(Photos by Ali Wright)
New production for Opera Holland Park - August 2024
Assistant Director to Martin Lloyd-Evans
Pagliacci
Director - Martin Lloyd-Evans
Conductor - Francesco Cilluffo
Fight/Intimacy director - Haruka Kuroda
Assistant Director - Edwina Strobl
Designer - Bridget Kimak
Lighting designer - Mark Jonathan
Wigs, hair and make-up designer - Alice Hardy
Cast includes
Alison Langer,David Butt Philip, Harry Thatcher, Naomi Kilby, Robert Hayward, Zwakele Tshabalala, @ohpchorus
Stage management
Sami Wood, Beth Hoare-Barnes,Juliet Hague, Kate Stockwell, Qian Yan Tan
(Photos by Craig Fuller)
New adaptation and production for Gothic Opera, October 2022
“direction by Edwina Strobl…demonstrating a strong sense of pace and purpose.” Opera magazine (January 2023)
“multiple realms…are translated visually by Director Edwina Strobl. The wizard Krakamiche becomes a mad scientist working in his fluorescent low-tech laboratory, his daughter a manga schoolgirl, prince Lelio a camper boy-scout and the Queen of Elves a benevolent and autumnal witch, surrounded by her elves in beanies and climbing harnesses. This retro style, 1970-1980's, teeming with ideas and sparkling with life, conjures up Back to the future or Dr. Weetos. This time-based mirroring game allows to bring up some very contemporary themes already present in the piece: the return to nature, collective thought, a wish to pull away from the consumer's' society... always done with intelligence and subtlety.” (Translated from French) Lyrik magazine https://lyrik.fr
Le dernier Sorcier by Pauline Viardot, libretto by Ivan Turgenev
Conductor - Juliane Gallant
Director and original dialogue - Edwina Strobl
Assistant conductor/repetiteur - Francesca Lauri
Set and Costume Designer - Anna Kelsey
Costume Supervisor - Megan Rarity
Lighting Designer - Gabriel Finn
Krakamiche - Phil Wilcox
Stella - Charlotte Osborn
Lelio - Anna McLachlan
Perlimpinpin - Lars Fischer
Queen of the Elves - Béatrice de Larragoïti
Leech - Isabelle Atkinson
Wolf - Madeleine Todd
Spider - Alexandra Dinwiddie
Worm - Eleanor Kemp
Production Manager - Sean Laing
Stage Manager - Marie-Laure Hay
Deputy Stage Manager - Florian Lim
Production Assistant - Tilly Penn
Surtitles - Clémence Gleizes
Arranger: Le dernier sorcier - Nicholas Žekulin
Orchestra:
Violin 1 - James Widden
Violin 2 - Xandrija Edwins
Viola - Noemi Foschi
Cello - Alison Holford
Percussion - William Riby
Clarinet - Joy Boole
Piano - Francesca Lauri
(Photos by Daniel Holden)
New production performed at Pleasance Courtyard as part of Edinburgh Festival Fringe, August 2023.
MUSIC by Hangdog
Written and performed by Hangdog: Jacob Lovick and Jack Toop
Directed by Edwina Strobl
Designed by Fern Hawkins
Lighting and Sound Design by Han Styles
Original music by Jack Toop
(Photos by Inés Manai)
New adaptation and production for Schauspielhaus Zürich - Regiehospitantin/2nd Assistant Director
Carmen
By Sophia Al-Maria and Andrew Yee based on the opera by George Bizet.
Directed by Wu Tsang with Moved by the Motion
Conducted by Zoi Tsokanou and Johnathan Lakeland
Featuring Katia Ledoux Asude Karayavuz, Ryan Capozzo, Schauspiel Zurich Ensemble cast
Costume designer - Kyle Luu
Set designer - Nicole Hoesli, Nina Mader
Choreographer - Josh Johnson
Dramaturge -Helena Eckert
Sound Design - Asma Maroof
Répétiteur - Jonathan Palmer Lakeland
Hair and Makeup by Sara Mathiasson
Orchestra - Collegium Novum Zurich
(Photos by Ana Nadais)
Various scenes for assessment of students at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, June 2024
Scenes from Die Zauberflöte, Carmen, L’elisir d’amore, Cosi fan tutte, Tender Land, Le nozze di Figaro, Rape of Lucretia and Cenerentola.
