New Diorama Emerging Company Programme
—This application was probably the most formative and important thing we ever wrote. It forced us to really think hard about what our company is and pushed us to articulate that in a succinct way. We really recommend other companies, even as an exercise, fill out this application.—
When did your company form? (100 characters)
Sept 2017 at RHUL University after we both shouted in a show thinking it was audience participation.
Please give us a brief overview of your company’s work to date, including venues you have performed at. If you are currently working on your first production, please provide details about the process you are employing and what your aspirations for the production are. (850 characters)
An Abundance of Tims
Tim recently became the hero of a small rural town. One problem: it was completely by accident. Tim and two audio speakers, each with his own recorded voice, enlists the audience to uncover a tale of lies, celebrity and mistaken identity.
2018 - Bread and Roses Theatre, Tristan Bates Theatre, King’s Head Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe (Greenside Venues)
Coming Out of My Cage (And I’ve Been Doing Just Fine)
Mr Brightside hasn’t left the UK charts in 14 years. How did it end up like this? It was only a hit, it was only a hit. Through the medium of karaoke we work with the audience to answer the question: what must you do today to be remembered?
2019 - Pleasance Scratch
This show is currently in R&D stage. We’re developing this through residencies and scratch performances, aspiring towards an Edinburgh Fringe 2020 premiere.
Tell us a bit about the style of theatre your company make. What makes you unique as a company? (850 characters)
We create participatory and playful shows to engage those who feel that theatre isn’t for them and offer unique experiences to those that do. We empower audiences to break rules and stretch the boundaries of theatrical form - whilst giving them an unashamedly fun and entertaining night out in the process.
Using clowning and DIY tech to explore big, complex ideas through a pop culture microscope, we encourage our audience to take risks as they co-create each performance with us. Not only is each show different fromto the last, but the decisions they make in one show will alter the shape of the next - the audience truly leaves a footprint on our work.
Our rehearsals are open for anyone to engage with. Every script draft, meeting note and bad idea is documented to view on our website - giving unparalleled access to our company unlike any other.
Where possible, please list some reviews or feedback you have received on your companies work (850 characters)
An Abundance of Tims: Reviews
★★★★★ ‘a very entertaining, original and interesting exercise in metatheatre’ - Everything Theatre
★★★★ ‘a briskly paced curious play with a definitive fringe theatre feel’ - LondonTheatre1
MUST SEE SHOW - ‘The kind of comedy I wish I saw more of: it’s skillful, clever, and goes way beyond a cheap laugh' - FringeReview
Coming Out Of My Cage (And I’ve Been Doing Just Fine): Pleasance Audience Feedback
‘Just felt right lol’
‘Really nice, subtle and inviting interaction’
‘I was really interested in this, super interested in where this is going to go!’
Ali Pidsley (Barrel Organ): ‘Alex, Saxon & their collaborators are a really exciting group of theatre makers. I think they’re mega, and can’t wait to see the work they go on to make’
Links to reviews and feedback at www.shepardtonetheatre.com
Tell us a bit about the artists who inspire you. (850 characters)
Sh!t Theatre: We love how easy they make it all look. With just a powerpoint, instruments and some cardboard they were able to craft the most playful and powerful interwoven story. They have so much fun on stage and it’s infectious. Each show they make welcomes you back like they are old mates, ready to tell you about their recent adventure.
John Robertson: We fucking love his show, ‘The Dark Room’. We’ve been 11 times between us. The show has really built a sense of community - it’s best experienced more than once as it develops a culture of inside jokes between the audience.
Gob Squad: We are obsessed with how they present invitations to their audience. They do so with such care, and often without any words - they really think about the aesthetic potential of what each invitation for the audience to participate can be.
Briefly describe how you would market a show. (850 characters)
In an effort to engage those who feel theatre isn’t for them, we have three strands of marketing for each show: social media, print and documenting.
Firstly, we ‘trojan-horse’ our social media audience through humour, hiding the show behind every joke. For every promotional post, we have 10 more which are just for fun - utilising the pop-culture themes of our shows to reach wider audiences.
Secondly, our flyers for ‘An Abundance of Tims’ doubled as masks of Tim’s face. They could be worn, were linked to the story, and were used for a photo competition: best selfie with the mask and you were written into the show.
Finally, people can interact with our online archive which documents our breakthroughs - and most importantly, our failures - allowing audiences to develop a relationship with our company that exists beyond the shows themselves.
Why you think you’d benefit from being on the Graduate Emerging Companies Programme. (850 characters)
Having an open dialogue and establishing a relationship with a theatre that’s renowned for its exemplary, kind working model would be invaluable. We would gain vital skills, enabling us to create professional work and learn sustainability. Mentorship from industry professionals would help us support other artists by making our working methods transparent; by demystifying the industry for us, the NDT will help us demystify how our work is made for others. We relish the opportunity to meet other emerging creatives and gain a new network of contacts as it would be incredibly rewarding to complete the programme with new peers with whom we can support and grow with. We believe this programme would not only make us better theatre-makers, but would help us establish good habits for life, making us better mentors ourselves.
Are there any upcoming opportunities for us to see your work performed? If there are none, that is not a problem, please just write N/A. N/A