SUNNYMEAD COURT by Gemma Lawrence Directed by James Hillier

Tristan Bates Theatre 22 September – 03 October 2020

Defibrillator, in association with The Actors Centre, present SUNNYMEAD COURT by Gemma Lawrence Directed by James Hillier

Cast Gemma Lawrence Remmie Milner

Sound Designer Max Pappenheim Lighting and Video Designer Will Monks Movement Director Chi-San Howard Assistant Director Ewa Dina Producer Jack Holden

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The Actors Centre is a Registered Charity, No. 275934. WHO’D PUT ON A PLAY DURING A PANDEMIC?

There are so many unknowns. Will anyone actually want to come? We’ve all been at home for six months and still have a season of Selling Sunset to watch. How can you possibly re- spond to what has happened in 2020? Black Lives Matter, Covid, a vacuum of leadership at the highest political levels, a world where human interaction is increasingly digital.

Despite all the risks, it feels more necessary than ever to tell stories that will entertain and bring joy into the world. We need to create and can only do that by leaning into the changes. There are new rules. Let’s use them to fuel the work.

Gemma Lawrence has written something spectacular and it’s a total thrill that she is appearing in her play alongside the ridicu- lously talented Remmie Milner. After ONLY one and half weeks of rehearsal and tech, here we are!

But the journey of Sunnymead Court is not a typical one. The project started out in May, when Mitchell Reeve at The Actors Centre asked Defibrillator to create a socially distanced theatre experiment. Gemma, myself and Jack Holden were due to start work on another project at that time, so I called them. It’s probably fair to say we all said yes, we’d do this together, but didn’t really believe it would happen. But then the idea began to take shape. What might a play look like now?

First and foremost we settled on, in E.M. Forster’s words, the human need to “Only connect.” Over the last six months there stands a common story about how we have all lived without (and in some cases lost) friends, family, loved ones; alongside the challenges of forging new connections. It has also been a time where more than ever, for good or bad, we have been confronted with the challenge of connecting with ourselves.

So that’s why you put on a play in a pandemic. Safely of course. It’s a chance to connect. Connect with imagination. With inspiring actors, creatives, friends and even perhaps ourselves. With a live audience in a theatre who all have this shared experience. Only Connect.

James Hillier, Director

DEFIBRILLATOR brings a spark of life to stories that have been forgotten or looking for creative re-invention. The company has a growing reputation for delivering inspiring and entertaining theatre in both conventional and non-theatre settings. www.defibrillatortheatre.com CONNECTION, ISOLATION & HOPE. When James first approached me about writing this play, the brief was both simple and seemingly impossible. How can we create a piece of Covid-secure theatre, that could serve as an experiment or blueprint for other theatre-makers going forward? How can we adapt to these new times? It is a challenge but more so an opportunity; a chance to reform theatre in more inclusive and positive ways, to build back better. There are the obvious physical limita- tions of social distancing, which were central to the piece in writing and obviously informed the rehearsal period. There is also the wonderful opportunity that theatre streaming presented to us during lockdown. Overnight, theatre became accessible to millions. With some (not all) barriers removed, British theatre found a whole new audience, and that wasn’t something we were prepared to lose with this production.

Lockdown has been a terrible, frightening time for so many, and we wanted to offer a tonic to that. The intrepid theatre-goers returning to an auditorium for the first time should be given a slice of hope and come away feeling uplifted. There has been lots to celebrate in the way that communities have pulled together and the people who have forged new relationships with neighbours they may never have spoken to before. It was here that Marie and Stella were born. Two women now confined to their balconies and forced to look at their surround- ings in new ways. As a Londoner, I also wanted Sunnymead Court to be a celebration of place, finding joy in the small and everyday. Tiny moments and interactions that would ordi- narily have passed Marie and Stella by, now take on huge significance.

Lockdown has been particularly hard for many LGBTQ+ people, lots of whom have had to move back to hostile family homes, forced back into the closet or subjected to homophobic abuse. As a queer writer, it felt important to explore this. Likewise, this time has thrown up or exacerbated many mental health issues, and it felt right that this was present within the story. They are two women, both struggling in this strange time, who find their way out through each other.

