SUSPENSE London Puppetry Festival 2013

25 October - 3 November 2013 suspensefestival.com

About

Welcome to SUSPENSE London Puppetry Festival 2013. This is only the third incarnation of SUSPENSE, which is produced biennially by Little Angel Theatre, but in a short time it has become one of the leading theatre festivals in the UK. SUSPENSE showcases some of the best international and UK puppetry work for adults, exploding the myth that puppetry is just for kids.

This year, Little Angel Theatre is delighted to present our own production of Macbeth as a pivotal focus for the 2013 festival. International work centres on major influencers on European puppetry including the challenging DudaPaiva Company (Netherlands), contemporary balloon puppeteers El Retrete de Dorian Gray (Spain), and the renowned Compagnie Philippe Genty (France). Alongside these companies we have some of the best UK artists including Blind Summit, Invisible Thread, Horse + Bamboo and Pickled Image.

We also have a dedicated theatre studio for emerging companies at the Pleasance StageSpace. As ever, there

is an extensive training and participation programme complementing the performances on offer including lectures, workshops, symposia and masterclasses, suitable for every level of experience.

This year we are delighted to welcome three new venues – Battersea Arts Centre, King’s Head Theatre, and the Actors Centre & Tristan Bates Theatre – alongside eight venues returning to SUSPENSE. Puppetry is now being recognised as a sophisticated artform which is having a protean impact on theatre practice.

SUSPENSE is here to demonstrate that with a passion.

Peter Glanville Festival Director/Artistic Director Little Angel Theatre

Front cover image: Les Hommes Vides by Invisible Thread

Image: For Their Own Good by Untied Artists

How to book tickets You can book tickets for SUSPENSE in two different ways:

1) Book for all events at all venues via the centralised festival box office - online, by phone or in person.

The festival box office is managed by Little Angel Theatre.

In person: Little Angel Theatre, 14 Dagmar Passage, N1 2DN By phone: 020 7226 1787 A ÂŁ1.50 credit/debit card booking fee will be added to each purchase via the Festival box office. Tickets and workshop places cannot be exchanged or refunded.

2) Book tickets via individual venues either by telephone or online: Little Angel Theatre - 020 7226 1787 www.littleangeltheatre.com Battersea Arts Centre - 020 7223 2223 www.bac.org.uk Jacksons Lane - 020 8341 4421 www.jacksonslane.org.uk King’s Head Theatre - 0207 478 0160 www.kingsheadtheatre.com New Diorama Theatre - 0207 383 9034 www.newdiorama.com Pleasance Theatre - 020 7609 1800 www.pleasance.co.uk/islington Puppet Barge - 020 7249 6876 www.puppetbarge.com

Age guidance: This festival is for adult audiences and we do not recommend anything for people under 12 years old. Some shows have specific age guidance.

Rosemary Branch - 020 7704 6665 www.rosemarybranch.co.uk Tristan Bates Theatre - 020 7240 6283 www.tristanbatestheatre.co.uk

Join the SUSPENSE conversation at:

Twitter #SUSPENSE13 Facebook.com/littleangeltheatre

Early Bird Ticket Offer: Book via the Festival box office by 25 September and get 15% off certain shows.

Image: The Shop of Little Horrors by Pickled Image in association with The North Wall

Note that each venue has its own booking charges - please check their website carefully for details or call their box office direct.

Tickets for most performances may be bought on the door at venues (subject to availability). Tickets for Alice at the V&A are via the festival box office only and must be booked in advance. Non-ticketed events at the V&A are on a first come first served basis. All workshops must be booked via the Festival box office (except Critical Voices) in advance.

Please note that seating is unallocated at all venues. If you have access requirements please contact the venue directly.

Little Angel Theatre 14 Dagmar Passage, London, N1 2DN Macbeth You can book tickets for SUSPENSE in two different ways:

WORLD PREMIERE

Little Angel Theatre Fri 25 to Wed 30 Oct, 7.30pm Sat 26 & Sun 27 Oct, 3.30pm £14 / £12 conc Light thickens; and the crow Makes wing to the rooky wood: Good things of day begin to droop and drowse; While night’s black agents to their preys do rouse.

After a heart-stopping encounter with three witches and some twisted persuasion from his wife, Scottish general Macbeth is moved to snatch the crown from King Duncan. At whatever cost.

Experience the clawing ambition and sweeping hysteria of Macbeth in this daring new production for adults. Following their collaborations with The RSC on Venus and Adonis and The Tempest, Little Angel Theatre return to attack Shakespeare’s most bloodcurdling tragedy.

Using mesmerising puppetry, it is directed and adapted by Little Angel’s Artistic Director Peter Glanville (The Tempest), with music composed by James Hesford (The Tear Thief) and puppets designed and made by Little Angel’s co-founder Lyndie Wright (A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings).

