Blog Posts

Harry and Matthew on the radio!

Here is a radio interview with Writer/Director Matthew Parker and actor Harry Lobek, on London Festival Fringe radio. Enjoy! (especially how we speed up as we get more and more into it. Guess you could say that we are pretty excited about the show!)

Radio Interview Link

Posted by on February 6th 2011

Harry interviewed in the Ham & High

Harry has been interviewed in this weeks Ham & High. Read the article entitled “Harry puts the laughs back into Chekhov” here

Mx

Posted by on February 6th 2011

1 week to go!

There’s just 1 week until the Ward reopens it’s doors to the public. The first preview performance is at 8pm on Tuesday 8th February and the whole company is very excited about the show and the prospect of welcoming you to the Ward.

Tickets are on sale now and can be booked online by clicking here

Previews are just £8 for all tickets (8th and 9th Feb) and full price tickets (from 10th onwards until 27th) are £12 and £10 concessions.

“So long as prisons and madhouses exist, someone must be shut up in them. If not you, then I; if not I, then some third person”

Come join us for an award nominated mix of music, dance, imaginative physical storytelling, sumptuous design and classic text.

Matthew x

Posted by on February 1st 2011

DogOrange perform an extract of Ward No.6 at St Pancras International

P1080044 P1080073 P1080081

Posted by on January 30th 2011

Catch 22

“Any psychiatric ward is a test of the therapist’s capacity; to embrace a fundamental contradiction, to retain sympathy whilst maintaining detachment. … its was said that if you empathised too closely with the insane you became insane yourself” – “Ward 9″ Will Self

Posted by on January 27th 2011

The Doctor Has Come…

After months, banished to the Siberian plains of our minds; work on Ward No. 6 has begun.  Monday:  Huddled in the corner of a dingy room above a South London pub we plotted and schemed our way through and deeper into the madness.  I feel this run will reach out to people in a way we never felt possible before.  The read through went well, thoughts on insanity and mental heath waltzed about us, as we teetered on the brink of a….  then we went Costa.  (As with first day rehearsals, it was short and sweet.)

Tuesday: A late night rehearsal in Camden Town.  Blocking.  We reintroduced ourselves to: corners of the rooms, beds, voms and situations in Ward 6, that stand to be our acrid abodes for the next six weeks.  A pint, The Hawley Arms, there is Madness what lies, drinks and eddies round corners in here.  A wasteman in a green trench, his face milk white with self-inflicted insomnia attempted to throw is hands out the windows.  The Strokes played and they sell Flying Saucers behind the bar.

Wednesday:  Nothing to report.

“

Posted by on January 20th 2011

And we’re off

Rehearsals started to day for Ward No.6. We had a great readthrough of the new script, a design presentation from Suneeda and Daisy (our Designers) and presentations on the history and background of the short story and attitudes and treatment of mental health at the time of Chekhov.

I then had a costume design consultation with Suneeda and Daisy and I’m very excited about the fabrics, designs and Wizard of Oz-like concept. The inmates everyday nightshirts will reflect their dull reality but the costumes of the characters of the play within the play with be fantastical and fabulous. There’s gonna be a LOT of velvet!

We get up on our feet tomorrow – or rather into our Ward beds.

Matthew x

Posted by on January 17th 2011

Ward No.6 is back!

So here we are in 2011 and getting ready to unveil the madhouse once more. I’m really excited about the transfer of Ward No.6 to Camden People’s Theatre and hope that lots of you can come and see the show that did so well in Edinburgh in 2009.

The script has been revised and there’s a fantastic new set. There’s a new Producer, Stage Manager, Assistant Director, Designer and Lighting Designer on board. And also a new cast member; Oliver Lavery joins the company as Gromov/Hobotov, taking over from Ben Galpin who is on tour in Europe. Oliver (Olly) is bound to bring a new energy to the piece and we’re all excited about working with him.

Tickets are on sale now and there are 2 reduced price Preview performances on 8th and 9th February. Just click the link at the top of the page to be taken directly to the online Box Office.

We look forward to welcoming you into Ward No.6

Matthew

Posted by on January 11th 2011

AWARDS!!!!

Oh my word. Nominated in the Best Ensemble category at the 15th Annual Stage Awards for Acting Excellence. I am literally beside myself with joy. A little bit of a dream come true for me and I can’t wait to spruce myself up and hotfoot down to the ceremony on the 30th!
What an amazing experience this is!

Posted by on August 22nd 2009

As I’ve had to remain in London during this merry month of August I’ve been feeling slightly removed from all the action in Edinburgh. Matthew has been keeping me up to date with how things have been going and one of the first things I do when I wake up is search for new reviews of the show on the web. The life of an absent producer.

Today the call brought me the news that my fabulous and lovely director, cast and crew have done me proud and been nominated for Best Ensemble in The Stage Awards for Acting Excellence. I wish I was there to celebrate this achievement with them. Instead I’m raising a glass to them and looking forward to seeing them all over the bank holiday weekend.

Jane,
Producer

http://www.thestage.co.uk/news/newsstory.php/25346/edinburghs-traverse-in-driving-seat-for-15th

Posted by on August 21st 2009