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Company number: 3724349
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Past programme
Showcases an eclectic range of fresh and interesting contemporary work, largely by emerging artists
Out Of The Blue
OUT OF THE BLUE is a festival of new work of all genres and styles.
Prepared to be taken on a journey of quirky, poignant, odd, and bitingly relevant performances at Blue Elephant Theatre!
This festival is generously supported by London South Bank University’s School of Creative Arts and Industries and produced by the South Bank Collective and Martha Fillery.
Book any 2 shows for £15!
SCHEDULE:
Wednesday 7 September, 7pm – Britney’s Peers
Thursday 8 September, 7pm – The Sisyphus complex
Friday 9 September, 7pm – Britney’s Peers
Friday 9 September, 8:30pm – The Sordid Circus
Saturday 10 September, 7pm – The Sordid Circus
Saturday 10 September, 8:30pm – The Sisyphus Complex
BRITNEY'S PEERS
By Ding for Disco
Wed 7 Sept, 7pm and Fri 9 Sept, 7pm
The ultimate IBSEN X SPEARS collab
Ding for Disco revives A Doll’s House with a noughties teen movie makeover. Britney’s Peers probes the global conservatorship that is female presenting existence. Watch as the Pavlov Dolls exist under the watchful eye of…everyone?
Prepare to laugh and gasp at 40 minutes of music, dance and silliness, all encapsulating Ding for Disco’s signature personal and honest storytelling. This show probably isn’t for your Nan, but we bet she’ll know EXACTLY what we’re talking about.
Content warnings: Sexual imagery, Body image and disordered eating discourse, Profanity, Adult themes, Flashing Lights, Loud noises
THE SISYPHUS COMPLEX
By PipeItUp Theatre Company
Thu 8 Sept, 7pm and Sat 10 Sept, 8:30pm
How do we fit in to this strange and ever-shifting world?
We have found resonances between the myth of Sisyphus and our desire to explore the decaying effect of time and struggles to live in the present moment. Sisyphus, as a punishment from the gods, is tasked to push a mighty boulder to the top of a hill, but every time he approaches the summit, the boulder rolls back down to the bottom. We are exploring the space between narrative and improvisation, drawing on the philosophy of Albert Camus, the Japanese dance of Butoh, the poetry of T.S Eliot, the teachings of Anne Bogart and the aesthetics of Walter Benjamin and Roland Barthes.
Content warnings: Profane language, mild violence, potential childbirth
THE SORDID CIRCUS
By Sage Fool Theatre
Fri 9 Sept, 8:30pm and Sat 10 Sept, 7pm
Roll up, roll up. The circus is in town.
It's the summer of 1896 and you are invited backstage to E.M Wallace's Sordid Circus to gain an insight into the private lives of these hardworking performers. Marvel at the exploitation of female circus entertainers in the Victorian era and gasp at their sacrifice to keep you entertained. As this spectacular show draws you further into their world ask yourself, is it all really worth it?
Content warnings: Implied sexual abuse, Profanity, Loud noises, Flashing lights, Adult themes
Scratching The Surface
An evening of theatre, music, storytelling and comedy, presented by the recent LSBU graduates of South Bank Collective.
Line-up:
•‘This is not for you’ / ‘Silence is the most deafening sound’ by Lilly Eve Kardani-Zadeh
• Borders by Chi and Georgie
A fragmented, non-linear work-in-progress exploring borders - not just in the physical sense.
• Heresy by Billy Rose Davis
Think the Greek Gods were real dicks? Want to see them getting their asses handed to them? By whom you might ask? Well, who else but themselves? In this comedy musical about hubris, power, and temptation, will the Gods of Olympus be able to hold onto their power or will they fall from grace…
The performance will include a few songs from the in-progress show, including “Heresy”, “The Apple”, “Grown-Ass Woman” and more…
• It Takes Courage by Alicia Ellis
Addressing themes of life, obstacle and fulfillment, It Takes Courage is a truthful insight into humanity and the barriers we overcome throughout our lifetime. It Takes Courage is a play under development depicting a collection of stories that all can relate to. Audiences will recognise and learn that they are not alone in what they face, and that there is real fearlessness in unapologetically being you. The segment of It Takes Courage presented serves as the
opening for the play, setting the scene for the themes and stories to come. This will be presented through recorded audio and visual imagery as a gateway into the world of the play
Community Street Party
We are back for another Street Party!
Join us on Saturday 27 August from 12pm to 5pm for a street party on the Wyndham Road side of the Jessie Duffett Hall!
Supported by Southwark Council's Cultural Celebrations Fund, it will be a family-focused day with workshops and performances and be open to all.
Live music, dancing, performances, workshops... It's a day of celebration and a chance to get to know Blue Elephant and its activities better!