“Negotiates a course between the erotic and the satirical with aplomb… you leave the theatre charmed, and with a sense of wonder”  about Venus and Adonis, Guardian “Touching, funny… and executed with a gossamer touch”  about The Tempest, Time Out Note that this production runs before and after SUSPENSE: 5 October – 10 November 2013 Running time: approx. 90 mins

Little Angel Theatre 14 Dagmar Passage, London, N1 2DN Dustpan Odyssey

LONDON PREMIERE

Compagnie Philippe Genty (France) Fri 1 Nov 8pm, Sat 2 Nov 4.30pm & 8pm, Sun 3 Nov 1pm & 4.30pm £16 / 13 conc The great puppet master, Philippe Genty, invites us to join Ulysses and his shipmates for an incredible journey. In this object theatre adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey, our hero is a corkscrew and sails on his indestructible vessel, which is nothing but a dustpan. Imagination has no boundaries.

A rare chance to see this world famous French company in London, following their Edinburgh run. Directed by Philippe Genty and Mary Underwood.

“Master of visual theatre” The Times “These artists breathe life into dreams. Simply ravishing” Le Telegramme Running time: 1 hour 10 mins

2013 British UNIMA John Phillip’s Memorial Lecture

Thur 31 Oct, 7.30pm - free, advance booking advised

Compagnie Philippe Genty is one of the world’s leading visual theatre companies and the 2013 British UNIMA John Phillip’s Memorial Lecture will provide a unique and fascinating insight into their working practice.

The lecture will be followed by questions and then drinks to celebrate British UNIMA’s 50th Anniversary.

Puppet Theatre Barge Blomfield Road, Little Venice, W9 2PF

All He Fears by Howard Barker Movingstage Marionette Company Sat 26 Oct to Sun 3 Nov, Mon to Sat at 7.30pm; Sun 3pm £12 / £10 conc The plot is deceptively simple: Botius, a philosopher and professor, colludes with himself to bring about and experience all that he fears. But the freedom of working with puppets, rather than humans, liberates Barker’s imagination giving him the power to create symbolic characters such as ‘Skull’, ‘Horse’ and ‘Rat’ to create mayhem along the way.

Actors Ian McDiarmid, Harriet Walter and other members of the Wrestling School worked with Movingstage to produce an outstanding sound scape, enhanced by a full orchestral score by Matthew Scott. All He Fears was specially commissioned

by Movingstage and subsequently published by Calder Publications.

Running time: 1 hour 15 mins including interval

Battersea Arts Centre Lavender Hill, Battersea, SW11 5TN

My Name is Rifnur (work in progress)

WORLD PREMIERE

Jess Mabel Jones Fri 25 & Sat 26 Oct, 9pm £5 / £3 conc In 1994 a letter from a Russian boy called Rifnur arrived in the post for an 8 year old Croydon girl called Jessica, beginning a correspondence which spanned 18 years and sparked a life of international letter writing.

Jess Mabel Jones (who has worked with LittleAngel Theatre, Blind Summit, the RSC, and her own company Pants on Fire) returns to SUSPENSE with her nostalgic biographical performance lecture. Created in collaboration with the BAC, My Name is Rifnur is a coming of age through letters told with projection and object manipulation. Dolls, bears and Barbies are replaced with fags, phones and Barcadi Breezers in this small story told with epic theatricality.

“The main wonder is that all its elements are so simple but combined they make something really very impressive” Itchy London about The Tragic & Regrettable Life of Teofila Teodora during SUSPENSE 2011 Running time: approx. 1 hour

King’s Head Theatre 115 Upper Street, Islington, N1 1QN Boris & Sergey’s Astonishing Freakatorium Flabbergast Theatre Fri 25, Sat 26, Sun 27 Oct & Fri 1 & Sat 2 Nov, 10.30pm £12 / £10 conc The nation’s favourite puppet clown duo are back with a late night cabaret commissioned especially for SUSPENSE 2013. Hold on to your hats as, for your titillation, they delve into the world of the macabre. Watch them recreate traditional scenes of geeking, feats of incredible fortitude, endeavours of unimaginable physical endurance and formidable artistry whilst beguiling you with their roughish wit and erudite jocularity. Not for the faint hearted or those with a tendency to swoon “Awe, astonishment and fits of laughter”  about Boris & Sergey’s Vaudevillian Adventure, Three Weeks Running time: approx. 1 hour

WORLD PREMIERE

Jacksons Lane 269a Archway Road, N6 5AA LONDON PREMIERE

Angus: Weaver of Grass Horse + Bamboo Theatre Fri 25 Oct, 8pm and Sat 26 Oct, 2pm & 8pm £14.95 / £12.95 conc Angus MacPhee’s life is a tale of illness, lost traditions and magical hats of grass, stunning like sunbursts. Raised on South Uist, and traumatised by WWII, Angus spent 50 years in a psychiatric hospital. He did not speak; instead he wove remarkable costumes from grass. Featuring traditional acoustic Gaelic singing, this is his tale.

“Physical, emotional and aural beauty... their collective artistry is awesome” The Stage Running time: 1 hour 15 mins

For Their Own Good Untied Artists Wed 30 Oct to Sat 2 Nov, 8pm £14.95 / £12.95 conc Two knackermen, a horse, a gun and a tiny metropolis full of death.

Can the way we kill animals teach us anything about our own demise?

A darkly comic tale about the only certainty in life - Death. How it has become removed from us as a process. How maybe we should reclaim it.

A Bitesize commission supported

by Warwick Arts Centre, mac Birmingham, Bristol Ferment, China Plate Theatre, The British Council and Arts Council England.

