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News

The Blue Elephant Theatre never ever does things by halvesIn-SpirelsMagazine.co.uk

Please see our past programme section for reviews of past shows.

News

Blue Elephant Theatre’s New Resident Companies

Date published
Thursday 30 September 2021

Blue Elephant Theatre is delighted to announce that 3hers Collective, Halfpace Theatre, Seeds Productions and NO TABLE will be our new resident companies as part of our Elephantology 2021 festival.

They are all early career companies that we are excited to welcome to the Blue Elephant Family; they will receive support from us and will each present a showcase of their work - so watch this space.

Find out a little bit more about our companies below:

3/hers is a female led performance collective focused on the stories and experiences of those who identify with womanhood and the feminine. The founders, Princess (she/they), India (she/her) and Ruby (she/her), formed the collective during their European Theatre Arts training at Rose Bruford College, where they discovered their shared passions for devised performance. The collective draws creative inspiration from intermingling lived-experience with classical texts and socio-political events. These elements work in tandem to transform personal experiences into a combined and universal theatrical expression, keeping the values of respect, diversity and lightheartedness at the core of their practice.

3/hers plan to develop their show The Pursuit of Happiness to explore the themes of the feminine pursuit of happiness, and what this means for women from different socio-economic, cultural and religious backgrounds.

Seeds Productions is made up of two friends Lillie Seeds and Angharad Griffiths sharing their love of music and songwriting through the expression of comedy in order to create relatable content. They are looking forward to being able to share their show with people after a long year without audiences! They also hope to create new and exciting connections within the industry.

Halfpace Theatre is a theatre company dedicated to devised theatre and new work by underrepresented artists. Halfpace debuted in 2021 with the devised piece fester at The Cockpit Theatre as part of Camden Fringe Festival. They are planning on using the residency to research and develop a new piece of devised theatre using the fairytale Bluebeard as a jumping-off point to explore violence (particularly gendered violence) in contemporary society.

NO TABLE was assembled at Theatre Peckham this year as part of the government’s Kickstart Scheme. Made up of five young theatre-makers from a variety of backgrounds, it aims to create risk-taking work that uplifts eclectic voices through a playful approach to theatre-making and to embolden young creatives in Southwark with artistic opportunities, events and workshops.

They are developing their first original creation, Eating Jeff, a dark and absurdist dive into modern activism and the current discourse around political engagement and identity. Through the residency, they hope to heighten the relevance of the piece by fleshing out the characters, playing with genre, structure, and audience expectations – involving external creatives to refine the dialogue, movement and style.

The residency programme is supported by The Idlewild Trust

News

Blue Elephant Theatre’s New Young People’s Mentor

Date published
Friday 24 September 2021

Blue Elephant Theatre is delighted to announce that Janet Etuk has agreed to be its new Young People’s Mentor. Actor Janet performed at the South London venue in 2014 with her theatre company Unstable Table, soon after leaving drama school, and has remained a friend of the small theatre.

Since performing at the Blue Elephant, Janet has devised and performed plays for the National Theatre, toured with the English Touring Theatre Company and has starred in BBC's LOVE feature film. She has toured internationally with Improbable Theatre Company as well as with Alexander Zeldin's productions of LOVE and BEYOND CARING. Other recent credits include The Language of Kindness by Wayward Production and a Turtle Key Arts digital film piece entitled COLD.

Blue Elephant Theatre has asked Janet to be its Young People’s Mentor to inspire their young people and demystify working in the arts. Most of the young people who attend Blue Elephant’s youth theatres come from backgrounds under-represented in the arts and the Young People’s Mentor helps to make a career in the arts seem more tangible and attainable.

Janet says that she is thrilled to be working with Blue Elephant once again and is honoured to be appointed to this important role within the team. She says, “As someone who has been working professionally in the arts for almost ten years, I feel it’s vital to have a mentor at hand for the under-represented. I wish I had been given the same opportunity when I was newly starting out too.”

