MONDAY 6 APRIL 2020 THISWEEKLONDON.COM
BRIAN LONSDALE: CORONAVIRUS THEATRE CLUB
Lots of performers and theatre companies are streaming recorded content from their archives at the moment, which is brilliant.

But I am especially interested in those projects where people are putting together and streaming new content in record time to satisfy locked-down culture-vulture audiences. And that's how I came across the Coronavirus Theatre Club, a very new online enterprise created and run by Michael Blair, Brian Lonsdale and Sam Neale (pictured above).

CTC focuses on monologues, performed live each Sunday via Twitter. I spoke to the group's Brian Lonsdale to find out more.

CLICK HERE to read this Caro Meets interview.

All of Coronavirus Theatre Club's content is available via Twitter. Tune in to their feed on Sundays at 7.00pm for live new content. Previously broadcast monologues can also be found and viewed in the Twitter feed.
With London's venues in temporary shutdown as efforts continue to restrict and delay the spread of COVID-19, for the next few weeks we'll be putting the spotlight on great comedy, theatre and other Fringe-style entertainment that is available online - both streaming live and on-demand.

Many of these online shows are free to access, though often there are ways that you can make donations if you enjoy what you see. Given most of the venues, companies and performers behind all this entertainment are facing significant financial challenges as a result of the COVID-19 shutdown, any contributions you can afford will really help.


THREE THEATRICAL THINGS TO WATCH ONLINE>>

What Once Was Ours | Half Moon Theatre | from 8 Apr

If you are looking for the kind of content that's suitable for older children and their parents, here's the one for you: an award winning piece about identity and belonging that will be released online on 8 Apr. If you have younger children, Half Moon Theatre have two already-released shows available, one for three to eight year olds, the other for eight to twelve year olds, and have more to come. See this link here.

Love In The Time Of Corona | HighTide Theatre | from 9 Apr (pictured)

East Anglian theatre company HighTide have launched the Lighthouse Programme, a series of events and outreach projects in response to the virus related lockdown, including support and online workshops for emerging playwrights in their area. Thursday 9 Apr sees the broadcast of the first of a number of monologues produced under the header 'Love In The Time Of Corona' featuring well known writers and performers. See this page here for a run down on everything they are doing, and follow them here on Twitter for news on the monologues.

The Beast Will Rise by Philip Ridley | Tramp | every Thursday

If COVID-19 hadn't got in the way, theatre company Tramp would have recently opened the premiere of 'The Beast Of Blue Yonder', a new play by Philip Ridley, at Southwark Playhouse. Instead of that, they're premiering fourteen monologues by the playwright, one of which, 'Gators', was released on 2 Apr. The rest will follow at weekly intervals. See this page here for info and to watch.


THREE MORE THEATRICAL THINGS TO WATCH ONLINE>>

Getting Better Slowly | Adam Pownall (pictured)
A play exploring Adam Pownall's experiences of becoming paralysed because of Guillain-Barré Syndrome, and his two and a half year journey towards recovery. Pownall stars in the show, alongside Kitty Randle, in this performance recorded at Lincoln Drill Hall. It became available a few days ago via Facebook and is still available to watch. Click this link for more.

Housetrap Theatre and Arts Festival | IMMERSIVE LDN | 8 Apr
Immersive LDN is closed, like all the venues, but the team who run it have been putting some of their time instead into curating this online festival event featuring varied performances of the comical, musical, theatrical, and not-quite-categorisable kind from Christy Coysh, Jack Bence, Yun Collective, Joshua Welch, Miracle Chance, Joseph Cullen, The ISLO Collective and Ellie Hall. Head this way for more info.

The Importance Of Being Earnest | Curve Theatre | until 12 Apr

Leicester's Curve Theatre is releasing a number of archive recordings online, but I thought I would mention this one immediately because it's only available until 12 Apr, so you need to watch it sooner rather than later. It's got one of my favourites, Cathy Tyson, in it, and is a really great production of a well loved classic. See this page here.


THREE VIRTUAL OR INTERACTIVE THINGS TO DO>>

Technicolour Malaise | TRATE | from 9 Apr
Art lovers who are missing their gallery trips might be interested in this one: Canadian artist TRATE was due to exhibit his latest collection of figurative oil paintings in London this month but, because of the times we find ourselves in, we'll be able to take in a virtual visit to his studio instead. The interactive virtual gallery goes live on 9 Apr, see this page here for info.

Machu Picchu Tour
This is definitely not the sort of fringe culture we normally cover, but as nobody is allowed out I thought a virtual tour of a major world tourist attraction might be fun to explore. Especially if you were planning to go travelling over the next couple of months and are imagining the places you could have been. Anyway, this is a cool tour, with informative voice over, of a place lots of us would like to go. See this page here.

Circus Skills Classes | Lost In Translation / Oak Circus Centre (pictured - image by Mina Jussila)
Everyone is looking for ways to get moving during this shut in period, so it's great to see people offering online and interactive sessions. These, from Oak Circus Centre and resident company Lost In Translation, sound like great fun, given the circus theme. There are loads of different classes catering to various age groups and skill-sets, and they're currently scheduled up until the start of May. Costs vary, see this page here to find out more about what's on offer.


THREE ONLINE COMEDY SHOWS>>

Daniel Muggleton on YouTube
Right, on to comedy, because we all really need a laugh, I am sure. First up is Daniel Muggleton, who we interviewed, actually, at last year's Edinburgh Fringe (you can read the Q&A here), and whose latest special '3 Stripes' is currently available to view on YouTube. Follow this link here to watch it.

Monkey Barrel Comedy on YouTube
Edinburgh's Monkey Barrel Comedy is another venue that's had to cancel a big raft of upcoming performances, but those of you missing live comedy will be pleased to hear they added a full length show to their YouTube channel a few days ago, and it looks like they might be adding more. See the YouTube page here to watch.

Grainne Maguire: Great People Making Great Choices (pictured - photo by Idil Sukan)
As I think I have mentioned previously, if there was ever a time to take out a new subscription to a streaming comedy service this seems like it, and NextUp comedy has loads of great full length shows. This is one we saw and loved in Edinburgh in 2018. If you weren't there, and didn't get the chance to see it live, here's a way to fix that. Click here.
At TW:CULTURE we champion the best in culture.

ThisWeek London is your guide to culture in London.

ThreeWeeks Edinburgh is your guide to Edinburgh's festivals.

TW:DIY is your guide to doing cultural stuff.



© UnLimited Media, a division of 3CM Enterprises Ltd

UnLimited Media, Kemp House, 152 City Road, London EC1V 2NX
t: 020 7099 9050 (editorial) 020 7099 9060 (sales)

Send Edinburgh press releases to TWedinburgh@unlimitedmedia.co.uk

Send London press releases to TWlondon@unlimitedmedia.co.uk

You can read our Privacy & Data Policy here

publishing@unlimitedmedia.co.uk | complaints@unlimitedmedia.co.uk