Direction: Edwina Strobl
Musical direction: Cameron Burns
Performers: Roisin Linehan, Elizabeth Clarence, Fanzhuo Wei, Tsz Ping Lo, William Semple, Axin He, Nina Vinther, Parker Millspaugh, Virginia Lafean, Xue Gao, Tianlong Ding.
(Photos by Rachel M @rachelm_photography)
Various scenes for assessment of students at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, June 2023.
Scenes from Poppea, L’elisir d’amore, Don Giovanni, Don Pasquale, Cosi fan tutte, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hänsel und Gretel, Pelléas et Mélisande , Fidelio, Arabella, Werther, Alcina, A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Direction: Edwina Strobl
Musical direction: Cameron Burns
Performers: Aisling McCarthy, Ines Mayhew-Begg, Rachel Barnard, Aline Giaux, James McIntyre, Rachel McLean, Claire Lumsden, Jessica Harper, James McIntyre, Ryan Garnham, Will Costello, Marie Tiziri Cayeux, Hanna de Bruin, Alfie Mitchell, Gussie Knopov
(Photos by Oli Sones)
New play performed at Camden People’s Theatre, June 2023
Cheesy Cheesy Catchy Mousey by Mark Daniels
Directed by Edwina Strobl
Starring Helder Fernandes, Nkhanise Phiri, Anya Sayadian, Jacob Lovick, Ben Keenan
Produced by Hannah Turk and Mark Daniels
Stage manager Alex Garfath
(Photo by Sandra Then)
New Production 2023 - Regiehospitantin/assistant to Daniel Kramer
Nixon in China by John Adams and Alice Goodman. New production directed by Daniel Kramer for Staatsoper Hannover, June 2023
MUSIKALISCHE LEITUNG Daniel Carter
INSZENIERUNG Daniel Kramer
BÜHNE Lizzie Clachan
KOSTÜME Esther Bialas
CHOREOGRAFIE Xenia Wiest
LICHT Elana Siberski
SOUNDDESIGN Maria Anufriev / Anush Grigoryan
CHOR Lorenzo Da Rio
DRAMATURGIE Regine Palmai
XCHANGE Matthias Brandt
RICHARD NIXON Mark Stone
PAT NIXON Eliza Boom
MAO TSE-TUNG Daniel Norman
CHIANG CH’ING (MADAME MAO TSE-TUNG) Mercedes Arcuri
CHOU EN-LAI Darwin Prakash
HENRY KISSINGER Michael Kupfer-Radecky / Joshua Bloom
NANCY T’ANG (1. SEKRETÄRIN MAOS) Beatriz Miranda 2.
SEKRETÄRIN MAOS Freya Müller 3.
SEKRETÄRIN MAOS Milana Butaeva
TÄNZER:INNEN Ginevra Ferraris, Neve Arbel, Laura Nicole Viganò, Ida Kallanvaara, Luigi Sardone, Filippo Ferrari
Chor der Staatsoper Hannover, Statisterie der Staatsoper Hannover, Bewegungschor der Staatsoper Hannover, Niedersächsisches Staatsorchester Hannover
(Photos by Lidia Cristafulli)
New Production 2022 - Assistant director to Seb Harcombe
Candide by Leonard Bernstein for Blackheath Halls Opera, September 2022
Director - Seb Harcombe
Musical Director - Cristopher Stark
Movement Director - Jasmine Ricketts
Assistant Director - Edwina Strobl
Designer - Elliott Squire
Lighting Designer - Tracey Gibbs
Nick Pritchard as Candide
Frederick Long as Dr Pangloss
Ellie Neate as Cunégonde
Sarah Pring as the Old Lady
James Liu as the Governor
Matthew Kellett as Maximilian
Collaborating director to audiodrama mini series, 2021
MAKE ME: A Miniseries About Identity
Listen on Spotify
In a digital world where we hang on to every label, celebrated or vilified, how do you construct, negotiate or realise your own identity?