Running time: 1 hour 5 mins

LONDON PREMIERE

Puppet Grinder Cabaret Puppet Grinder and Little Angel Theatre Sun 3 Nov, 8pm £15.95 / £13.95 conc Following sell-out successes in SUSPENSE 2009 and 2011, the infamous Puppet Grinder Cabaret returns to Jacksons Lane for the finale of SUSPENSE 2013. The Cabaret features polished live puppetry acts and short animations - from the beautiful and comical, to the grotesque and wonderfully weird.

Over the last six years, the cabaret has appeared at festivals and performance spaces across the UK, establishing a faithful following, not only of puppeteers, but of new audiences for whom adult puppetry is an alluring phenomenon.

“Kids be damned, this be high quality, adults-only puppetry...

You’ll love it.” Time Out Running time: approx. 2 hours inc interval

New Diorama Theatre 15 - 16 Triton Street, Regents Place, NW1 3BF The Engineer’s Thumb Dotted Line Theatre Mon 28, Tues 29, Wed 30 Oct, 7.30pm £12 / £10 conc A tale of risk and intrigue, based on a short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Victor Hatherley is under pressure, his business is failing and his expectations are slipping through his fingers. A rule of thumb: he must grasp any opportunity that comes his way…even if it leads into darkness.

Originally premiered at Little Angel FIRSTS Festival 2013. “…a winning combination of acting, puppetry and light manipulation… positively teeming with brilliant creative artistry” Onestoparts “…glittering, intimate… The Engineer’s Thumb is genuinely scary” AYoungerTheatre.com “Brilliantly designed and directed…

The Engineer’s Thumb is an original and captivating adaptation that combines inventive dramaturgical devices with varied puppetry techniques.” Animations Online Running time: 1 hour

Rúa Aire

UK PREMIERE

El Retrete de Dorian Gray (Spain) Thurs 31 Oct, Fri 1 & Sat 2 Nov, 7.30pm; Sat 2 Nov, 4.30pm £16 / £13 conc Rúa Aire (Air Street) brings a renewal and a breath of fresh air to the theatre and puppet scene. Spanish company El Retrete de Dorian Gray have performed at festivals across Europe. They work with their hands, with hats, with balloons and with objects that are more than they appear.

They neither commit to nor rule anything out. This experimentation, which began with their previous piece Ne Me Quite Pas, focuses on the creation of puppets from balloons. In their skilful hands we enter an inflatable nightmare, a trip into the bowels of a balloon-processing machine, through the realm of fantasy, which will show everyone it is not easy to be a balloon.

Running time: 1 hour

Pleasance Theatre Carpenter Mews, North Road, N7 9EF In the Pleasance Mainspace:

Bastard!

LONDON PREMIERE

DudaPaiva Company (Netherlands) Fri 1 Nov, 8.30pm & Sat 2 Nov, 3.30pm & 8.30pm £16 / £13 conc In a bizarre and grim future, a host of extraordinary characters come to the aid of an artist who has lost his way.

Bastard! is inspired by French writer Boris Vian’s satire, L’arrache-coeur.

Like Vian, who invented new words to describe wild adventures, Duda Paiva expands his trademark theatre language of animated movement, with objects, the body and new media in this multi-award winning show.

In the past years, DudaPaiva Company has performed across the world, developing into a unique, international company that interprets the lively crossover of dance and objects in a new and original form of contemporary dance theatre.

“Duda Paiva is creating wonderful magic out of the dump.”  Volkskrant NL Bastard! is a co-production of CaDance 2011/Korzo Productions, Festival Mondial des Théâtre des Marionettes Charleville-Mézières 2011, Laswerk and DudaPaiva Company Running time: 1 hour

LONDON PREMIERE

The Shop of Little Horrors Pickled Image in association with The North Wall Sat 26 & Sun 27 Oct, 4.30pm and 8.30pm Mon 28 Oct, 8.30pm £12 / £10 conc Albert Grimlake sits in his cobwebbed shop surrounded by his puppets, each face lovingly crafted by his own hand.

But Grimlake is growing old. Time is running out to find a successor, someone to breathe life into his creations, someone who shares his peculiar passion for puppets… Enter Eric: The Perfect Applicant. He’s young, loves The Muppets and is eager to learn.

Running time: 1 hour, 10 mins

The Puppet Monologues (work in progress) Blind Summit Thur 24 and Fri 25 Oct, 8.30pm £5 all tickets How did a puppet scientist become a celebrity with his own catch-phrase? What was the role of puppets in the banking crisis? How are puppets helping to solve global warming? Blind Summit are currently spending time with their puppet characters listening to their memoirs.

Featuring their trademark “extreme puppetry”, Blind Summit will perform the first of the monologues from a collection currently in development.

“Blind Summit have proved that puppetry doesn’t have to come either with apologies or strings attached.”

Guardian Running time: approx. 20 mins

Pleasance Theatre Carpenter Mews, North Road, N7 9EF Emerging artists in the Pleasance StageSpace:

Thinking It and Fainting Grist to the Mill Fri 25 Oct, 7pm & 9.15pm and Sat 26 Oct, 3pm & 7pm £8 all tickets Everyday tasks - the washing, cooking, cleaning and laundry, take on epic proportions as puppeteer Isobel Smith struggles to ritualize and subvert their readings - liberating them from their hum-drum existence in the spirit of ‘El duende’ evoking something powerful and extraordinary in the process.