The rehearsal period has been exciting and collaborative, with everyone working feverishly towards a shared goal: sharing this show with an audience. Everyone – the wonderful team at the Ac- tors Centre, our entire creative team, producer, cast – has pulled together and given their all. Navigating the restrictions and brac- ing every time the government announce something new has presented its challenges, but more than anything the last few weeks have made me hopeful for theatre’s survival. The desire to reach out and tell a story will always prevail. This moment in the world is so unique and has been so particular to each individual; we wanted to explore a tiny slice of what it means to a be a human right now. It is a piece about connection and isolation, and ultimately hope. It also features a few absolute tunes, so most of all, I hope it gets you dancing. Gemma Lawrence, Writer CAST

GEMMA LAWRENCE REMMIE MILNER Writer & Marie Stella As a writer: straight vodka for Theatre503’s Remmie Milner trained at The Bristol Old Vic Rapid Write Response, Ribbons performed Theatre School. at Bloom Theatre’s SAPLINGS, and REWILD, performed at Omnibus Theatre and now be- TV credits include: Save Me & Save Me Too ing developed into a full-length piece as part (Sky Atlantic), A Christmas Carol (BBC), Phil- of the London Playwrights 2020 programme. ip K Dick’s Electric Dreams (Channel 4), Homecoming was commissioned for The Whitechapel (ITV), Trollied (Sky 1) and The Space’s Locked Down Looking Up season, Hour (BBC). and starred Patsy Ferran. Theatre credits include: Coriolanus & Chicken As an actor: Theatre includes Not Talking (Ar- Soup (Sheffield Crucible),Terror (Lyric Ham- cola Theatre); Nuclear (Young Vic); Wasted mersmith/Brisbane Arts Festival), The Winter’s (Orange Tree Theatre); As You Like It, Chil- Tale, To Kill A Mockingbird and Chip Shop dren of the Sun (National Theatre); All My The Musical (Octagon Theatre), Plastic Fig- Sons (Hong Kong Arts Festival); The Tem- urines (Box of Tricks), The Pier (Oxford Play- pest (Southwark Playhouse); Much Ado About house), Melody Loses Her Mojo (Liverpool Nothing (Shakespeare’s Globe); Gaslight Playhouse), I Started A Fire (Arcola Theatre) (Salisbury Playhouse); Lee Harvey Oswald and Olympics Opening Ceremony: Pop Cul- (Finborough Theatre); Rough Cuts (Royal ture (Olympic Stadium). Court); The Cherry Orchard (Shakespeare at the Tobacco Factory/Rose Theatre Kingston). Radio credits include: Stone (BBC Radio 4). TV includes Silent Witness, Shakespeare and Hathaway, Clash of the Futures, Luther, Hol- by City, Misfits, 1066, The Bill, Casualty, Wak- ing the Dead, Time of Your Life, Stir It Up, All About George and Ahead of the Class. Film includes Frail, A Bunch of Amateurs and Enlightenment. Radio includes The Broken Word, Ambridge Extra, The Falcon and the Hawk and The Chess Girls (BBC Radio 4). Voice work includes Assassin’s Creed: Gold (Audible) and Final Fantasy XIV (Square Enix). SUNNYMEAD COURT IN REHEARSAL Rehearsal photos © Harry Livingstone WHAT IT IS TO TRULY LIVE ‘We are transitioning from human experiences to digital experiences’ is the first line of this new play and yet, it seems infinitely recognisable. We have lived through a global shift in communica- tion; FaceTime, Texts, Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp, Houseparty, and Zoom became our primary source of contact to anyone in the outside world, for a short while.

We became afraid to speak to neighbours, knock on doors. The outside was dangerous. Pixilat- ed images of loved ones and switching Wi-Fi off and on at least twice a day became the norm. But then, we were allowed to meet. Bubbles were introduced. Being in a room with another person, contact, touch became a thing within our lives again and we were confronted with what lies at the crux of our humanity; connection via contact. Do you remember the first time you hugged some- one after three months of isolation? The first kiss. The first touch. Our bodies remembered what it was to feel again and a reappreciation was born.

