Blackshaw is a theatre production company, championing new writing and adaptations on stage and in audio.
We had a lovely post-show Question and Answer session with…
– The writer of ‘Character’, Florence Vincent
– ‘Character’ actors, Angela Ferns & Clare Harlow
– ‘Character’ Director Ellie Pitkin
– ‘Character’ Assistant Director, Oliver Gordon
You can listen to the session here.
Photos by Andrew Crane.
CLARE HARLOW – WHITE RABBIT/CATERPILLAR
What do you like best about playing your character in Alice in Wonderland?
I normally play characters who spend a lot of time worrying about what other people are thinking, but all the characters Alice meets in Wonderland are delightfully selfish, which is so much fun to play with.
What are rehearsals like?
Playful, collaborative, energetic.
What was the last project you worked on?
A short film called One In Ten, playing a woman suffering from post-natal depression.
Besides Alice, what’s your favourite past role?
Jane in Jane Eyre or Abigail in The Crucible.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
Too many to choose from, but the best thing I’ve seen this year so far has been The Pass at The Royal Court.
Not a lot of people know that…
The hatstand we use in the play is mine and I carried it across London on three different tube lines to get it to the venue.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
A long lie in.
What really grinds your gears?
The Northern Line really is the worst.
NATALIE WINTER – MARCH HARE/DORMOUSE/DOOR 2
What do you like best about playing your character in Alice in Wonderland?
How physically involved I have to be at all times – it becomes a bit of a juggling act! What are rehearsals like? Fun! There’s a nice balance of playfulness and focus – which you need in a show like Alice. You’ve got to let the madness and the silliness out, but be technically aware of what will work for the audience.
What was the last project you worked on?
I’m currently involved in Star Trek: Lost Enterprise, which is an ongoing audio drama released on YouTube, about the mysterious disappearance of the USS Enterprise B. I play a Bajoran spiritual leader in the first two episodes, and make an appearance in the last two as a very different character…. But as they’re not released yet I can’t tell you who because, spoilers! Anyone interested can go to http://www.lostenterprise.co.uk to listen to the episodes released so far.
Besides Alice, what’s your favourite past role?
It sounds like a cliché, but I loved playing Lady Macbeth in drama school. I often get cast as the quirky or comic part, so getting to explore a character that dark was wonderful.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
Those are 3 different questions! Maybe not the best ones critically, but War Horse, Matilda and a video games concert (yes it’s a real thing!) I went to a couple of years ago. All three moved me in ways I didn’t expect.
Not a lot of people know that…
I once made Paul McCartney a margarita (although he likes to call them Maccaritas…).
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Grey’s Anatomy. All the other stuff you’d think a woman in her mid-20s would be guilty about (the Disney films, the cheesy musicals, the cartoons and the inordinate amount of time playing video games) I’m proud to love.
What really grinds your gears?
Spitting in the street. And people who think ‘Feminism’ means ‘I hate men.’
ALEXANDER PANKHURST – TWEEDLEDEE/SOLDIER 1/DOOR 1
What do you like best about playing your character in Alice in Wonderland?
Getting to perform as multiple crazy people is no bad thing. Also acting with Mr Fleming is always great.
What are rehearsals like?
Very energetic lots of running around. Ellie always has snacks to keep us going though.
What was the last project you worked on?
Production of Much Ado at the Park Theatre. Lovely space if you get a chance to see something /perform there; do!
Besides Alice, what’s your favourite past role?
Mercutio, got to be. Steals the show and dies before the interval. Perfect.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
Richard the III at the Globe, Mark Rylance was awesome.
Not a lot of people know that…
I’d really like to have a trade like a Blacksmith (probably reading Game of Thrones doesn’t help).
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Playing pointless games on my phone.
What really grinds your gears?
Slow walkers.
What do you like best about playing your character in Character?
Michelle has no internal filter and can go off on a bit of a tangent, which is great fun to perform. The piece is so well written and it is just hilarious to play.
What are rehearsals like?
Laughter-filled.
What was the last project you worked on?
Much Ado About Nothing at Park Theatre. It was set just after the Second World War and I played Margaret as a man-hungry fallen aristocrat
Besides Alice, what’s your favourite past role?
Ophelia in Hamlet at Dalston Bunker.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
Market Boy at The National – it was a complete joy – just impeccable theatre. Punchdrunk’s Masque of the Red Death is a close second as I love immersive theatre and that was my very first experience of it.
Not a lot of people know that…
I’m a Richard Curtis rom-com addict. I can’t get enough.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Chai Tea lattes. They are just so warm and comforting.
What really grinds your gears?
Alarm clocks. Yuck!
ZAHRA MANSOURI – SET & COSTUME DESIGNER
What do you like best about working on Alice in Wonderland and Character?
Alice was a favourite childhood book, so it’s having the opportunity to rework it, as well as staying true to the aspects we know and love (younger people can see a reimagining of the piece, but adults can delight in finding details from the original). With Character I like the fact that it’s such a different challenge; the fun is in creating a reality that relates to real people and pinning down that level of detail in set and costume.
What was the last project you worked on?
The curious tale of Pablo Picasso at the Brockley Jack – a surreal piece about two historic events merging – Pablo Picasso discovering his Art whilst in prison for stealing the Mona Lisa. Absolute madness, with many of the props I made based on art of the time, oversized objects and detailed pieces, were a joy to make.