A performance that turns everyday mundane tasks into an extraordinary, visual theatrical adventure using object manipulation, puppetry, lighting and shadow.

Developed during a Puppet Centre residency at Nuffield Theatre and supported by Arts Council England.

Running time: approx. 50mins

WORLD PREMIERE

The Wordcatcher Smoking Apples Sun 27 Oct, 3pm & 7pm Mon 28 Oct, 7pm & 9.15pm £8 all tickets Two people meet, nothing extraordinary yet, except…

She can’t speak and he can’t read but through chance, miscommunication and the help of coincidence, two people meeting becomes extraordinary. This is a bizarre tale told through Smoking Apples’ identifiable style of puppetry, physical theatre and original music.

“If you haven’t experienced a Smoking Apples show yet to enlivened your imagination, I suggest you do so as early as you can. It’s wonderful to experience.” London Fringe Review Running time: approx. 50 mins

WORLD PREMIERE Christina the Astonishing Grist to the Mill Tues 29 Oct, 7pm Wed 30 & Thur 31 Oct, 7pm & 9.15pm £8 all tickets A unique collaboration between artist The Baron Gilvan and puppeteer Isobel Smith. Crossing genres of painting, puppetry and animation Christina the Astonishing explores personal psychotic states and heightened worlds of the foolish artist with references to Christina, Patron Saint of Mental Illness.

Developed out of fledgling ideas during Little Angel Theatre’s INCUBATE programme and supported by Arts Council England.

Running time: approx. 50 mins

Pleasance Theatre Carpenter Mews, North Road, N7 9EF Emerging artists in the Pleasance StageSpace:

Killing Roger Sparkle and Dark Fri 1, Sat 2 & Sun 3 Nov, 7pm Sat 2 Nov, 2pm Sun 3 Nov, 3pm £8 “Could you kill someone...? What if they asked you too?”

A genuinely moving yet humorous tale of life, friendship and death. Our young protagonist, Billy takes us on a whirlwind journey through his troubled memories of a decision that will change his life forever. This thought provoking and moving piece is told through Sparkle and Dark’s acclaimed brand of puppetry with a live soundscape.

Originally premiered at Little Angel FIRSTS Festival 2013, and recently seen at Edinburgh Fringe and Bristol Festival of Puppetry.

“Killing Roger is an important piece of theatre”  Broadway Baby “Intensely moving, provocative and inspiring”  One Stop Arts Running time: 1 hour

On Site at the Pleasance Theatre: LONDON PREMIERE

Blue Touched Theatre Fri 25, Mon 28 & Tues 29 Oct, 6.30pm, 8pm & 9.30pm Sat 26 & Sun 27 Oct, 3.30pm, 5.30pm & 8pm £13 / £11 conc Sylvie Dee - eco-activist, self-appointed orphan and party planner for the entire estate - has disappeared. Completely.

Will you help us find her?

Blue is an interactive mystery, combining lyrical new writing, vivid contemporary puppetry and beautiful original music in an evocative new tale of the green in our roots and the blue in our hearts.

This is a promenade piece with only 20 audience members per performance.

“Magical…Fresh and full of images that stay with me even now”  Fringe Review Running time: 1 hour

Rosemary Branch 2 Shepperton Road, London, N1 3DT

Les Hommes Vides Invisible Thread Theatre Sat 26, Sun 27 & Mon 28 Oct, 3pm/6pm/9pm £8 / £7 conc, plus £5 for workshop Invisible Thread (formerly Faulty Optic) return to SUSPENSE with this twenty minute low-tech, charming, eerie and comic performance of slapstick and surreal tabletop puppetry and object theatre. It contains scenes of plank action, eyeless shopping, bouncing puppets, poetry and prizes.

The post-show workshop (only available for 20 audience members) is a hands-on, half-hour exploration of manipulation, characterisation and play with simple table-top puppets.

“Slapstick comedy, existential angst and puppets – all in just 20 minutes. This is surely one of the quirkiest gems of this year’s London International Mime Festival.” The Stage “A compact piece of innovative theatre” One Stop Arts Running time: 20 mins (plus 30 mins workshop)

The Many Lives of Pauline Puckey

LONDON PREMIERE

Silent Tide Tues 29 Oct, Wed 30 & Thur 31 Oct, 6pm / 7.30pm / 9pm £10 / £8 conc Having narrowly escaped a life of pasties (and a husband) Mrs Pauline Puckey wants to make up for lost time: she dons hoop earrings, finds a crystal ball and buys a motorbike! The stories she collects on her adventures are only to be whispered in lonely lanes, scribbled by torchlight under the bed covers of a damp B&B, and confessed in a small dark room above an Islington pub.

Anna Maria Murphy (writing credits include Kneehigh and Little Angel Theatre) Liz Walker (Invisible Thread) and Sarah Wright (puppetry direction/performance credits include Little Angel Theatre, Kneehigh and Young Vic) join forces to bring poems and puppetry to life.

Running time: approx 25 mins

My Mother is a Fish Goody and Storey Fri 1, Sat 2 & Sun 3 Nov, 5pm & 8pm £12 / £10 conc A brother and sister were best of friends. They went fishing with their mother all the time. It was so much fun.