Blue Elephant Theatre’s Participation & Co-Artistic Director, Jo Sadler-Lovett, has said how happy the theatre is to formally welcome Janet to the Blue Elephant family. She says, “As we all begin to unfurl after recent unusual events, our young people are looking to the future and aspiring to achieve and we believe Janet is a great example of how to do exactly this. I know that our young people will learn a lot from her and be as inspired as we have been over the years.”

News

Elephantology Residencies & Showcases

Date published
Wednesday 7 July 2021

Elephantology is Blue Elephant Theatre’s Festival for recent graduates/those who are just entering the performing arts industry. We created our Elephantology Festival to offer showcase opportunities as a supportive step into the arts industry. With the support of the Idlewild Trust, this year’s Elephantology offer is a little different, including workshops, mentorships and showcase opportunities. As part of Elephantology, we can offer four “graduate companies” (or equivalent) support to workshop or re-rehearse an original short play – potentially one which had to be abandoned previously – and present a showcase of the work.

The offer is:

⦁ A minimum of three days space at Blue Elephant Theatre in September 2021 (generally weekdays, 10am-6pm)
⦁ £300 bursary towards the expenses of those taking part
⦁ Artistic, marketing, press and fundraising mentoring
⦁ Some technical support and the opportunity to present a showcase in our professional theatre, either live or filmed

What you should know before applying:

⦁ We are looking to support those who have entered the performing arts industry in the last eighteen months or will be shortly; if you finished or are finishing training in 2020 or 2021 for instance.
⦁ The pieces should be original pieces and not a remounting of a script by an established writer.
⦁ All collaborators must be over 18 and based in the UK, ideally London.
⦁ For more technical information about Blue Elephant Theatre, please see here: http://blueelephanttheatre.co.uk/companies
⦁ Our stage is 7.5m x 5.5m and we only have one (small) dressing-room so we are limiting this opportunity to pieces with four cast members or less.
⦁ Please note that the Blue Elephant’s theatre space is on the ground floor and accessible to those in wheelchairs but its upstairs bar area is not.
⦁ We will work with you to make this as rewarding an experience as possible, bespoke to you.
⦁ We are committed to working safely and so may have to change arrangements if Covid restrictions change or if our planned ventilation works are further delayed.
⦁ Blue Elephant Theatre is committed to widening access to the arts and we particularly strive to work with people who reflect our local communities and audiences in Southwark and make work that is relevant to contemporary multi-cultural London. We particularly encourage applications from people who are underrepresented in the arts and/or face discrimination, including people who experience racism, identify as working class, identify as having a disability or are from the LGBTQ+ community.

To apply, please complete the application form here by noon on July 20th. Alternatively, you can record your answers as video or audio files and share those with us at submissions@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk. After you submit your application, we may get in touch with you to ask for more information or to clarify anything we are unsure of. If you would like an application form posted to you, rather than use the survey tool, or to access it in a different format or have any questions, please contact us on Niamh@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk or 02077010100.

News

Blue Elephant Theatre Celebrates Winning Playwrights

Date published
Thursday 3 June 2021

On its 22nd birthday, Blue Elephant Theatre is delighted to be looking to the future with the winning playwrights of its lockdown playwriting competition.

Writers Vicky Olusanya and Rebecca Batala each submitted a short opening scene to a play.Vicky’s play, The Apple of his Eye, is about a teenage girl growing up in South East London who navigates her way through school and A-Levels while being a carer for her father. Rebecca’s play, Roughly 150 Years, looks at how young people acting as parents to their own parents affects their experience of childhood.

Both writers were motivated to start their plays by entering the competition which looked for submissions of up to six pages. They are now working to develop their scripts and have accepted an offer of mentorship from Blue Elephant Theatre.

Rebecca and Vicky are both early career artists, based in London, working across disciplines.

Rebecca Batala is an emerging playwright, writer and actor who is currently on the Soho Writers’ Lab developing her first full length play entitled Band 2.

Vicky Olusanya completed the Collaborative Theatre Making MA at Rose Bruford College and over the last four years, her directing has largely had a focus on community engagement and celebrating LGBTQ+ voices. She is a StoneCrabs Young Director for 2020-21 and Facilitator for Inky Cloak’s LGBTQ+ community engagement.

