The Gramophones Theatre Company Is an Exciting, Upcoming, All Female Theatre Company Based
The Gramophones Theatre Company are thrilled to introduce to you our adventurous production:
★★★★★ Three Weeks ★★★★ Broadway Baby
★★★★ Edfringe Review ★★★★ Fringe Biscuit
★★★★ Brighton Fringe Review
In April 2012 three women made a daring and unusual journey from one end of Great Britain to the other.
Trusting only to their resourcefulness and the kindness of strangers they made an 18-day, 874-mile journey from Land’s End to John O’Groats. They completed their unusual expedition on as many varieties of transport as they possibly could with only one pound per mile to do it.
In End to End they share moments of this true story, including encounters with a host of unusual characters, trials and tribulations faced along the way, and the unexpected acts of kindness they encountered. Exploring friendship, personal risk and momentary connections made on the road, they wonder whether the seeds planted will grow into something more meaningful. The trio take the audience on a unique journey leaving them itching for their own adventure.
Critical Highlights
Nominated for Best Theatre Production and Best New Writing at Buxton Fringe Festival.
“An injection of optimism… energetic storytelling”★★★★★ Three Weeks
“With wings wrought of wanderlust this show soars. A heartfelt love letter to the ineffable spirit of adventure” ★★★★Fringe Biscuit
“Truly sensational…pitched perfectly…brought to life with a real sense of energy and vibrancy” Buxton Fringe Review
“A touching and poignant story…often very funny”★★★★ Broadway Baby…Read full review here
“This unique production is a moving reminder of our desire for human connection”★★★★ Edfringe Review…Read full reviewhere
“When music and physicality meet the piece becomes stellar -touching and evocative”★★★★ Brighton Fringe Review
Audience feedback
“I felt that I wanted to remember how interesting the world is and to stay curious”
“It was engaging, clever, intimate, creative. I feel empowered to have more adventures of my own”
“It made me realise the importance of belonging and home”
“At the end I felt emotional because I felt sad that my adventures had been so few recently and I wondered when they’d begin again. But you have inspired me! Thank you”
“At the end I felt that life is bigger and more important than trivial matters. I need to experience more in life”
“I connected to this as I am also making a journey from Karachi, Pakistan with 3 girls”
Social media feedback
Absolutely loved it. Makes me want to go on an exciting journey!
What a show @The_Gramophones End to End is. Charming, Captivating, Utterly delightful. #offonajourney
End to End was such a funny, moving show. Made me feel more open about the world again.
Inspiring! Beautifully simple, stylish & honest. Heartfelt & funny.
End To End is beautifully made, soul enriching stuff.
Came away challenged, happy, melancholic and excited all at the same time.
The production soared as high as a micro-light, but other times you felt the heart ache of being away from home.
Who would have expected on top of that...beasts, steam trains, violence, fast cars, stalking, nudity....all in genteel Truro?
I feel so inspired to travel now, and really start LIVING my life and filling it to the brim with exciting experiences!
Technical Information
Floor Area / 5m x 5m x 3m minimum ideally but can adaptTechnical / If possible: General warm wash, 1 central spotlight from front. We tour oue own lights to rural venues.
Get in / 3 hours before
Get out / Approx 1 hour
Running time / Show: Approx 80 mins including pre and post show interaction. (Can be shorter if necessary)- Two 40 minute halves if interval required.
Selling Points / · Fun, playful, young company
· Audience interaction
· Themes of journeys and home are ones that everyone can relate to.
· Excellent reviews at Edinburgh
· Sell to local walking groups/other End to Enders
· True story
Print / A3/A4 Posters and A5 flyers
Other Marketing / Copy/Images
Cast Biographies
Ria Ashcroft
Ria Ashcroft trained as a circus performer at Greentop in 2008. Shortly after she went on to work for The English Theatre Company in Spain and toured schools, theatres and community centres around Europe. On her return to Nottingham she became a freelance theatre practitioner specialising in physical theatre and circus. She has worked on a variety of exciting projects such as acrobalance workshops at the Lenton centre, Nottingham playhouse youth theatre and Create a circus show in a week. In 2010 Ria set up Nott Circus, an initiative to bring circus to Nottingham. She has been a performer in and deviser on all The Gramophones shows to date.