Until her new boyfriend came along.

Now the sister is imprisoned in a sinister monastery, and the brother is all alone. Whatever happened to the good old days? An absurd futuristinspired romp with new music, full of love and loss, colourful puppets on wheels and giant dancing heads.

Mechanical monks seduce wayward mothers, and a young man slowly loses his mind.

Supported by Arts Council England.

Running time: 50 mins

UK PREMIERE

Tristan Bates Theatre At the Actors Centre, 1a Tower Street, London, WC2H 9NP The Fantasist Theatre Témoin Monday 28 Oct to Sat 2 Nov, 7pm £ 12 / £10 conc A seductive stranger opens a fantastical world to a tormented woman. But everything comes at a price... Puppetry and physical theatre collide as Lecoq and LISPA trained Theatre Témoin team up with War Horse’s Robin Guiver to explore the murky depths and glorious heights of bipolar disorder.

“A gripping, imaginative, dark tale ... incredible stagework that will blow you away” Sunday Times “Seriously good” Guardian “Hilarious, beautiful and utterly astonishing”  Edinburgh Guide “Ingenious stagecraft”  Metro Running time: 1 hour

Immigrants!

WORLD PREMIERE

The Great Puppet Horn Tues 29 Oct to Sat 2 Nov, 9.15pm £ 12 / £10 conc In a world ravaged by climate change, the planet’s critically endangered creatures seek refuge in the one place guaranteed to have consistently inoffensive and mediocre weather: Great Britain. Bigger, better and with more puppets than ever The Great Puppet Horn is back at SUSPENSE with another slice of irreverent, satirical shadow-puppetry. As seen on Comedy Central!

“Scathingly funny” Sunday Times

“Must be seen to be believed” Independent

“Savvy satire. These guys are witty, wacky and worth looking out for” Herald Running time: 1 hour

The V&A Cromwell Rd, London, SW7 2RL A range of free and ticketed events taking place across the festival.

Screening: Richard Teschner Lecture Theatre Sun 27 Oct, 4pm (approx 1 hour) Free, drop in Learn more about the inspiring work of puppeteer Richard Teschner through a series of insightful films from the Austrian Theatre Museum. Enjoy clips of Teschner’s engaging work and behind the scenes footage of the museum’s conservation department. Some films are subtitled.

Talk: Puppets from the V&A Collection Lecture Theatre Sun 3 Nov, 2pm (1 hour) Free, drop in Join Senior Curator Cathy Haill to discover more about the V&A’s national puppetry collections.

From marionettes, to Bunraku puppets, to Punch and Judy, find out more about the history and practice of the fascinating world of puppetry.

Screening: An Attic Full of Puppets Lecture theatre Sun 3 Nov, 3pm (1 hour) Free, drop in Join us for a screening of award-winning director Richard Butchins’ documentary about marionettes, memory, melancholy and mirth. The story of Frank Mumford, a 95 year old puppet master, who played to the crowned heads of Europe. Using Frank’s archive and present day footage, we celebrate one of the foremost exponents of this remarkable art form. With an introduction by Richard Butchins.

Image: Frank and Maisie © Frank Mumford

Alice Metta Theatre Sat 2 & Sun 3 Nov, 11am / 1.30pm / 4pm Meet in the Sackler Centre Foyer, Level 1, 15 minutes before the performance.

Tickets must be purchased in advance via the festival box office £12 / £10 conc “What matters it how far we go?”

His scaly friend replied.

There is another shore, you know, upon the other side.

1915. While bombs rain down outside Alice takes refuge in her dusty cellar, rediscovering her childhood amongst old lamp shades, broken toys and motheaten christening gowns. Animated by the spirit of her own son the objects around her come to life, transporting us to a magical world of talking rabbits, mad hatters and savage queens.

Based on Lewis Carroll’s literary classic and the real life Alice Liddell who inspired it, this poignant new play is brought imaginatively to life with Metta’s trademark mix of theatre, puppetry and object manipulation.

Supported by Arts Council England, English Touring Theatre, The Egg & Salisbury Playhouse.

Running time: 1 hour

SUSPENSE Workshops at the Actors Centre 1a Tower Street, London, WC2H 9NP The Actors Centre, as the UK’s leading organisation supporting the professional development of actors, is delighted to provide SUSPENSE with a home for their programme of open access workshops, programmed by Little Angel Theatre. Workshops must be booked in advance via the Festival box office by calling 020 7226 1787 (except Critical Voices - see below).

Professional Opportunities: Puppet Centre presents Critical Voices

Sat 26 Oct, 2-5pm £10

Join Animations Online and Exeunt magazine for a talk and workshop exploring what good visual theatre criticism is. This event is designed to nurture new cultural journalists, especially people who want to write about puppetry. Participants will become eligible for concessionary festival tickets and encouraged to contribute to a festival blog.

Booking is via Puppet Centre – advance booking required.

Find out more and book via www.puppetcentre.org.uk/animations-online

Compagnie Philippe Genty Masterclasses

Wed 30 Oct – 2pm to 6pm Thur 31 Oct – 9.30am to 1.30pm £95 both sessions, £55 one session (£85 / £45 conc) Participants can attend both workshops or just one French Compagnie Philippe Genty is renowned for its unique vision of an oneiric theatre that both expresses and communicates to the inner worlds of our unconscious and our dreams. For over 40 years it has spoken a language that combines theatre with dance, puppetry, music and singing, effortlessly and without pretence. These workshops introduce participants to some of the processes developed by the company, focusing on physical expression and the use of space.