News

Elefeet on film: Q & A with Piedad Seiquer

Date published
Friday 21 May 2021

We caught up with Piedad Seiquer, whose dance film Acceptance is the latest showing in our Elefeet Dance Film Festival. Acceptance is an upbeat and hypnotic film from a longer series of work, and poignantly filmed at the time of the first lockdown, capturing the emotional response to the sudden change of life.

What have you missed about dance/dancing since the start of the pandemic?
I think the pandemic has showed us how resourceful we are, and the ability to adapt and change.
The thing I missed the most has been the face-to-face dancing, connecting with other artists in the room. Although we were able to engage in a different way through our screens, there is something powerful about sharing the space with others (artists, audiences, students...)

What inspired Acceptance?
Acceptance is the last short film of a collection of short films funded by Reactivos Culturales. The collection is called Grief for a time that once was and it's a video graphic journey through the seven stages of grief.
The inspiration of Acceptance and the rest comes from the situation we were in last March, the restrictions on our freedom and the need to move on. It’s the last step to go on...

What’s special for you about dance?
Dance for me is the vehicle of expression. Sometimes we are too busy in the head, overwhelmed with emotions and or unable to explain and communicate...
It’s my way out or way in, moving and dancing allows to let go, to process and it brings me joy.

News

Q & A with Amy Swalwell

Date published
Wednesday 19 May 2021

Being shared as part of Elefeet today, Panopticon invokes a dystopian world of surveillance and control. Choreographer Amy Swalwell answered a few questions for us.

What have you missed about dance/dancing since the start of the pandemic?

During the pandemic, I have missed the interaction with others. Dance is a social art form and without physically being in the same space to share and exchange movement and ideas, the essence of the form is lost. I cannot wait to be in the studio with others where we are all embodying the music, connecting with each other and being free to express ourselves in a big open space.

What inspired Panopticon?

Panopticon was originally inspired by George Orwell’s book 1984, which provided the starting point of looking at how much information is collected about us, how much we are being watched by surveillance and questioning how free we really are…is there a puppet master and are we the puppet?

What’s been your favourite or most interesting responses to Panopticon?
That is a great question. Panopticon was originally made for stage, so a lot of responses have been around this change and how the camera and videography have enhanced the creative outcome of the piece. People have loved the graphic effects and the flashing of images. Movement wise, people always say their favourite bit is the ‘surveillance’ section at the end of the piece where the music intensifies with strong bold arm and hand gestures.

Panopticon was directed by Piers Foley & Dave Fineberg, choreographed by Amy Swalwell and performed by dancers from Froghouse Dance Company.

News

Elefeet on film: Q & A with Kosta Karakashyan

Date published
Tuesday 18 May 2021

We spoke today with Kosta Karakashyan, director and choreographer behind the powerful dance film Waiting for Color

Why choose dance as a medium to portray LGBTQ+ persecution in the Chechen region of Russia?
Dance has the power to evoke powerful, visceral emotions in the audience. I remember first reading about the horrific stories from Chechnya in 2017, and I felt powerless but also aware that soon it would get lost in the traditional news cycle. I wanted to create something that would leave more of a lasting impression on the audience in order to make them more compassionate with the stories coming from Chechnya. As an artist, I am most equipped to communicate through dance and film, so it was the natural choice for me.

How would you describe the current situation for LGBTQ+ people there now? Has an investigation started?
Since the release of my film, more and more artists and activists have come forward to condemn these crimes. Last year David France released the documentary 'Welcome to Chechnya', in which I was one of the activists serving as face doubles for the real victims. The European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR), a German NGO, and the Russian LGBT Network have started a legal case against government officials in Chechnya, so we are hopeful there will be some progress soon!

What do you want Waiting for Color to achieve?
I want everyone who watches the film to take a moment and reflect on how they can help support the LGBTQ+ community in their everyday lives. Even in the most accepting of societies, there is still homophobia and transphobia, so it is up to all of us to create a more inclusive space for anyone who feels scared to be themselves.