FREE
Schedule
12pm: Street Party starts! Come contribute to our craft activities or grab a bite, and learn more about Blue Elephant.
1:15 - 2:45pm: Circus skills workshops and performance, led by Dan Rose
3-3:30pm: Drama games with Pepa Duarte
3:30-4pm: Storytelling performance for little ones - The Earth Machine
4-4:30pm: Live music by Angarhad
Blue Elephant Theatre will be open for bathroom facilities, just a few minutes walk away.
Supported by
Misfits
'Misfits' is a collection of stories of people who don’t fit in. Presented by MA Collaborative Theatre Students of Fourth Monkey.
'Misfits' is a celebration of four short pieces of new work, devised and performed by Fourth Monkey’s MA Collaborative Theatre Class of 2022, showcasing their talents as boundary-pushing artists who like to take risks and shake up the status quo.
Presenting:
The Tofana Trials
An immersive courtroom play, inspired by the Spana Prosecutions of 1659, exploring women's relationship to a justice system that often fails them. You have been selected to hear the testimonies and see the evidence before giving your own verdict.
Featuring - Nicola Bohlen, Chloe Hatherley and Lucy Millett
Honour Bound
A solo show exploring honour-based violence and the anti-Blackness often found in South Asian communities.
Featuring – Zahra Jassi
Job Agency
Joe and Stan need to change careers, both are feeling the pressures of age. Expect clowning, poignance and a designated emotions corner. Change is hard. Changing is harder.
Featuring – Steven Poland and Kajo Sartori
Tales of Lethe
Four female historical villains meet in a hotel. The catch: they can’t remember anything. The second catch: only acts of villainy unlock memories. Let drinks flow and blood be shed.
Featuring – Harriet Leaf and Selin Balcıoğlu
With accompanying music from Fourth Monkey Acting Foundation graduate, Ahana Hundal.
About us
We are the MA Collaborative Theatre Students of Fourth Monkey, we make boundary pushing, exciting, contemporary art that shakes up the status quo. We are formed of 8 artists, our backgrounds vary; we are made up of a dancer, a comedian, a hairdresser, and everything in between. One thing we have in common is that we like to make bold work together.
Website: https://fourthmonkey.co.uk/
Give Me The Sun
Please note that the performance on Tuesday 19 July is cancelled due to the extreme heatwave, for the safety and comfort of all. Apologies for any inconvenience caused.
Why did we come here? To the UK?
Bashir and Baba live in a council house in London.
Baba, once a doctor in Egypt, works in Tesco.
Bashir plays basketball with his friends and wonders what his home country was like.
What has happened since the Arab Spring?
Give Me the Sun is a beautiful and compelling new play, exploring what happens when too much is left unsaid for too long. A seemingly perfect father-son relationship unravels to reveal grief, loss and loneliness.
Written by Mamet Leigh, a pioneer of the Tehran Underground Theatre Movement, Give Me the Sun addresses the complexity of finding your place in a new country and how different that can be for each person.
Wednesday 27 July: Relaxed Performance
Thursday 28 July: Captioned by Stagetext
Supported by
The Blue House
"Have you ever felt so sad you thought you’d never be happy again?”
Charles, Billie and Alex live in the same house but they never see each other. Charles’ wife of 50 years has passed away. Billie is reeling from heartbreak. Alex’s dad recently took his own life, and now he’s facing his own depression.
Gaia Fay Lambert’s moving debut play is a series of interweaving monologues. It blends poetry with theatre as its three characters attempt to articulate universal experiences of loneliness, loss and longing. The Blue House looks to provide the audience with hope, healing and solidarity after some of the most turbulent and lonely years in living memory.
With previous work described as “spectacular” and “boundlessly imaginative”, Helikon Theatre Company bring their bold and innovative style to the intimate space at the Blue Elephant, in an intense evening of theatre crafted by a collective of exciting new artists.
Past praise for Helikon Theatre Company
“Helikon’s modernisation is spectacular”
Mark Aspen Reviews
“This radical portrayal of A Winter’s Tale was refreshing, dynamic and most of all well performed.”
Theatrebox
“beautifully presented, addictive and compelling to watch, it strips the theatre to a cavernous space and offers it a place to breathe [...] I urge you to go and see this production, I leave the theatre rebounding and reeling with ideas, an inspiring undertaking.”
TheatreFullStop
“Boundlessly imaginative, visually poetic, joyfully queer, anarchically playful with the text, somebody give this team space”
Naomi Kuyck-Cohen, Theatre & Performance Designer
CAPTIONED PERFORMANCE: 25 June, 8pm
Captioned by Stagetext
Supported by
Cow's Rainy Day / Ana & Silly
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Your favourite cow and squirrels are back for FREE performances in libraries and community centres all around South London!
Suitable for ages 2+
Running Time: 30 minutes approx.
Tickets are FREE but should be booked in advance to avoid disappointment.
