The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe

The cast & crew of 'The Lion, The
Witch & The Wardrobe' 2018

“Utterly brilliant, spellbinding and wonderful.  I have a lump in my throat as I think about it ....” Celia F

“Great evening last night - your show is amazing!!! Well done and very pleased that the BCA supported this production.” Steven Mindel, Chairman of the Barnes Community Association

“Emma King-Farlow has mounted a truly magical production…” Mia Gibbons, Churches Together in Barnes

Edmund (Alice Hope Wilson) & Lucy
(Lucy Evans) in the Narnian snow

“This production was such a pleasure.  The fine story by C.S. Lewis was performed by a great team of actors, all of them perfectly in character. The Christian allegory worked gently but effectively in the beautiful mediaeval St Mary's Church, Barnes. Acting the part of Aslan, the lion King of Narnia, is inevitably impossible, but Will Forrester gave it drama and dignity.  The White Queen & her wolf were superbly malevolent & frightening!  The opening 40’s dance set the scene in wartime Britain, from where the evacuee children escape through the wardrobe to Narnia.  Costumes were inventive & the simple set was used imaginatively.  Many thanks to all. A special evening.” Anonymous audience Member

Maugrim (Carly Borrow) captures
 Edmund (Alice Hope Wilson) 

These were just a few of the many personal reviews that we received from audience members, following our recent(ish!) production of The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe at St Mary’s Barnes (29^th Oct – 3^rd Nov 2018).  The show turned out to be rather more of a challenge than I first envisaged, and perhaps not quite as financially successful as it could have been if we hadn’t found ourselves up against the final of The Great British Bake Off early in the week!  It was, however, even more successful than I hoped in terms of the glowing feedback received and, it seems, the very different but similarly positive experiences enjoyed by cast, crew and audiences alike.  Indeed, the cast and crew - quite possibly the loveliest group of people I have had the privilege of working with - remain astonishingly close knit and in regular contact, and we are still hearing how much the audience thought of the show nearly three months after closing night!

Mr Tumnus Sr (Martin Parsley) watches
Maugrim terrorise small children!

None of this would have been possible without the financial and practical support of St Mary's Church and help from the Barnes Community Association, who recognised the potential of the project early on and awarded us a £500 grant to put towards the considerable costs involved.  I am extremely grateful to both organisations for their faith in the production, and to Bishop Richard Harries, whose fascinating pre-show talk on C.S. Lewis ensured that, despite adding as many extra chairs as we could, we still had to turn people away on the Friday night!

The White Witch (Kat Merrick)

Finally, I am delighted that the success of the production has enabled us to make donations not only to St Mary's but also to two fantastic children's literacy charities, both doing invaluable work with disadvantaged children around the country: BookTrust and First Story.
This wonderful play brought to an end a year of exhausting and exciting achievements for Shadow Road Productions and we now look forward to an equally exhilarating 2019!

UNBROKEN 2017 - the festival is back!

As you may remember, UNBROKEN made its debut as a 'mini-festival' produced by Shadow Road at Theatre503 on World Mental Health Day 2016.  Following an extremely successful and at times deeply moving day, we are delighted that the festival will return to 503 this year from Saturday 28th  until Tuesday 31st October.

As well as the art exhibitions, live music, new writing, original choreography and panel discussions that were such a hit last year, the 2017 programme will feature some practical workshops, a literary event, a staged reading of a powerful play about adolescent mental health, short film screenings and a free event open to all.  We will also be running a small but perfectly formed bookshop throughout the festival!

More information will be available on the new UNBROKEN website soon.  Do get in touch if you're interested in getting involved - we'd love to hear from you!


UNBROKEN - A Mental Health Awareness Festival from Shadow Road on Vimeo.

Introducing Maid Marian!

Over on our Robin Hood crowdfunding campaign page, we have begun a short series of interviews with the cast, in order to allow our supporters to become a bit more familiar with both the tale we'll be telling at the London Wetland Centre next month and the lovely, talented people who will be bringing it to life.  I hope that you, too, might enjoy finding out more... :-)

Lindsey Huebner as Marian Fitzwalter, with Fed Zanni as Robin Hood



Please introduce yourself and your character.
My name is Lindsey Huebner and I will be playing the part of Marian in Shadow Road's exciting new production - taking over the London Wetland Centre this summer!