News

Elefeet on film: Q & A with Lucy Wild

Date published
Friday 14 May 2021

3billion by Overdrive Dance Company is the latest dance film in our festival, and we spoke to co-founder of Overdrive Dance Company, Lucy Wild, about their work and her experiences:

What have you missed about dance/dancing since the start of the pandemic?

Overdrive is a real family, we have missed being in the space physically together, being able to laugh, joke and have fun. Luckily we have managed to meet over zoom and recreate that as much as possible but it isn’t quite the same! Our work is very physical, a lot of contact and lift work so we’ve really missed being able to do that. We also miss performing and sharing our work with others at venues and festivals (including with other young people).

We are a support network for each other so being together is always a chance to escape, play and explore creatively. We look forward to being able to do that in the physical space soon.

While we have missed being together in a space, the pandemic has opened up new opportunities to us - we have started to create digital/film work and are currently working on another film which will be screened later this year.

What inspired 3Billion?

3billion is an exploration of male identities questioning who we are, who we will become, and do we have to follow the path set for us? Performed and filmed by dancers of Overdrive Dance Company, the company came together over lockdown to reimagine a work that was due to perform on stage into film. 3billion was made possible by a microgrant from Youth Theatre Arts Scotland.

Tell us about Overdrive Dance Company

Overdrive Dance Company was co-founded by Lucy Wild and Hayley Earlam in 2015. Overdrive is a dance company which promotes dance for boys and young men aged 10-25 in Glasgow. Overdrive is an open and inclusive company that creates a safe, inspirational space for the boys to explore their creativity in an all-male community. The dancers are a diverse group, coming from a range of backgrounds, experiences and abilities. The dancers, in collaboration with Hayley and Lucy, create works which are highly physical, daring, tender and often humorous. By working in a collaborative way, the work created reflects the dancers themselves and ensures the young people’s voices are heard.

News

Elefeet on Film: Q & A with Katie Serridge

Date published
Tuesday 11 May 2021

Katie Serridge's Tulips for Polly is the first dance film we are sharing as part of Elefeet on Film. Described as a 'digitised gift to a dear friend', Tulips for Polly came out of existing research into the delight and potential of flowers as nature blossomed and humanity retreated indoors in March 2020.

Katie answered some questions for us about Tulips for Polly and being a dance artist:

What inspired Tulips for Polly?
Tulips for Polly came about during my research into flowers during March 2020. After a call out asking people to film the flowers they encounter on their daily walks, I received over 60 responses from 13 different countries, which were made into a series of short films during last spring. This noticing and unconditional adoration of all the flowers in the footage was a wonderful throughline of the films. I then wanted to explore if this same approach could be applied to the female body, which is so often a warzone, when really, we're all just flowers.

What’s special for you about dance?
Dance is a universal language, recognisable across continents and an accessible means of engagement to all of us with a body. It also offers a unique method of sharing and presenting information or research, and as a result opens up new possibilities in our ways of understanding through embodiment, outside the limitation of language and into the felt, lived experience.

What have you missed about dance since the start of the pandemic?
I've missed 3D-ness, hugs, seeing strangers' smiles, accidental introductions and chance-encounter friends. We are also very physical people and I miss the variation and the significance of different actions and gestures, away from screens.
I do think that the dance industry has undergone a lot of important, overdue and necessary self-reflection this past year and should not return to the way it was previously. Rather we should use recent discussions and realisations to create a more balanced, fair and inclusive industry.

Tulips for Polly (2020) Credits:

Choreographer: Katie Serridge
Performer, Co-Creator and Videographer: Polly Constance
Music: Nick Zammuto

A KatieSerridgeDance Film

News

Elephant Tips: The Wellbeing Edition

Date published
Thursday 21 January 2021

It's January and with it comes the dreaded January blues. It's so hard to keep creative and nurture yourself as an artist at the moment and to look after your wellbeing when things are seemingly bleak. So, we've been on the look-out for some handy bits and pieces to help keep you moving forward. We've collected workshops, events and more to hopefully inspire you to keep those creative juices flowing even if it's in a small way.