Gender. Race. Religion. Sexuality. Mental health. Physical ability. We can both wear labels proudly and have them forced upon us.
Identity is more than label – it’s experience. Memory. Inheritance.
MAKE ME is a new audiodrama mini-series made of six self-contained episodes by six amazing writers, looking at the intersection between what defines you and how others define you.
The series was made entirely remotely by artists based in different places all over the globe who came together online over 2020 and 2021. It’s available now on Spotify.
Series creator, producer and dramaturg: Hayley Ricketson @whatrickowrote
Series sound design and editing: Oliver Schulz
The stories…(more information here.)
Episode 1: Minority Fetish
Blue-sky thinking just got a whole lot more colourful… or has it?
A gay man, a black woman and a Sikh man are called to a meeting with HR to talk about diversity – a conversation to move the company forward and tick all the right boxes. But what happens when Freddy doesn’t fit inside his neat minority box?
Will this meeting of minds actually lead to frank conversations and positive progress, or just tick enough boxes to pass the diversity test?
By Mark Daniels @MarkDaniels55
Directed by Edwina Strobl @estroblina
Cast: all characters voiced by Christian Andrews
Sound design and editing: Beth Duke
Episode 3: MEAT
‘Memories demand attention because memories have teeth’ – Viola Davis
Girl. Woman. Wolf. Superhero. Predator. Prey.
MEAT is an electrifying roar of fury, a rallying cry of protest and empowerment, a unifying celebration of strength, an adventure packed with heroism and heart.
By Elle Dillon-Reams @Elle_D_Reams
Directed by Edwina Strobl @estroblina
Cast: Jack/Narrator/Wolf: Elle Dillon-Reams; Youngest girl: Zazie Hayhurst
Sound design and editing: Porsha Present and Emer Dineen
(Photos by Oli Sones)
New Play premiered at Camden Fringe and then toured across the UK in November 2021.
Coronavirus: a Great British Farce by Mark Daniels
Directed by Edwina Strobl
Starring Kathryn Haywood and Edward Bartram
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ’this intelligent play might just be the catharsis we all need…the joy of the play is what the director Edwina Strobl has done with it and the excellent cast.’ - London Pub Theatres
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️‘this piece offers some much-needed healing.’ - A Younger Theatre
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ’intelligently involved some of the most bizarre moments during the pandemic, ones that many of us would have gone through.’ - Theatre News
A new comedy performed at Camden Fringe 2021 at Hen and Chickens Theatre, 2nd-4th August.
Joe went a little bit mad during lockdown – just like you did – and it’s hilariously cathartic to watch. This smash-hit Camden Fringe show is inspired by the writer’s ridiculous lockdown diaries – and it’s the best way to laugh away the trauma of the past 18 months.
Joe’s stuck in a tiny flat trying to make sense of the pandemic. One day, whilst watching a government briefing on TV, he decides to answer back. This sets off a surreal conversation with... Boris? Or maybe it’s his friend on Facebook? Or... maybe it’s his fridge. All Joe knows is, he definitely doesn’t know.
Brought to you by writer-director team Mark Daniels and Edwina Strobl, this Offie-nominated and winner of Shakespeare In Italy’s 2021 playwriting competition, this dark satirical comedy offers a unique take on the British response to the pandemic. The play’s two actors (rising stars Kathryn Haywood and Edward Bartram) take you on a high-energy satirical journey from panic buying to Jackie Weaver via Matt Hancock, with an unhealthy dose of British gusto thrown in. It’s a relatable purging of the strange times we’ve been living through. It’s absurd laugh-out-loud comedy at its best and it’s definitely not one to be missed! Brought to you in partnership with mental health charity, Campaign to End Loneliness.
