Wanderlust by The Gramophones
Pioneered by Curve Associate Director, Suba Das, and in association with the Breakthrough Companies competition run by the sadly now extinct IdeasTap, theatre companies from around the Midlands entered for the chance to participate in exclusive industry workshops and masterclasses, and for the coveted chance to perform at the Curve itself.
This year, Nottingham has taken the gold medal in terms of winning companies. Sheep Soup, The Gramophones, Mouthy Poets and 2Magpies are among the collection of creative talent now regularly boarding the train to Leicester, to absorb the knowledge of their theatre forefathers. You can check out our interview with 2Magpies about their production of Ventoux, which ran in our February issue.
We have also caught up with the companies behind Mrs Green and Wanderlust, Sheep Soup and The Gramophones respectively, ahead of their debut performances at the Curve. Our full interview with Ben Welch and Siobhán Cannon-Brownlie of Sheep Soup will be featured online in a couple of days, so keep your eyes peeled. But for now, here’s what Ria Ashcroft of The Gramophones had to say about their upcoming performance…
What can new audiences expect from a Gramophones performance?
Playful, honest and colourful storytelling that involves everyone in the space in some way and is full of heart.
You’re an all-female theatre company, how important do you think that is in the somewhat male dominated area of theatre production?
Extremely important. We are creating opportunities for women in theatre and also sharing stories about strong female characters who are real life women from Nottingham.
Tell us a little bit about the inspiration for Wanderlust. Did you go on all sorts of adventures to create the show?
We created a show called End to End which was about us travelling from Lands’ End to John O Groats on as many forms of transport as humanly possible, with very little time or money. We found that people wanted to help us complete the challenge and really connected with us. People sent us lots of stories about adventures they had been on, and we thought, “This is incredible, we should share these stories with more people and inspire them to go on their own adventures.”
.jpg)
The Gramophones
What was your favourite story you heard in the making of the show?
My favourite story came from a lady caught between accents, between sprawling American towns and the English country lanes, between technological advances and the way she wants to live; lost in the wilderness, surrounded by the wind and the birds in the trees.
What does theatre mean to you? Do you go to escape real life or to see accurate representations of it?
Theatre, for me, means a space for risk-taking, gift-giving and trust. A space that, whether you're an actor, audience member, running the lights or checking tickets, you're part of a live experience never to be repeated. That's a truly incredible thing, and it's the reason The Gramophones exist. We became friends through this shared passion, and over the years we've created a safe space to play, explore, succeed and make mistakes.
Theatre has been a form of escapism for me over the years - both watching and partaking - but now it's my way of embracing the world, sharing stories with others and inviting them to join us on our adventures.
The festival is buzzing with Nottingham talent. Is there competition between the local theatre companies or are you all the best of Nottingham friends?
The Nottingham arts scene is fantastic. There's no feeling of competition; we hang out, see each other's work, and support each other whenever we can.
The Inside Out Festival was run through IdeasTap which has recently closed. How important do you thing charities like IdeasTap are for the creative arts? Are you involved in the campaign to restart it?
It can be really challenging making theatre, finding the time and space needed to create work. It can sometimes feel like you're on a lonely road full of obstacles, this is why charities like Idea's Tap are so important. They've nurtured so many artists over the years, given opportunities, and supported amazing schemes like Breakthrough Companies. It was very sad when they announced they're no longer able to carry on. The first thing I did was sign the online petition to try and bring it back. The roles have reversed and now it's down to us to give them support.
Anything else coming up?
Our performance at the Leicester Curve is the first date for our national tour of Wanderlust. We’re travelling all over the UK visiting seventeen different venues. If you want to see where we are going you can visit our website.
How can people get involved?
You can follow us on Twitter @The_Gramophones or visit our Facebook page.
The Gramophones will be performing Wanderlust at the Leicester Curve as part of the Inside Out Festival on Saturday 25 April. You can also catch them at Nottingham Playhouse on 22 – 23 May.
For the full Inside Out Festival listings, see the Leicester Curve website.
The Gramophones website
Leicester Curve website
We have a favour to ask
LeftLion is Nottingham’s meeting point for information about what’s going on in our city, from the established organisations to the grassroots. We want to keep what we do free to all to access, but increasingly we are relying on revenue from our readers to continue. Can you spare a few quid each month to support us?