Cards for Wellbeing

If you're looking to connect to the environment and take a moment for yourself then South East Dance have created a series of cards for wellbeing produced by dance artist and creative practitioner Anne Colvin, designed to encourage people to enjoy nature, be curious, explore and share ideas through movement and dance. They are available to download here.

Movement Workshops

The Pappy Show have a series of weekly Wednesday workshops which are free and designed to get you moving your body, staying creative and being connected. These are running via zoom with the focus points 'Joy', 'Bravery', Kindness' and are open to anyone regardless of experience. They are available to book here.

Craftanoons

A series of opportunities to get crafty. The Curator-Educator is dedicated to developing creative opportunities that are accessible, inclusive, diverse and opens up a vast range of possibilities that can support, further and make the arts, community projects and creative encounters.

She is running craftanoons where you can join her online and craftalong making pompoms, tote bags, scrunchies and more. The perfect excuse to take a creative moment just for fun along with others. You can find out more and join in here.

Joy In Dance

Start the day well. Joy in Dance are encouraging you to start the day with a 5 minute boogy. A fantastic way to kick start your morning and give you an excuse to get out from under the duvet. Join her at 8.45am to dance along. You can find out more and get your groove on here.

Writing Retreats

Writer's HQ are providing super-productive, lockdown-friendly, writing retreats every weekend, Tuesday and Thursday. Time and space to write. No distractions. No excuses. Just writing. They also have a whole host of Coronavirus friendly resources to get you through lockdown and beyond. Everything you need is right here.

News

Elephant Tips #9

Date published
Thursday 14 January 2021

We're in the middle of lockdown 3.0 and it's not how anyone wanted to start the year. But there's still plenty of creative projects out there, whether you're looking for things to watch, workshops to participate in or opportunities and commissions. Here's a taste of what's on offer...

Classes with EQ Dance Co

EQ Dance are offering a series of 'pay what you can' dance workshops. These include a pilates workshop with Panagiotis Pavlopoulos, 'Dandelions' workshop with Amber Dollin and 'Between the Lines' workshop with Alys Davies. Designed to keep your bodies and minds moving and creative during January, these workshops run from January 15th to January 29th. Booking is available here.

REWIND R&D - Short film and Q&A

Ephemeral Ensemble invite you to join them on zoom where they will share a short film through a Vimeo link and go back to zoom for a casual Q&A. The Q&A will be done in English, with a Spanish translator.

The film was created during two weeks of research and development inspired by testimonies from Latin American refugees, whose lives were affected by dictatorship in Latin America in the 70's and young adults migrants, whose lives have been affected by the current situation in Latin America.
You can book your donation place here.

Storytime with Mama G

Seeing as how we're all stuck at home again - Mama G is back! Combining panto, drag and storytelling: Mama G is here with stories for the whole family about being who you want and loving who you are. And she'll be making sure to finish your week with some laughter and sparkle!
Join her at 6pm on facebook live for a brand new story, a quiz, songs and of course: the infamous arts and crafts section.
Find out more here.

Community Engagement Lead
East End Women's Museum

Are you passionate about connecting with diverse communities in creative and meaningful ways? Do you see the power and potential of working with women’s stories and voices? Are you up for the exciting challenge of a new role which will take our community engagement to the next level?

The East End Women’s Museum, are a small charity that researches, shares and celebrates stories of East London women, past and present. In the next 15 months they will open a new building in Barking town centre. It will be a base for new exhibitions, learning and engagement programmes for schools, community, family and adult audiences.

In the lead up to opening the new site, they are planning a year-long community engagement and co-creation programme which puts local voices at the heart of our decision-making process. They want to create a sense of local ownership of the museum, and ensure the building designs and new community programmes are welcoming, relevant and appealing to local audiences.

We’re looking for someone with relevant experience, excellent relationship-building skills and an audience-focused approach to create inclusive and impactful programmes that help put local women’s stories in the spotlight. More information and how to apply can be found here.

Artist Residency and Commission Brief: Decolonising Natural History

In partnership with the Delfina Foundation, the Horniman Museum and Gardens is offering a three-month residency opportunity to a UK based artist, as part of the institution’s ongoing decolonial work, to engage with its Natural History collection and produce a new commission for the museum’s ‘Inspired by Nature’ space.