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COW’S RAINY DAY
Cow is very excited about celebrating his best friend Amy's birthday. He's planning to make her the most amazing card she's ever seen.
But things don't go quite to plan and Cow feels down.
Luckily Amy is there to help Cow feel better - but she needs some helpers. Can you join her and cheer Cow up?
Cow's Rainy Day is a short play for children, about learning new things, accepting mistakes, trying hard and being friends.
Dates:
• 20 May, 11am and 12pm at Mercato Metropolitano, 42 Newington Causeway, London SE1 6DR
• 26 May, 4pm at John Harvard Library, 211 Borough High St, London SE1 1JA
• 22 June, 2pm & 4pm at Peckham Library, 122 Peckham Hill St, London SE15 5JR
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ANA & SILLY
Ana the Squirrel enjoys a simple life collecting and counting acorns. Ana's not prepared for the arrival of cousin Silly who announces that soon all will change and they will both go to school!
A short children’s show about transitions and making friends.
Dates:
• 30 May, 11am at Walworth Library, 147 Walworth Rd, London SE17 1RW
• 30 May, 2pm at Camberwell Library, 48 Camberwell Green, London SE5 7AL
• 5 June, 1pm, 2pm & 3pm, Elephant Park, Elephant Rd, London SE17 1UB
• 21 June, 2pm & 4pm at Dulwich Library, 368 Lordship Ln, London SE22 8NB
Supported by
BLUE ELEPHANT COMEDY NIGHT
THE BIG RETURN OF COMEDY AT BLUE ELEPHANT!
A terrific line-up of up-and-coming comedians is taking over our theatre space for one night - grab a drink and witness some of the most exciting acts the UK comedy circuit has to offer!
Including:
MICAH HALL
BRONWYN SWEENEY
BRANDON PALMER
KATE LOVELOCK
More TBA!
Compered by FITZGERALD HONGER
MICAH HALL
Micah has recently been a finalist for the Southend On Sea Best New Comer award, runner-up for the Brighton Grin New Comedian competition, and Comedy Store’s King Gong Winner (August 2021)
“Definitely one to watch!” – Russell Kane
BRONWYN SWEENEY
Bronwyn is an advertising creative by day and draws on her experiences of making ads that no one wants to watch to inspire her comedy. She was the runner-up in the Funny Women Awards show in 2021 and hopes that one day, her side hustle may become her full-time hustle.
BRANDON PALMER
Born in Baltimore, Maryland. Brandon started comedy in London and has a very diverse comedy background. Performing in Birmingham, Milton Keynes, Brighton and numerous venues in London such as Dulwich Hamlet, Caverndish Arms, and Comedy Cafe Theatre. Outside of London Brandon has performed in Scotland and Norway. Also survived King Gong twice at the Comedy Store.
KATE LOVELOCK
Kate started stand up because Glamour magazine told her it was a good thing to improve confidence. That was two years before she actually tried it because they hadn’t done an article on how to stop procrastinating yet.
She was the runner up in the National "Joke For Scope" competition in 2018, semi-finalist of the “So You Think You’re Funny?” in 2019. Kate is one of "Leicester Comedy Festival's Circuit Breakers 2022", with sets streamed to Next Up Comedy and broadcast on Union Jack Radio.
FITZGERALD HONGER
A regular on the London comedy circuit, Fitzgerald Honger is a dynamic comedian who has performed in top comedy clubs across London and the UK including Up the Creek and the comedy store. When not doing comedy, Fitz is a producer. He’s worked for international companies spanning PR and broadcast television including MTV and Discovery, and has developed a wealth of contacts within the TV and entertainment industries.
Facilitators Network Meet Up
Join us for Facilitators Network Meetup!
Are you looking for a community to share, connect and learn with?
At Blue Elephant we are holding Online meet ups to explore topics around drama facilitation. We are interested in building bridges, create a community and learn with others!
Facilitators with all levels of experience are welcome.
Open House at BET
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Join us on Thursday 21st and Friday 22nd to meet our incoming programming team for this coming year and say goodbye for now to co-Artistic Directors, Niamh and Jo!
Blue Elephant’s ethos of supporting bold new work and early career artists remains at the heart of our programming, which will soon be looked after by Guillaume and Alice.
After a quiet few months, we can’t wait to be looking to the future more and invite you to come meet us and see if working at the Blue Elephant is for you. Our usual agreements include a 50/50 box office split, bespoke marketing, fundraising and creative support and some free rehearsal space. We champion early career and independent artists, particularly from under-represented backgrounds, and new work. We will rarely programme productions of established scripts or work that has already had significant runs in London.
If you’d like to find out more about us, join us on Zoom on Thursday 21st April from 10.30am – 11.30am or come along to the Blue Elephant from 6.15pm on Friday 22nd April.
