually melted. It's all just kinda stuck together at the bottom in a gooey mess. Rosie Jones, the Iqbal twins, their parents, their grandparents, Mad Mary and an avalanche of other characters who make up the everyday chaos of Kilburn High Road come together in an extraordinary revelry of NW6". More here.
SUNDAY 28 OCTOBER 2018 >>
No Direction Home - The Dirty Word | Camden People's Theatre | 28 Oct
You've possibly by now realised that we are quite excited about the content of CPTs No Direction Home festival, given that we've tipped something from it every day since it began. Well, we make no apologies, and continue in this fashion, with this very interesting sounding work in progress. It's a piece that combines verbatim and devised theatre, spoken word and movement, and uses the experiences of immigrants all around the world to explore how the word immigrant has become a difficult word for many to use. Details here.
Stunning Meara | Theatre503 | 28-29 Oct
"Meara lives alone. She has the anxiety disorder Selective Mutism. The only person with whom she has ever been able to speak to freely is her Dad, Arthur. But he dropped dead three weeks ago. One Sunday evening, returning to her flat along a dark street, a strange man steps out in front of her, "I've been watching you for weeks. I like you. I want to touch your breasts". Steve is Autistic. But can this 'threat' be the beginning of a story of friendship; of love?" Seems unlikely, but who knows? See this page here for more.
Juliet Burton - The Butterfly Effect | Greenwich Theatre | 28 Oct (pictured)
Long time TW fave Juliet Burton heads to Greenwich Theatre with her much acclaimed show exploring the power of kindness and whether small, kind-hearted acts can make the world a better place". At a time when most of us find it hard enough being kind to ourselves - let alone others - is being nice outdated? Or can we still connect and change lives for the better?" See this page here to book your tickets.
MONDAY 29 OCTOBER 2018 >>
Dealing With Clair | Orange Tree Theatre | 26 Oct -1 Dec
"Clair works in real estate. Mike and Liz are selling. James wants to buy. He'll only deal with Clair". A revival of Martin Crimp's 1988 play, back at the Orange Tree Theatre after its premiere there thirty years ago. "Selling houses. It's not forever. Who knows what I'll do? Maybe make a killing and just... disappear. That's right. Vanish". See the venue website here for info and to book.
Soldier On | The Other Palace | 24 Oct-24 Nov (pictured)
This production returns to London following a sold out national tour to commemorate the end of the First World War, so you can expect something highly polished. It's inspired by the true stories of British servicemen and women and their families, explores the emotional, mental and physical effects and stresses of modern military service, and stars a mixture of actors and former service personnel. All the details are here.
No Direction Home - Big Bang | Camden People's Theatre | 29 Oct
One of CPT's Big Bang nights of new in-progress selections, this one as part of No Direction Home and therefore on the theme of displacement, migration and refuge. The line up consists of 'Ironing Out' by Alleyway Radical Theatre, 'Las Simples Cosas' by Alex Etchart, 'Holocaust Brunch' by Tamara Micner, and 'Dear Daughter' by Segen Yosef. For more about each of those, check the venue website here.
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