Besides Alice and Character, what’s your favourite past production? Blackshaw’s adaptation of Gormenghast (another favourite book of mine). I had a whole church to create the world in, whilst of course being loyal to Peake fans, I created detailed costume designs that really pinned down the larger then life characters within the story.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
Best show I have been to was Faust at the Colosseum, by Terry Gillingham. We all loved his animations for Monty Python, and to actually see that level of interchanging madness within an opera was spectacular.
Not a lot of people know that…
It’s bloody hard work convincing young actors to wear their trousers on their waist and not round their arse if they want to successfully look like they are in a period drama.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Working in my pyjamas whilst listening to 80s power rock.
What really grinds your gears?
Young male actors arguing the toss about where the waistband should be worn if they are in a period piece.
See Zahra’s work at www.zahramansouri.com
LIAM FLEMING – TWEEDLE DUM (& SOLDIER 2/DOOR 4)
What do you like best about playing your character in Alice in Wonderland?
My favourite thing about playing Tweedledum is getting to let my imagination and child-like side to run free. And I get to do it with a good friend which makes being part of a duo even easier.
What are rehearsals like?
Rehearsals are a lot of fun. They are tiring because ‘Alice’ is a very physical show, but it’s a good work-out.
What was the last project you worked on?
My last project was the first show of my new company. ‘Father for Justice’ and ‘Dearly Departed ‘, a double bill of immersive theatre.
Besides Alice, what’s your favourite past role?
My favourite role was playing The Marquis De Sade in ‘Quills’. It was great playing someone so confident and articulate.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
The best show is any time I get to see Amanda Palmer live. She always gives a performance that makes me feel a part of it.
Not a lot of people know that…
Not a lot of people know that… When you order crispy seaweed from a Chinese restaurant it’s not seaweed, it’s Cabbage.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
My guilty pleasure is… my love of 90s pop music.
What really grinds your gears?
Self-entitled people
CLARE HARLOW – FREYA, CHARACTER
What do you like best about playing your character in Character?
The script is just brilliant. Flo, the writer, is seriously talented.
What are rehearsals like?
I keep getting the giggles because Angela, who plays Michelle, is too funny.
What was the last project you worked on?
A short film called One In Ten, playing a woman suffering from post-natal depression.
Besides this show, what’s your favourite past role?
Jane in Jane Eyre or Abigail in The Crucible.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
Too many to choose from, but the best thing I’ve seen this year so far has been The Pass at The Royal Court.
Not a lot of people know that…
The hatstand we use in the play is mine and I carried it across London on three different tube lines to get it to the venue.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
A long lie in.
What really grinds your gears?
The Northern Line really is the worst.
EMILY RAE – ALICE, ALICE IN WONDERLAND
What do you like best about playing your character in Alice in Wonderland?
I secretly enjoy Alice’s little angry outbursts and the way she struggles with wanting things to be logical, but also the fact that deep down she enjoys the sheer absurdity of it all. I like to think that she learns from her experiences in Wonderland!
What are rehearsals like?
FUN! So far I am incapable of getting through a single scene without having to stifle a severe case of the giggles! Rehearsals have been a professional environment where the actors are encouraged by the Director to explore even the silliest of ideas! The scenes always feel fresh and aside from certain choreographed moments I enjoy the freedom to play and always look forward to new and unexpected moments!
What was the last project you worked on?
Aside from performing short scenes from Amadeus and Spur of The Moment at The Hospital Club in collaborative events for new actors, I spent two months over the Christmas season performing The Snow Queen in Primary Schools and Theatres around the country.
Besides Alice, what’s your favourite past role?
I have three favourites! I played ‘Eliza Doolittle’ in Pygmalion at school and this is when I knew I wanted to be an actor. I then played ‘Cecily Cardew’ in The Importance of Being Earnest Directed by Alex Turner during my first year at Royal Holloway University which I absolutely loved. At Drama School, I worked with a Director called Xavier Leret to develop a character called ‘Midas’ Daughter’ in Metamorphoses, an adaptation of Greek myths by Mary Zimmerman, in which I was turned into a gold statue during the first few minutes of a two hour performance with no interval. I held this position for the entirety, being carried around the stage and submerged in an ice cold pool! Being freed at the end of this performance by my on stage Father, ‘King Midas’, was one of the most magical and rewarding moments, especially as it had seemed like the most absurd suggestion from Xavier from the start but was so well received by the audience. This was a lesson to be learnt for me as seemingly silly ideas often turn out to be the best.
What’s the best play/show/concert you’ve ever been to?
Lots of things. I think the best shows are the ones that stay with you or have an affect on you, even if it’s something that just really made you laugh! Most recently, I have fallen in love with ‘Once’ at the Phoenix Theatre because the actors are so committed to telling such a simple and lovely story and the fact that they play their instruments live on stage is even more remarkable. The bar on stage from which the audience can get drinks helps too… I like collaborative shows that rely on resourcefulness and the talent of the actors.
Not a lot of people know that…
I simply cannot tell a lie! Call me Jim Carrey (that is a ‘Liar Liar’ reference for anyone who has not seen this marvellous film) but I find it impossible – even if I partially manage to lie – it reads all over my face! This is not ideal for me being that acting is essentially making a living from pretending!
What’s your guilty pleasure?
Zac Efron. No shame.
What really grinds your gears?
People who don’t like pudding. ‘Oh no it’s okay I’m going to have the cheese board.’ I mean, I’m all for a cheese board but it ain’t no crème brûxlée let’s be honest.
Take a peek at some photos of our post-show Q&A.
If you like the lovely, smiley faces below, just wait until you hear their dulcet tones in the audio recording of the Q&A. Find it here.
Blackshaw Theatre 