Participation is by application - send CV and cover letter by 10th Oct to workshops@suspensefestival.com stating which workshop/s you want to attend.

For People New to Puppetry: Rod Puppetry and Marionettes Tues 29 Oct, 10am-5pm £55 / £45 conc

A one day course for beginners and people with some puppetry experience, to explore the possibilities of these two forms of puppetry. Run by Ronnie Le Drew, one of the UK’s top puppeteers and a regular at Little Angel Theatre. Ronnie has appeared in film and television roles including Zippy from Rainbow, Sooty and Sweep and Jim Henson’s Labyrinth and Muppet Movies. He has taught at RCSSD and is co-founder of the London School of Puppetry. www.ronnieledrew.com

An Introduction to Puppetry Performance

Sun 27 Oct or Mon 28 Oct, 10am-5pm £55 / £45 conc

This one day crash course for total beginners assists you in discovering the essential skills needed to bring puppets and objects alive with movement and emotion.

An entertaining and comprehensive introduction to the art of the puppeteer, led by Oliver Smart (Folded Feather).

Activities Presented by CROPP (Centre for Research into Objects and Puppets in Performance) www.cropp.org.uk CROPP, in association with SUSPENSE, presents a symposium and two linked workshops. These take place at two different venues Centre for Creative Collaboration, 16 Acton Street, WC1X 9NG Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, Embassy Theatre, Eton Avenue, Swiss Cottage, NW3 3HY It is essential to book in advance via the Festival box office by calling 020 7226 1787

Workshop 1: Woma/en in Puppetry Thur 31 Oct, 10am – 5pm Venue: Centre for Creative Collaboration £40 / £25 conc

Symposium: Woma/en in Puppet Theatre Fri 1 Nov, 10am – 5pm Venue: Centre for Creative Collaboration £20 / £15 conc

An opportunity to explore the practice of a leading international female puppetry/ object theatre practitioner. With particular emphasis on the poetics of materials and the female gaze within puppetry, this workshop is open to practitioners from a diverse range of background and experience.

An opportunity to discuss and investigate the work and practice of women puppeteers. It will look at the construction and performance of female puppets, representations of women/ female figures in puppetry and object theatre, the history of women’s puppetry and related material about female-ness in the puppet world. The day will comprise of papers, provocations, screenings, discussions and short performances, and will take a playful and investigative approach to charting this under-explored cultural landscape.

This workshop is by application only.

Send your CV and cover letter to diana. damian@cssd.ac.uk by 14th Oct.

Workshop 2: Between Silence and Sound Sat 2 Nov, 10am to 1pm Venue: Royal Central School of Speech and Drama Free, advance booking advised Led by Joanna Parker, this workshop will examine the use of group spatial improvisation, looking at the relationship between silence and sound. We would like to particularly invite female participants and performers, but all welcome. Joanna Parker is an international designer whose research interests include improvisational strategies for scenography and theatre architecture and its interface with the scenographic object and digital image. This workshop is open to all, book via the festival box office.

Fri 25th Oct

Sat 26th

Sun 27th

Little Angel Theatre

Macbeth 7.30pm

Macbeth 3.30pm & 7.30pm

Macbeth 3.30pm & 7.30pm

Battersea Arts Centre

My Name is Rifnur (work in progress) 9pm

My Name is Rifnur (work in progress) 9pm

Jacksons Lane

Angus: Weaver of Grass Angus: Weaver of Grass 8pm 2pm & 8pm

King's Head Theatre

Boris & Sergey's Astonishing Freakatorium 10.30pm

Boris & Sergey's Astonishing Freakatorium 10.30pm

Boris & Sergey's Astonishing Freakatorium 10.30pm

All He Fears 7.30pm

All He Fears 3.00pm

New Diorama Theatre Puppet Theatre Barge Pleasance Theatre (main space)

The Puppet Monologues The Shop of Little Horrors (work in progress) 4.30pm & 8.30pm 8.30pm

The Shop of Little Horrors 4.30pm & 8.30pm

Pleasance Theatre StageSpace

Thinking It & Fainting 7pm & 9.15pm

Thinking It & Fainting 3pm & 7pm

The Wordcatcher 3pm & 7pm

Pleasance Theatre (on site)

Blue 6.30pm, 8pm & 9.30pm

Blue 3.30pm, 5.30pm & 8pm

Blue 3.30pm, 5.30pm & 8pm

Les Hommes Vides 3pm, 6pm & 9pm

Les Hommes Vides 3pm, 6pm & 9pm

Rosemary Branch Tristan Bates Theatre The V & A The Actors Centre Centre for Creative Collaboration Royal Central School of Speech and Drama