Sunnymead Court feels like an encapsulation of the journey we’ve been through together. A recog- nition of the worldwide change and shifts that came from having to spend time with self; having the minute yet detrimental habits that we all had magnified x1000, forcing us to go through a rebirth of self. A rebirth within our familial and romantic relationships. Fundamentally, we learnt that we aren’t robots who can rely solely on the virtual. That touch is more important than ever.

After all was said and done, I left lockdown with an understanding of how much I need to love and be loved. How important empathy for your fellow human being, regardless of sexuality, race, size etc. is for the world to function. I was reminded that I need to actually call my parents. Spend ded- icated quality time with my friends, my chosen communities. How important it is to live because you never know when the world can be turned upside down. When unexpected loss can occur. When touch will be seen as taboo, infecting.

When all you were surrounded with was time to look at your life, did you notice how your priorities had to change? How ‘important’ things became unimportant. Living is finding joy in the small moments, stopping and breathing, taking in the world around you. Expressing gratitude for the people that make our hearts literally swell, in a way that likes on Instagram or career accolades can’t. It’s being present. Laughing wholeheartedly as much as you can. Creating memories. Loving hard and being around people that make you understand the definition of love. As a race, the lesson we should take from the year 2020, when masks hid smiles, elbow touches replaced hugs and clubs became an ever-fading memory, at least for a short while, is to redefine what it is to truly live.

Ewa Dina, Assistant Director THE TENACITY OF THEATRE

It goes without saying that the last number of months have been undeniably trying for the theatre sector, with far-reaching and devastating ramifications. Following The Actors Cen- tre’s closure in March, the proceeding months presented a daunting series of challenges wherein the light at the end of the tunnel seemed but a distant flicker. Then we remembered the innate tenacity and agility of our sector. We remembered the inspirational creatives who exist as its beating heart, and we took that faint flicker of light — of hope — and we dared to imagine what may be possible in this new normal.

Set against a backdrop of worldwide fear, uncertainty and grief, a special collaboration began to unfold. When we approached Defibrillator to create a unique piece of socially distanced theatre, nobody really knew how, or if, we could make this happen. Yet, in a melting pot of creativity, imagination and yes, careful and meticulous planning, Sunny- mead Court was born, marking the writing debut of the wonderful Gemma Lawrence.

It has been a pleasure to work with Defibrillator on this very special production, which will mark the final production of 2020 at The Actors Centre. Negotiating this new way of working has been uncharted territory for everyone and while we do not know what the future will look like at The Actors Centre, we are delighted to safely welcome audiences back to our Tristan Bates Theatre for Sunnymead Court. The shared experience of live theatre is an unmatched thrill and what Gemma and Defibrillator have created not only stands as a beautiful testament to the potent magic of theatre, but also serves as a powerful remind- er of its ability to hold a mirror up to our society; to elucidate, engage and ultimately trans- form us. Mitchell Reeve, Theatre Programme Manager, The Actors Centre

SUNNYMEAD COURT by Gemma Lawrence Directed by James Hillier Tuesday 22 September - Saturday 03 October 2020 Running time: 45 minutes, with no interval. Poster design by Ben Strak, rehearsal photography by Harry Livingstone. With thanks to Arts Council England, The Actors Centre, Stephen Wall, Edward Sumner, Clare Strak, Ben Strak, Jane Leggett, Sophie Dupre, Caroline Hartnell, John Dupre, Robert Toby Walker, Maureen Percival, Carol Miles, Nick Giles. CREATIVE TEAM