How old were you when you first read, watched or heard the story of Robin Hood and what did you think of it?
Some of my very earliest memories are watching Disney films with family members and close friends. Like the stories of Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, I feel like the tale of Robin Hood has always been a part of me.
Although I'm mildly disappointed that Emma's interpretation doesn't have myself and Fed as foxes, I am overjoyed that the character of Marian is not your typical Disney damsel. Strong, capable and fierce in her love of Robin Hood, she is the kind of heroine I wish I'd encountered more in my childhood.

What made you want to get involved with this production of Robin Hood at the London Wetland Centre?
What really drew me to this production are those very aspects that make it unique!
First off, it is an outdoor promenade production. Pulling off a solid performance is a feat in and of itself... Add on top of that passing planes, rogue children/ducks/otters, honking geese, passing trucks, surprise weddings, and whatever weather the skies can throw our way, all whilst attempting to safely shepherd 30 audience members to our various locations... Well, it sounds like a pretty glorious challenge to me!
Secondly, I did martial arts as a youngster, and although I'm not in favour of real violence, I'm a big fan of stage combat! This was highly emphasised in the audition brief, and throughout the production we have gotten to work with Claire Llewellyn, an Associate Teacher at one of London's premiere stage combat clubs: RC-Annie.

What’s your favourite line spoken by your character – or any other - in the show?  No spoilers, please!
There are a few lines in this show that bring a smile to my face or give me chills, but out of context, they might not make a lot of sense to an innocent reader. This being said, one of my favourite lines in reference to Robin is, "Outlaw, yes, but never 'common'. He is but one in all the world."  I like it because of its simple truth, and through it we get a glimpse of the astounding love that Marian feels for Robin.

What’s your favourite thing about working in the theatre?  
There are loads of things that appeal to me about a career in theatre. My current favourite thing is the people one meets both off and on the stage. Casts come together quickly and, through performing together, the acts of vulnerability and trust give way to a sense of cameraderie like nothing I've ever experienced.

And your least favourite?
For what one gains in an ever-changing, fast-paced, fulfilling, creative career choice, one loses out in stability and security. Financial concerns are prevalent among actors - particularly those recently embarked upon this life path. Fortunately, such tribulations only enhance creativity and resourcefulness.

Tell us why we should come and see the show in two sentences or less!
You know the legend. Now become immersed in it.

Tickets for Robin Hood - at 6.30pm or 8.15pm on Thursdays and Fridays throughout June, from Thursday 9th June until Friday 1st July - are available from the Wetland Centre website HERE.

A Word on Auditions

It seems like a very long time ago now but there was a reason I started a brief post on auditions shortly before we held ours for Robin Hood, so I'm going to complete it anyway!

At the time, I wanted to remind people that there was no need to be nervous coming into an audition room.  Unless the role you are auditioning for specifically calls for it, or the director and/or casting director whom you're about to meet happen to be particularly unpleasant or unintelligent people (and if that was the case, why would you want to work with them?), they are not going to be looking to catch you out or make you feel uncomfortable.  Far from it.  In fact, they want you to be as comfortable as possible - to feel at ease and entirely free to be yourself - so that you have the best chance possible of being the answer to their casting prayers! 

Like a hopeful audience, waiting in the dark for the curtain to rise on the play, or for the first few frames of a film to flicker across the screen, they want you to be brilliant - to be the leading man or lady they've been looking for, the hilarious character actor they're desperate to find or the lovely, talented performer they just can't wait to work with in any capacity. 

They want to love you - and it is for that very reason that if there are any tiny slip-ups or stumbles, they will, in all likelihood, give you the benefit of the doubt.  When you enter the audition room they are, or at least they should be, on your side - and they will stay there until you give them a reason not to be. 

And I don't mean until you forget a word or two, or call someone by the wrong name.  I mean until you show them either that you are, for any reason, wrong for the part (in which case, again, it's probably better for everyone concerned, including you, that you don't get it) or - and this one's significant because it could cause longer term problems for your career - that you would not be easy or pleasant to work with. 

Whether you're making a film, staging a play or embarking on any other substantial creative project, you know that you are going to be spending a lot of time over the coming days, weeks or even months with the people you cast here and now.  You also know that a sizeable amount of that time will almost inevitably be both difficult and stressful.  It is therefore only natural - and wise - to take a moment to consider exactly whom you want to be facing those challenges alongside. 