Richard Teschner film screening 4pm Critical Voices 2-5pm

Intro to Puppetry workshop 10-5pm

Mon 28th

Tues 29th

Macbeth 7.30pm

Macbeth 7.30pm

The Engineer's Thumb 7.30pm

The Engineer's Thumb 7.30pm

All He Fears 7.30pm

All He Fears 7.30pm

The Shop of Little Horrors 8.30pm

The Wordcatcher 7pm & 9.15pm

Christina the Astonishing 7pm

Blue 6.30pm, 8pm & 9.30pm

Blue 6.30pm, 8pm & 9.30pm

Les Hommes Vides 3pm, 6pm & 9pm

The Many Lives of Paline Puckey 6pm, 7.30pm & 9pm

The Fantasist 7pm

The Fantasist 7pm / Immigrants! 9.15pm

Intro to Puppetry workshop 10-5pm

Rod and Maroinette workshop 10am - 5pm

Little Angel Theatre

Wed 30th

Thurs 31st

Fri 1st Nov

Macbeth 7.30pm

British UNIMA lecture 7.30pm

Dustpan Odyssey 8pm

For Their Own Good 8pm

For Their Own Good 8pm

For Their Own Good 8pm

Battersea Arts Centre Jacksons Lane

King's Head Theatre

Boris & Sergey's Astonishing Freakatorium 10.30pm

New Diorama Theatre

The Engineer's Thumb 7.30pm

Rua Aire 7.30pm

Rua Aire 7.30pm

Puppet Theatre Barge

All He Fears 7.30pm

All He Fears 7.30pm

All He Fears 7.30pm

Pleasance Theatre (main space) Pleasance Theatre StageSpace

Bastard!

8.30pm

Christina the Astonishing 7pm & 9.15pm

Christina the Astonishing 7pm & 9.15pm

Kiling Roger 7pm

Rosemary Branch

The Many Lives of Paline Puckey 6pm, 7.30pm & 9pm

The Many Lives of Paline Puckey 6pm, 7.30pm & 9pm

My Mother is a Fish 5pm & 8pm

Tristan Bates Theatre

The Fantasist 7pm / Immigrants! 9.15pm

The Fantasist 7pm / Immigrants! 9.15pm

The Fantasist 7pm / Immigrants! 9.15pm

Compagnie Philippe Genty Masterclass 2pm - 6pm

Compagnie Philippe Genty Masterclass 9.30am - 1.30pm

Pleasance Theatre (on site)

The V & A The Actors Centre Centre for Creative Collaboration Royal Central School of Speech and Drama

Woma/en in Puppetry workshop 10am-5pm

Woma/en in Puppetry symposium 10am-5pm

Sat 2nd

Sun 3rd

Dustpan Odyssey 4.30pm & 8pm

Dustpan Odyssey 1pm & 4.30pm

For Their Own Good 8pm

Puppet Grinder Cabaret 8pm

Boris & Sergey's Astonishing Freakatorium 10.30pm

Rua Aire 4.30pm & 7.30pm All He Fears 7.30pm

All He Fears 3.00pm

Bastard!

3.30pm & 8.30pm

Killing Roger 2pm & 7pm

Killing Roger 3pm & 7pm

My Mother is a Fish 5pm & 8pm

My Mother is a Fish 5pm & 8pm

The Fantasist 7pm / Immigrants! 9.15pm Alice 11am, 1.30pm, 4pm

Between Silence and Sound workshop 10am-1pm

Alice 11am, 1.30pm, 4pm / Lecture 2pm / An Attic Full of Puppets screening 3pm

Getting to the venues To plan your journey go to www.tfl.gov.uk

highbury & islington

little angel theatre

pentonville road

street

littleangeltheatre.com

dagmar passage

er lavend

ill

hill

Elspeth R

h n’s

oh st j

BAC

road

road

clapham junction

Battersea Arts Centre

latchmere

falcon

clapham junction

14 Dagmar Passage, London N1 2DN 020 7226 1787 Tube: Angel (10 mins walk), Highbury and Islington (10 mins walk) Train: Essex Road (7 mins walk), Highbury and Islington (10 mins walk) Bus: 4, 19, 30, 43, 236a (Upper Street) and 38, 56, 73, 341 (Essex Road)

cross street

upper es se xr oa d angel

Little Angel Theatre

Lavender Hill, Battersea, SW11 5TN 020 7223 2223 Tube: Clapham Common or Stockwell (both 15 mins by 345 bus Train: Clapham Junction (10 mins walk) - exit via shopping centre and turn left out of station, up Lavender Hill Bus: 345, 77, 87, 156, G1

bac.org.uk

d

fitzjohn’s ave

d

az

oa

r ley ch

fin

irh

fa

finchley road

central school of speech & drama

el s en

rd

ga

ad

ro

bel

siz

ad e ro

adelaide road

ue en

south hampstead

nue

eton ave

av

swiss cottage

Central School of Speech & Drama

Embassy Theatre, Eton Avenue, London NW3 3HY Tube: Swiss Cottage exit 2 (1 min walk), Finchley Road (8 mins walk).

Train: Finchley Road & Frognal (10 mins walk).