JAMES HILLIER CHI-SAN HOWARD Director Movement Director

James established Defibrillator Previous Movement Work for theatre company in 2011. His di- Theatre: The Effect (English recting credits include, most re- Theatre Frankfurt) Little Shop cently Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell, of Horrors (LAMDA) The Sugar the World Premiere of Mike Bart- Syndrome (Orange Tree Thea- lett’s Not Talking (OFFIE Nom- tre), Oor Wullie (Dundee Rep/ ination for Best Director), the 5 National Tour) Catching Com- EWA DINA star off-west end production, A ets (Pleasance Edinburgh/Roy- Assistant Director Lie of the Mind by Sam Shepard, al Exchange) Variations (Dorf- Terry Johnson’s Insignificance at man Theatre/NT Connections) Ewa is a director, facilitator, ac- Langham Place, New York, the The Curious Case of Benjamin tor & a spoken word artist. As Premiere production of Tennes- Button (Southwark Playhouse) a facilitator, Ewa has worked see Williams’ The Hotel Plays at Let Kilburn Shake (Kiln Youth for The Kiln Theatre, Company the Grange Hotel in 2012 and Theatre) Skellig (Nottingham Three and co-created & facilitat- The Langham, London in 2014. Playhouse) Under the Umbrel- ed a workshop on music, move- The Armour by Ben Ellis at The la (Belgrade Theatre Coventry) ment and storytelling for Talawa. Langham in 2015 (Audience Ex- American Idiot (Mountview) De- Music and movement are inte- perience Award at Le Miami Re- scribe the Night (Hampstead gral parts of Ewa’s process; she bels), Doug Lucie’s Hard Feel- Theatre) Parade (Mountview) is a confident mover. ings at the Finborough in 2013. Love and Money; Pornogra- Credits include: Upcoming, he is directing the phy (ALRA) In Event of Moone Director: Girls Just Wanna Have Alfred Fagon finalist,Foxes by Disaster (Theatre 503) Tender- Funds – A short film (Bloom The- Dexter Flanders at Theatre503 in ly (New Wimbledon Theatre atre’s Saplings 2.0 – Currently Spring 2021. Studio) Cosmic Scallies (Roy- on Youtube), The Kola Nut Does al Exchange Manchester/Grae- Not Speak English (Vaults Fes- James has directed short films. ae), Carmen the Gypsy; These tival 2020), Omish (Courtyard How To Make A Good First Im- Trees Are Made of Blood (Arco- Theatre), Route (Tristan Bates pression Part 1 won awards la Theatre) Deposit (Associate, Theatre, Bread & Roses Theatre, at Tribecca Film Festival and Hampstead Theatre Downstairs) The Hope Theatre) Cannes. Occupational Hazards (Associ- Actor-Mover: Regi in How We ate, Hampstead Theatre) Moth Love (Dir. Robbie Taylor Hunt – He trained as an actor at RADA. (Hope Mill Theatre) Every You Vaults Festival 2020), McMurphy In theatre he has worked in the Every Me (Oxford Playhouse) in One Flew over the Cuckoo’s West End, Broadway, Royal Scarlet; The Tempest (South- Nest (Dir. Derek Anderson – The Court, NT, Almeida Theatre, The wark Playhouse) Bury the Dead; English Theatre, Frankfurt), Sis- Young Vic, Manchester Royal Homos or Everyone in America; ter in Custody (UK Tour) (Dir. Exchange and the Traverse The- Adding Machine: A Musical (Fin- Gbemisola Ikumelo – Prime The- atre, Edinburgh. He was a series borough Theatre). atre & The Art Machine), Aunt- regular in Season 1 & 2 of The ie Mi in Run It Back (Dir. Coral Crown for NETFLIX. Film: I Wonder Why - Joesef Mu- Messam – Talawa Theatre Com- sic Video (Spindle Productions) pany). Hurt by Paradise (Emmyland Productions) Birds of Paradise Ewa graduated from the Rose (Pemberton Films). Bruford BA Acting course in 2019. CREATIVE TEAM