Cow's Rainy Day
South London's favourite cow is back, with a special performance of Cow's Rainy Day at Walworth Library!
Cow is very excited about celebrating his best friend Amy's birthday. He's planning to make her the most amazing card she's ever seen.
But things don't go quite to plan and Cow feels down.
Luckily Amy is there to help Cow feel better - but she needs some helpers. Can you join her and cheer Cow up?
Cow's Rainy Day is a short play for children, about learning new things, accepting mistakes, trying hard and being friends.
Suitable for ages 2+
Running Time: 30 minutes approx. Tickets are FREE but should be booked in advance to avoid disappointment.
Please note that this performance will take place at Walworth Library (147 Walworth Rd, London SE17 1RW) and not at Blue Elephant Theatre
Drama Workshops for Wellbeing
We are offering three different drama workshops as part of a project supported by Southwark Council that aim to improve the physical and mental well-being of our community aimed at those most affected by COVID.
The workshops are free, every Tuesday till the 12th of April at Jack Hobbs Club (Maddock Way, London SE17 3JD), in the Brandon Estate.
Our three offerings are:
10am - Drama and dance workshops for parents/primary caregivers and children aged 1-3.
11.15am - Social dance for older adults, adults living with dementia, and carers are welcome.
12.30pm - Drama workshops for adults of all ages, providing a space for creative expression and exploration.
To register your interest or to ask any questions please feel free to call us on 020 7701 0100 or email info@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk.
The venue is wheelchair accessible, please feel free to contact us for any accessibility questions.
Supported by
Under Pressure!
Under Pressure! is an evening of 10-minute scratch performances brought to you by the MA Collaborative Theatre students of Fourth Monkey.
This scratch night is a platform for new, dynamic work and a chance for audiences to get a glimpse of what these emerging theatre-makers are currently exploring. For the artists, it’s the chance to experiment in a supportive environment in front of a live audience.
As the title suggests, all the characters depicted in the performances feel neck-deep, in the thick of it, and like it’s all pressing down on them... Under Pressure! is set to be an eclectic menu of drama, clowning, spoken word, comedy, and performance art.
Created and performed by the MA Collaborative Theatre Students of Fourth Monkey, who make boundary-pushing, exciting, contemporary art that shakes up the status quo. Formed of eight artists with varying backgrounds; they are made up of a dancer, a comedian, a hairdresser, and everything in between. One thing they have in common is that they like to make bold work together. Later in the year, they are touring to the Wardrobe Theatre, Bristol and the Garden Theatre Festival in Bath.
Suitable for ages 14+, with some strong language.
Community Street Party
After the success of our first Community Street Party, we are back!
Join us on Saturday March 26th from 12pm - 5pm for a street party on the Wyndham Road side of the Jessie Duffett Hall!
Supported by Southwark Council's Cultural Celebrations Fund, it will be a family focused day with workshops and performances and be open to all.
It's a day of celebration and a chance to get to know Blue Elephant and its activities better!
Schedule (subject to change)
12.15pm: Performance of What If? (for ages 2+)
12.45pm: Performance of The Quest (best for ages 4 - 10))
1.45 – 2.15: Drama workshop
2.30pm: Tell Me a Story by After Hours (community drama group)
3.15pm-3.45pm: Drama Workshop
4:15pm-4:45pm: Live Music
Blue Elephant Theatre will be open for bathroom facilities, just a few minutes walk away.
Supported by
The Girl and the Dragon
Get ready for a fantastical show to warm the heart and bring joy to people young and old alike. Join our hero Toral on the adventure of a lifetime as she swims uncrossable rivers, braves impassable forests and scales unclimbable mountains, all to fight a great and terrible dragon.
Performed by the delightfully talented Niall Moorjani and Minnie Wilkinson, this story proves that heroes can come from anywhere and villains aren’t always what they seem.
The Suitcase Storytelling Company is a new theatre company creating work that blends found object theatre with oral tradition storytelling for family audiences. They aim to bring joy and excitement to their audiences through original folk tale-style stories with diverse characters and progressive narratives.
This children's show is for ages 5 and up.
Special thanks to: Arts Council England
Additional Information:
If you have any access requirements, please contact us on 020 7701 0100 or info@blueelephanttheatre.co.uk. Our theatre space is on the ground floor and is wheelchair accessible but our bar is upstairs and unfortunately is not.
Our bar and our box office open 45 minutes before each show starts.
Please do not be late as we may be unable to admit latecomers.
Covid-safety: We are operating at reduced capacity so there can be more space between audience members and we have recently installed a new ventilation system. It is now necessary by law to wear a mask in the theatre, unless you are exempt. We clean down and disinfect high touch points regularly and hand sanitiser/hand washing facilities are available as soon as you arrive at the theatre.
Reviews
The Norwich Radical