As each actor leaves the room, you consider first whether or not they are suitable for the job and then second, and no less important, would you want to work with them on it?  Could you stand being shut up in a rehearsal room or stuck on a film set with them for hours or days at a time?  What about for weeks?  And when times get hard - you always hope they won't but you know they probably will - is it likely that having this person there will make things better or worse?  If the answer to all of those questions is 'yes' and 'better', then no one is going to be happier than the director sitting across the room from you... :-D

P.S. It goes without saying (or at least it should) that you should be asking yourself the same questions about the director and any other members of the cast and crew whom you meet - do YOU want to work with THEM?  Auditions are a two way street! :-)

Ten in Ten #1 - Me!

Having submitted the old blog to a little digital ‘spit and polish', with the intention of turning it into my main personal website (together with Shadow Road's site, I think the Internet already knows far more about me than it really needs - or indeed wants - to, without me having to maintain yet another site!), I am going to kick things off by submitting myself to the very same questionnaire that I'm hoping a few of my creative friends may be willing to answer here over the coming months.

I've called it Ten in Ten - the idea being that it asks only ten questions, all of which should be answered in no more than ten minutes.  Thus, I hope I may get a few more takers than I would if I was asking them for the biographical equivalent of War & Peace - and we may all get a little insight into their lives and interests. 

Since I try never to ask others to do anything that I wouldn't be prepared to at least have a go at myself, however, I'm going to get the ball rolling.  Usually, we'd begin with a short biography of the person answering the questions but as you've probably already read all the information about me in the blog header above, I'll spare you that and skip straight to the answers!

The timer on my phone has been set for ten minutes* so here we go... :-)

TEN IN TEN - 10 questions to answer in 10 minutes or less - don’t think, just write!

1. Who inspires you?  People who step in when they see someone else in danger – fearless, selfless people.  All the people – Veterans, soldiers, civilians and counsellors alike – whom I spoke to when researching my play, Dreams From The Pit.  The Invictus Veterans and all our brilliant Paralympians.  Laura Bates – creator of The Everyday Sexism Project – who has given a voice, and a community, to countless previously unheard women from around the world and drawn attention to a problem that many are not even aware still exists. Actors and other creatives – most of the actors whom I have met and worked with have been amazing people, so open, giving and empathetic, while also committed, professional and driven.  My parents.  People who make a difference.  Too many other people to mention!

2. Who/what most annoys you?   Overpaid, over-privileged footballers, pop singers and Hollywood stars – basically, celebrity culture and its celebration of the vain, vacuous and inane.  The modern-day tendency to exalt all the wrong people for the wrong reasons, while ignoring or undervaluing those who make a genuine and positive difference to other people's lives - often at their own expense - really infuriates me.

3. The last three plays or films you saw? Around the World in 80 Days, The Firework Maker’s Daughter and Miss Saigon.

4. The first four books that you think of when asked which ones have stayed with you since reading them?  The Girl in the Box – Ouida Sebastien, Among You – Jake Wood, A Thousand Splendid Suns – Khaled Hosseini, The Penguin Book of WWI Poetry.

5. Your five favourite fictional characters?  Ellen Ripley, Jason Bourne, Katniss Everdeen, Pug/Milamber and Paksenarrion Dorthansdottir.

6. A hidden gem you’d recommend (could be a place to visit, a book to read, a play to see, a song to listen to etc)?   The London Wetland Centre in Barnes.  It's pretty incredible to see a nature reserve of that size tucked away in the corner of a huge city like London.

7. What are you most proud of in your professional life so far? Dreams From The Pit.  I can't wait to get the new and improved version back onstage!

8. What is your greatest as yet unfulfilled ambition?  To win an Olivier award and direct a play on the stage of the Olivier Theatre at the National!

9. Your favourite quotation?  Too many to choose between but time’s running out so I’ll go for one of the two that I currently have up on my study wall: ‘Be who you were created to be and you will set the world on fire’ -  St Catherine of Sienna.

10. Your hoped-for epitaph?  Hmm.  ‘She lived, loved, laughed - and left the world a better place than she found it.'

 

*In the interests of full disclosure, I should make it clear that while I did try and answer the questions in ten minutes, it took me a lot longer than that to put this whole post together, writing and editing the intro, adding links and checking names etc! :-D