Now in its second year, Alchymy Festival is designed to showcase the skills of early-career theatre-makers. The programme presents high-quality theatre alongside a wide range of industry events. Many of the shows are rehearsed in-house at The North Wall prior to the festival. Altogether, twelve new plays will premiere at the festival this year alongside masterclasses and panel discussions. Most writers, directors and actors involved in the festival were trained at The North Wall on the organisation’s renowned ArtsLab programme.
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The shows include three newly commissioned monologues written by Luke Barnes, Sonya Hale and by Ian Charleson Award-winning actor Ashley Zhangazha. The line-up also includes the world premiere of climate-change play Rehearsing for Planet B by Forward Arena Theatre Company, a new one-woman show about the nature of shame by Marika McKennell (ITCH) and I Promise Tomorrow I’ll Forget Where I Buried It, a monologue by Hal Coase. The North Wall’s Director in Residence, Emily Collins, will direct Cheer Up Slug by Tamsin Daisy Rees. Ria Parry, Co-Director of The North Wall, will direct a reading of E8 by Marika McKennell, set in a Pupil Referral Unit in Dalston. The festival will include the Catalyst showcase, part of The North Wall’s flagship ArtsLab programme for emerging writers and directors.
The industry events feature appearances from significant names in the world of British theatre, including Artistic Director of the Gate Theatre, Ellen McDougall, and former Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Scotland, Laurie Sansom. Actor Kayode Ewumi (Are You Being Served, BBC3’s #HoodDocumentary) will return to The North Wall to hold an in-conversation event with new Co-Directors, John Hoggarth and Ria Parry. Among the subjects tackled will be the process of producing and fundraising for new plays, what the future of theatre might look like, and issues of inequality and inaccessibility in the theatre industry.
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Ria Parry and John Hoggarth, Co-Directors of The North Wall, said today “We are thrilled to be welcoming so many exciting artists to The North Wall. The Alchymy Festival is a highlight of our ongoing commitment to new work and the expansion of our artist development programme, ArtsLab. Highlights include new monologues by Ashley Zhanghaza, Sonya Hale and Luke Barnes, a new play directed by our first ever Director-in-Residence Emily Collins, and In Conversation events with Laurie Sansom, Ellen McDougall and ArtsLab alumnus Kayode Ewumi. The three day festival offers an opportunity to both inspire and be inspired by a superb group of emerging and established artists.”
Ellie Keel, Festival Producer, said “The first Alchymy Festival in 2017 showcased the amazing talent of the writers, actors and directors who have worked with the organisation over the years. This year, we’ve increased the number of shows and events to present an even more exciting and varied programme for our audiences. It is thrilling to be presenting the premiere of twelve new shows in one weekend - come along to see the very first performances of some incredible new plays.”
The full festival programme can be found at: https://www.thenorthwall.com/alchymy-festival/