More information and how to apply here.

News

Elephant Tips #8

Date published
Monday 30 November 2020

This week's Elephant Tips are a festive feast of family shows. We're so impressed with anyone making theatre events happen in these challenging times so we're spreading the word about some small companies going over and above to bring some Christmas magic this December.

There's also a fantastic charity stocking filler from our friends at Lazarus Theatre.

Eunice- A Christmas Musical
Stanley Halls from Dec 15th

Eunice the Horse? That's a silly sounding name! And Eunice thought so too! You see, Eunice knew she wasn't a horse...

Join Eunice and her best friend Hortense (now that IS a good name for a horse) in this magical Christmas musical story, as they go on an adventure to find out who Eunice really is. They'll meet a whole array of wonderful characters, and rumour has it that Santa will be making an appearance - during the Christmas week you'll even be able to meet him!

Make this a Christmas to remember as the Stanley Halls presents Eunice! A brand new musical adventure - with original songs and a hilarious story - that the whole family is going to adore! Tickets are available here.

The Elf who was afraid of Christmas
Charing Cross Theatre from 8th- 23rd Dec

Meet Figgy and Cupcake, two of Santa's Christmas elves. For eleven months of the year, Cupcake is a bright and bubbly bundle of joy. But come December 1st, all that changes - because Cupcake is The Elf Who Was Scared Of Christmas.

Come and join Figgy in an original Christmas story as he tries to help Cupcake overcome her fear of Christmas. Using the power of imagination, and with a little help from you, will he be able to remind her of the importance and magic of Christmas? And, in helping Cupcake, will Figgy solve some of his own Christmassy problems?

This December, join Figgy and Cupcake on a journey of self-discovery, friendship and Christmas cheer, ending in an all-singing, all-dancing musical celebration, featuring some of your favourite Christmas songs. You can book here.

Elfvis’s Christmas Adventure
Tiny Tigers Family Club from 3rd Dec

Join Elfvis on a fun and magical adventure as he tries to create the perfect present for a very special person. This specially crafted show features a heartwarming story, with plenty of giggles and action to keep children entertained.

Created by Venetia Twigg and Alice Sillett, with performances from veteran actors Matthew Houlihan, Venetia Twigg and Ellen Butler, Elfvis's Christmas Adventure offers wonderful festive entertainment for children and their grown ups. You can book tickets here.

A Little Further Afield...

Stranded Santa
Charlton Park, Canterbury 28th & 29th Dec

NEWSFLASH! Storm of the century sends Santa and Jingles the Elf crashing down to earth! Charlton Park are providing B&B for the magical duo!

Thunder and lighting, reindeer on the loose and a grounded sleigh; t’was the night after Christmas and all through the house, nothing was stirring, not even St Nick…. Join Jingles the Elf in her quest to wake Father from his slumber and discover the magic that will help them on their way back to the North Pole!

This fun, interactive and charming show is developed and performed by Grotto At My Door. For more info and to book tickets, click here.

And a charity stocking filler...

Lazarus Theatre Calendar

Lazarus Theatre Company in association with Acting for Others present the inaugural Lazarus Charity Calendar for 2021. 
Featuring 12 iconic production shots taken by company photographer Adam Trigg the Lazarus 2021 Calendar is the perfect Hello 2021 Christmas stocking filler!

The calendar costs £12.50 (including UK p&p) with all proceeds being split equally between  Artists featured in the calendar, theatrical charity Acting for Others and our Covid recovery project: Year of Exploration.

#LazarusCalendar2021 #ActingForOthers

Order here. before Dec 20th to get your calendar before Christmas!

News

Recruiting Trainee Facilitators!

Date published
Friday 20 November 2020

Are you ….

18 to 24 yrs old?

Not in Education, (secure) Employment or Training?

Or may not be much longer?

Or facing other challenges to finding work?

Looking for an opportunity to…

Learn about running Drama sessions?

Work with young people?