Immersive Theatre Work: The ANNA TOWNLEY Wolf of Wall Street (Stratton Oak- Stage Manager mont Productions); NeverLand (Guild of Misrule) Trained at the National Youth Theatre. Theatre includes Not Quite Je- rusalem (Finborough Theatre), WILL MONKS A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Criterion Theatre), Frankenstein Lighting and Video Designer MAX PAPPENHEIM and Great Expectations (South- wark Playhouse), The Reluc- Will trained at Bristol Old Vic Sound Designer tant Fundamentalist (Edinburgh Theatre School. Fringe Festival), Lost Boys New Theatre includes: I, Cinna (the Theatre includes The Night of Town (Hope Theatre), Jerusalem poet) (Unicorn Theatre, Digital; the Iguana (West End); The Way (Stanley Theatre) OnComm Awardee), The Glass of the World (Donmar); The Chil- Will Shatter (Omnibus Theatre), dren (Royal Court/Broadway); Ali & Dahlia (Pleasance Lon- Waiting for Godot (Sheffield don; nominated for Best Vid- Crucible); Macbeth (Chiches- JACK HOLDEN eo Designer: Offie Award),Tro- ter Festival Theatre); Dry Pow- Producer jan Horse (UK tour, Edinburgh; der, Sex with Strangers, Lab- winner of Fringe First and Am- yrinth (Hampstead); Ophelias Jack trained as an actor at Bris- nesty International Freedom of Zimmer (Schaubühne, Berlin/ tol Old Vic Theatre School. He Expression Awards), Jericho’s Royal Court); Crooked Dances then went straight on to play Rose (Hope Theatre), The Snow (Royal Shakespeare Company); the lead role of Albert in the Queen, Pinocchio (Old Rep One Night in Miami (Notting- National Theatre’s internation- Theatre), The Dark Room (The- ham Playhouse); Hogarth’s Pro- ally award-winning production atre503; nominated for Best gress (Rose Theatre Kingston); of War Horse. Since then, Jack Lighting Designer: Offie Award); The Ridiculous Darkness (Gate has worked at theatres across Who Cares (winner of Sit-Up Theatre); The Gaul (Hull Truck); the country including Leicester Award), The Boy, the Piano and A Kettle of Fish (Yard Thea- Curve, Nottingham Playhouse, the Beach, On the Outskirts of tre); CommonWealth (Almeida); Theatre Royal Bath, Bristol Old a Large Event, Dust, E15, I Am Creve Coeur (Print Room); Swit- Vic, the RSC, The Yard and Joan (UK tours); We Live By The zerland, Spamalot, The Glass the Almeida. Jack has also ap- Sea (nominated for Best Ensem- Menagerie (English Theatre of peared in British independent ble and Best Production: Offie Frankfurt); Mrs Lowry and Son filmsThe Levelling and Jour- Awards), This Is Where We Live (Trafalgar Studios); My Cousin ney’s End, and in television (international tours); Dyl (Old Rachel, The Habit of Art, Monog- drama for BBC, ITV, Channel Red Lion); The Benidorm Elvis amy, Teddy, Toast, Fabric, In- 4 and Amazon. Jack is a writ- Fiesta (Benidorm Palace); Chil- vincible (National Tours). Opera er and took part in the Royal cot (The Lowry, Battersea Arts includes Miranda (Opéra Com- Court Young Writers Programme Centre); Dangerous Or Other- ique, Paris); Scraww (Trebah in 2013. He is currently under wise, How To Survive The Blitz Gardens); Vixen (Vaults/Inter- commission to Out of Joint. Jack And Other Things, Time Passes. national Tour); Carmen: Remas- is assistant producer for The Listen. (site specific). tered (ROH/Barbican). Radio in- HandleBards, the world’s first cludes Home Front (BBC Radio cycling Shakespeare compa- 4). Associate Artist of The Fac- ny, and produces films with his tion and Silent Opera. company Watersmeet Produc- tions. Team Amanda Davey Chief Executive Mitchell Reeve Theatre Programme Manager Jamie Tuohy Marketing & Communications Manager Beatrice Young Programme Coordinator Special thanks to Patrick Brett

DONATE

Like many unsubsidised charities, The Actors Centre has experienced significant losses during its closure due to Covid-19 and immediately following the run of Sunnymead Court, The Actors Centre will remain closed for 2020. While our online programmes will continue during this period, unfortunately, it is not financially viable for the organisation to physically reopen in the current climate.

The Actors Centre will run out of money by December 2020 and we are now renewing our fundraising appeal; calling for urgent donations to save our organisation. While Covid-19 cer- tainly represented the biggest threat in our organisation’s 42-year history, we are now facing the heartbreaking reality that The Actors Centre may not exist in a few months.

It goes without saying that the cultural sector has been the worst-affected by the pandemic and when our beloved theatres do reopen, we know that we will be returning to an irrevoca- bly changed cultural landscape. At The Actors Centre, we have been using this time to ne- gotiate our space within the industry and reimagine what the future of the organisation will look like. We are excited about how we will move The Actors Centre forward, however we cannot get there without your urgent support.

Please visit actorscentre.co.uk/donate to help #SaveTheActorsCentre

Amanda Davey Chief Executive, The Actors Centre