Kristy Guest
Kristy trained as an actor at Clarendon College in Nottingham. She went on to work with Pintsize Theatre company as a performer. She has also performed in Clowns, Jokes and Girls as blokes at Nottingham Theatre Royal. Kristy has devised solo shows in the past for Hatch Nottingham and has a 10 year project entitled Minding Pennies (www.mindingpennies.com)which questions patience, time, value and accountability. She has been a performer in and deviser on all The Gramophones shows to date.
Hannah Stone
Hannah Stone is a performer and Theatre Maker. She trained as an actor at Bretton Hall, graduating in 2005. Since her graduation she has made theatre in various forms: writing, devising, imagining. She has worked for a variety of educational theatre companies including Samanya, Blunderbus and Lingue Senza Frontiere, touring the UK, Italy and even performing in a theatre in Kuala Lumpur. Through seven years of experiences she has developed her own practice as a freelance theatre practitioner. She has performed in new work as part of the Mansfield Palace Theatre’s Write track programme. She set up The Gramophones Theatre Company in 2009 and has worked on all projects to date.
Tilly Branson- Director
Tilly Branson is an emerging director with a particular interest in women's voices - as writers, directors and strong central characters. She is currently Associate Director at New Perspectives Theatre Company, where she recently directed Goldfish (East Midlands tour, June 2012); andhas previously assistant directedThose Magnificent Men(Edinburgh Fringe 2011 and two national tours) and created the engagement package which accompaniedThe Butterfly Lion (Curve Theatre, Leciester and Derby Theatre 2012).Other directing work includes Skybus (Assistant Director, Derby LIVE), TiG (Arletty Theatre), and Always in the Afternoon, (staged reading, Theatre Writing Partnership Momentum Festival).Tilly is also a member of the Young Vic Directors Program.
Additional opportunities
Education: We are all experienced facilitators and offer workshops for schools, colleges and Universities, which compliment the themes explored within the show. We are happy to design workshops as required.
Passing Places, a devising theatre workshop
The Gramophones Theatre Company offers an exploratory workshop on the theme of journeys. Using your own journeys you will discover starting points for devising theatre in imaginative and innovative ways. How can a simple train journey become the starting point for a love story, a bus ride the beginning of a mystery and a walk through town a trip into the world under foot? Providing you with a range of starting points for making theatre about travel, the Gramophones will share the techniques used in devising process.
Installation: We also offer and accompanying installation, which uses all the ‘remnants’, collected from our journey, giving extra details of the journey we made. We can display this if you have a gallery or foyer, which offers the audience another way to interact with the work, post or prior to the show. This can also be performed; with audiences choosing which items they would like to hear more about. Each item has a story or action associated to it, which is then enacted by the performers.
Images/Logos/Video
Images are available to download from Flickr.
1. Visit www.flickr.com/photos/the_gramophones/ Click on ‘End to End’ or ‘End to End Journey’ or ‘End to End Lakeside’ set
2. Click on the image you wish to download
3. Click the ‘All Sizes’ tab in the top left hand corner
4. Select the size you want. We recommend Large or Original size if the image is going to be printed. The smaller sizes are fine for websites.
Alternatively, phone Ria Ashcroft, Marketing and Administration Officer on 07980609991 or email
If you would like the The Gramophones logo please contact Ria Ashcroft on the details above.
Promo video is here… http://vimeo.com/49417130
Website links
You may find these website links useful:
The Gramophones Official Website / www.gramophonestheatre.comThe Gramophones Twitter Page / www.twitter.com/the_gramophones
The Gramophones Facebook Page / http://www.tinyurl.com/Facebook-Gramophones