Develop your employability, skills and confidence?

Get paid work experience?

We are looking for four people aged 18 - 24 who are interested in learning about running drama sessions with children and teenagers.

There will be seven training sessions, with expenses paid, and paid work experience after that.

If you would like to know more about the project, you can download full details
here

Please email recruitment@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk by the end of November 30th with a little bit about yourself and your suitability for the role if you are interested. Interviews will be held via Zoom on December 3rd.

This project is supported by The D'Oyly Carte Charitable Trust and the Alan & Babette Sainsbury Trust.

News

CASTING CALL – THE STORY OF LITTLE SNOW

Date published
Friday 20 November 2020

After embarking on digital arts offerings over the last year, Blue Elephant Theatre is excited to announce its Christmas filmed show, The Story of Little Snow. This story is about a Pixie whose job it is to instigate spring by planting Snow Drops. However, our Pixie has other plans and wants to discover the roles of various magical creatures, including Santa’s elves! This short piece will also serve as exploratory work to inform a face to face family production which is tentatively planned for early next year, government guidelines permitting. It is aimed at ages 4+.

Dates:

Application Deadline: 22nd November
Online Auditions: 25th November
Rehearsal: Tuesday December 1st
Filming Day: Wednesday December 2nd (possibly Friday 4th)
Total Payment: £300 (£150 per day)

Rehearsals and filming will take place at Blue Elephant Theatre and will be carried out with Covid-secure measures in place. The actor will be sent a copy of our Covid Risk Assessment in advance.

Casting Breakdown:

Little Snow - A little immature but with the capacity to become less so. Feeling lonely, bored and disenfranchised and desperately wanting friends and an exciting colourful life.

This is a one person play and so the actor may multi-role to portray the other magical creatures who have unique personalities.
Movement and vocal skills are essential for this role; the actor should be comfortable singing and dancing. Character work, slap stick and comic timing will also be important. Ideal applicants will have considerable experience of children’s theatre as well as some experience of playing to a camera.

We seek to represent our local community in our casting, being based in a multi-cultural and working-class area, and particularly welcome applications from those who are under-represented in the arts.

This role is open to all genders.

How to apply:

Please apply by emailing submissions@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk by end of day on Sunday 22nd November with a link to relevant work/Spotlight/Mandy and a little bit about your experience. It would be helpful if you could indicate if you have had a DBS check within the last three years and if you could fill out our monitoring form which can be downloaded from here

We will be holding auditions via Zoom. A link will be sent to shortlisted candidates.

For more information about Blue Elephant Theatre, please visit our website www.blueelephanttheatre.co.uk. Please email Niamh at niamh@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk if you have any further questions.

News

Two brand new artist opportunities

Date published
Monday 16 November 2020

We have just launched two fantastic opportunities to get you through lockdown 2.0.

Playwriting Competition

We love new writing at the Blue Elephant and building relationships with writers at the start of their careers. We’d like to invite emerging playwrights to submit the first scene of a script (up to 6 pages) and a short synopsis of what will be explored in the rest of the script (whether it is already written or not).

Blue Elephant Theatre is particularly interested in new writing which reflects contemporary multicultural urban life or which engages with pressing issues.

The writers of two of the scenes submitted to us will receive a prize of £100 each and mentoring and support to develop their script over a six month period with at least three support sessions as well as feedback on drafts.

Anyone living in London who does not consider themselves to be an established playwright is welcome to apply. Please send your script extract and synopsis to submissions@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk by December 2nd.

Dance Film Festival Call-Out

We also love dance at the Blue Elephant. We want to hold a dance film festival and we are seeking submissions! Have you made a dance film in the past or have you been making short dance films in lockdown?

We will stream an online festival of them and - ideally at the same time - screen them at the theatre, like an exhibition at a gallery. We aim to have approximately an hour’s content and there will be £300 prize money to be divided up amongst all the winning films.

To apply, please email your film to submissions@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk by December 2nd.

You can find all the information about these two opportunities below as well as Easy Read versions.

Lockdown Call-Outs

Dance Film Festival Easy Read

Playwriting Competition Easy Read