Bus: 13, 187, 268, C11, 31, 46, 82, 113

cssd.ac.uk

16 Acton Street, WC1X 9NG

kings cross

ton eus

d roa

gray’s

creative-collaboration.net

oad ville r pento kin gs cr os sr oa centre for d creative collaboration treet swinton s

n rise westo

Tube: King’s Cross Bus: 17, 45, and 46 drop off on Gray’s Inn Road near the end of Acton Street

caledonian road

Centre for Creative Collaboration

ad

inn ro

shepherd’s hill

ll ro

highgate

ad

Tube: Highgate (1 min walk) Bus: 134, 43, 263

hi well mus

Jacksons Lane

269a Archway Road, London N6 5AA 020 8341 4421

eet acton str

archway road (a1) jackson’s lane

d woo

th sou

jacksonslane.org.uk

jacksons lane

lane

hillside gardens

King’s Head Theatre

115 Upper Street, Islington, N1 1QN 0207 478 0160

es

se xr oa

d

New Diorama Theatre

lon

gfo

newdiorama.com

os

na

bu rgh

st

15 - 16 Triton Street, Regents Place, London, NW1 3BF 0207 383 9034 The New Diorama Theatre is in walking distance from: Tube: Great Portland St, Warren St), Euston Square (all 3 mins walk), Euston, Regent’s Park (both 5 mins walk), Kings Cross (10 mins walk) Bus: 18, 27, 30, 88, 205, 453, C2, N18 Train: Kings Cross St Pancras (10 mins walk), Euston (5 mins walk)

cross street

kingsheadtheatre.com

street

upper

angel

Great portland st

hga

te a ve

highbury & islington

king’s head theatre pentonville road

Tube: Angel (10 mins walk), Highbury and Islington (10 mins walk) Bus: 18, 27, 30, 88, 205, 453, C2, N18 Train: Essex Road (7 mins walk), Highbury and Islington (10 min walk)

hig

rd s

t

new diorama theatre

triton st

euston rd

Pleasance Theatre

camden road

Carpenter Mews, North Road, London N7 9EF 020 7609 1800

the pleasance north road

ay york w

pleasance.co.uk/islington

Puppet Theatre Barge

ns

wa

rw

Tube: Warwick Avenue (5 mins walk) Train: Paddington (15 mins walk) – take footbridge at the end of platform 1 or 8, follow signs to “Paddington Central” along canal.

Bus: 6, 8, 16, 18, 46 to Warwick Avenue.

Water bus: 45 mins from Camden Lock Market.

blo

t road

marke

gd

on

t clif

Blomfield Road, Little Venice, London W9 2PF 020 7249 6876

caledonian road

caled onian road

Tube: Caledonian Road (5 mins walk) Train: Caledonian Road & Barnsbury (15 mins walk or take bus) Bus: 259, 17, 91, 274, 393, N91

mf

ield

puppetbarge.com

ick

warwick avenue

av

e

ld

fie

om

bl

rd a

d ai

rd

m

e

av

puppet theatre barge

sh

ep

new

pe

rto

n

ad

th r

nor

ro

a ro

oad

ty d

e nu ave

s

u

earl

ham

st

pp er s t ma t rtin’s la ne

road

the actors centre & tristan bates theatre

leicester square t ourn s cranb

rdns

shorts g

cer mer

fte ha

er s tow

ury sb

cross

tristanbatestheatre.co.uk actorscentre.co.uk

the rosemary branch

old street

g charin

1a Tower Street, London, WC2H 9NP 020 7240 6283 Tube: Leicester Square or Tottenham Court Road (5 mins walk), Covent Garden or Piccadilly Circus (10 mins walk) Bus: 24, 29 and 176 stop on Charing Cross Road. 14, 19 and 38 stop on Shaftesbury Avenue.then 10 mins walk

t

gs

rin

ba

rosemarybranch.co.uk

The Actors Centre & Tristan Bates Theatre

oad ate r

road

road

thg

essex

essex

ci

Tube: Old Street, Highbury and Islington or Angel (15 mins walk or take bus) Train: Essex Road (10 mins walk) Bus: 76, 141 & 21 to Baring St, 271 to New North Rd, 38, 56, 73, 171A to Essex Rd/New North Rd then 10 mins walk.

highbury & islington

sou

Rosemary Branch

2 Shepperton Road, London N1 3DT 020 7704 6665

st

on st en shelt t gard coven e r ac long garric k St

The V&A

the V&A

ll rd cromwe

pl

t

loe s thur South Kensington

are squ

th

rloe thu

vam.ac.uk

e

lo ur

a4

rd

Tube: South Kensington (5 mins walk), Knightsbridge (10 mins walk) Bus: C1, 14, 74, 414

exhibition

Cromwell Rd, London SW7 2RL 020 7942 2000

pelham st

Image: Bastard! by DudaPaiva Company

Supporters, thanks and contact details: SUSPENSE has been supported by: Arts Council England Islington Council Paul Hamlyn Foundation SUSPENSE would like to thank the members of the Steering Committee, the staff at all the venue partners, the staff and Board of Little Angel Theatre, and all the hundreds of volunteers who have given their time to this festival.

SUSPENSE is produced by Little Angel Theatre 14 Dagmar Passage, London N1 2DN 020 7226 1787 / www.littleangeltheatre.com The next SUSPENSE will take place in 2015.

To keep up to date with our activities join our mailing list at www.suspensefestival.com

Vat Registration No: 233 8671 52 Registered Charity No: 232488 Company No: 668339 All details are correct at time of going to press.

We reserve the right to change the programme and artists if circumstances dictate.

Please note that events may be filmed and photographed for documentary and publicity purposes.

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