Pleasance Scratch Application

Tell us about the piece of work you are looking to develop as part of A Pleasance Scratch - What the piece is about, its style/form, what stage of development it's at:

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. 

We present an investigation into legacy, celebrity and britishness through the medium of karaoke. The show is a mix of audience interaction, clowning and documentary. Think ‘Louis Theroux’ meets ‘The Blue Man Group’. Using a single microphone and a projector displaying karaoke lyrics and home-made videos, we work with the audience to answer the question: what must you do today to be remembered, celebrated and engrained in British culture like Mr Brightside has been?

The show is in a very early stage of development. This will be the first public showing of the piece.

How will participating in the scratch contribute to the development of the piece? - Any specific aspect/element you are hoping to develop or get feedback on, how the scratch will support your process:

We would like to present the first 10 minutes of our performance to test how we can introduce the element of karaoke to the audience. Specifically, we want to invite them to participate without vocally explaining or instructing them, but instead displaying brief instructions and projected lyrics. We also want to see how we can use a single microphone to give the audience agency, without saying anything, so that they play a part in discovering the show. For instance, is it possible to start the piece where the only people that speak are the audience? 

Our two main questions for our audience would be:
- How much does your familiarity with the song affect your engagement with the show: as familiar or as unfamiliar as you may be?
- Audience interaction is integral to our performance - what encouraged your desire to participate, and what discouraged you?

This show is in an early stage of development - we have an overarching structure for the piece, but are keen to make sure our interaction with the audience in the show isn’t simply tokenistic, but rather crucial to giving them agency. Exposing the show to an audience at this stage will allow us to develop the show with a more confident idea of how our audience may respond - offering us something we can’t discover in a rehearsal room with our mates. Having attended Pleasance Scratch before and given honest and unbiased feedback ourselves, we would like to be on the receiving end with this brand new show - which simply can’t happen without an audience. 

Please provide a biography for your company and/or yourself as the lead artist:

Shepard Tone makes theatre that’s experimental in form, yet ultimately entertaining and accessible - shows that you can invite both your drama lecturer and your mum to. We create unique live experiences that explore big ideas through a pop culture microscope. Our previous show An Abundance of Tims (Bread and Roses Theatre, Tristan Bates Theatre, King’s Head Theatre, Edinburgh Fringe) received five star reviews.

Our company includes: 

Alexander Hick, our director, is a Trainee Resident Director at the King’s Head Theatre, he recently assisted directed on Coming Clean at Trafalgar Studios and has directed shows at the Etcetera Theatre, Tristan Bates Theatre, King’s Head Theatre, Katzspace, and Bread and Roses Theatre.

Tim Chapman, our performer, has trained with The National Youth Theatre, having performing with them in ‘DNA’, and has also worked with Dante or Die and Broken Stereo. He wrote and performed An Abundance of Tims.

Saxon Mudge, our producer, has recently associate produced Galvanise at Vault Festival, produced Forge Collective’s Never Swim Alone at the Etcetera Theatre and is interning at the Arcola Theatre.