(Images and poster design by Oli Sones)
New devised work, made with the company while in residence at Above the Stag, for Contact Festival June/July 2021. Testing the boundaries of form, this work combined music, drama and video.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ‘ Solely performed by non-binary actors, it is a powerful piece that gives me goosebumps – and not only once…funny, emotional, and trailblazing piece about the search for gender identity that contemplates the question of who you are to yourself.’ - A Younger Theatre
A Younger TheatreCreated by Edwina Strobl, with Mais Robinson, Freddie Love and Mark Daniels
Welcome to Min’s performance anxiety dream. A flautist in training at a music college, Min’s final examined concert is looming terrifyingly in the very near future. This concert will be one of the first times they will present themself in an official way, as they want to be seen: as a non-binary adult, with their chosen name - Min. They will be playing a piece from The Magic Flute, which reminds them of their childhood and of their late father, who would play an animated version to them in times of worry.
But they haven’t invited their mother yet because she often misgenders them and calls them by their deadname. Should they invite her or should they just move on and avoid the pain it causes, as their best friend and housemate Patty keeps encouraging them to do? Is it asking too much to feel like their full self and keep their only remaining parent in their life as well? Can they regain resolve in being who they are, what their purpose is and find a way to bridge the gap between them and the rest of the world?
Mozart’s The Magic Flute is a fairytale set in a magical, supernatural world like so many other classic stories we know. It is underpinned by a purposefully binary philosophy, represented by the opposing sides of male/female, reason/emotion, good/evil. That was 1791 for you. Now in 2021, binary understandings of the world feel increasingly limited and restrictive. But how far have our stories actually come? How much further is there to go beyond the black and white, to bring nuance and colour to how we see the world and ourselves?
We started our short devising process for Contact Festival 2 weeks ago with a vague blueprint, many, many questions and the desire to stage a mini revolution by liberating the stories we love from the conservative restraints that their narratives are held captive within. We have found our way to the answers together, through dreams, sketches, improvisation and disco dancing. We repeat: THIS IS NOT THE MAGIC FLUTE. ‘The Magic Flute or the stories they tell’ is one person’s journey to find themself beyond the binary by recognising the truth of their craft - the art of music and storytelling.
Stories of all genres and forms (but preferably live performance please), shape us and inhabit our minds. They help us discover things we didn’t know existed inside ourselves and find the language for things that are invisible otherwise. Obsession with a story can lead you into stormy and muddled territory, but perhaps if you reimagine yourself into it then it can help you make sense of yourself. Let’s celebrate storys' power.
Creative Team:
Edwina Strobl - Creator, Director, Video Design
Mais Robinson - Creator, Performer
Freddie Love - Creator, Performer
Mark Daniels - Creator, Dramaturg
Special Thanks
Thank you to the sensational Matthew Baldwin for inviting us, encouraging us, inspiring us and eating all the jammie dodgers. Many thank you’s to Billy Rosenfield for his calm and insightful guidance in our whirlwind devising process. Thank you to the tech team at Above The Stag for their wizardry and the rest of the team for welcoming us as part of the Festival.
Thank you to Georgia Cooke for her words about what it is to be a flautist and performance of extracts from The Magic Flute that are woven throughout the show.
Thank you to Katinka Deecke at the Schauspielhaus Zürich for organising permission from Carolin Emcke and Ms. Vaginal Davis to use extracts from their hugely inspiring lockdown conversation ‘Tender Talk’ in the show.
Thank you to Oli Sones for photography, video, technical support and general support.
New Play 2017-18
By Jaz Blackwell-Pal
When Elliott discovers her ex-boyfriend Robin has started to transition into a woman her world turns upside down. With the help of her hero and spirit guide, Dolly Parton, she examines her memories of the man she loved – re-imagining what it means to be a woman, and what it means to be in love.
"I guess I was relying on the memories. But they’re not safe anymore."
“excellent concoction of theatrical elements...Furnishing audiences with lots to laugh over and think about, this is a fervently amusing and tenderly poignant play.” ★★★★LONDONTHEATRE1
Arts Council England National Lottery Funded, nominated for the 2017 Reviews Hub Brighton Fringe Beyond the Fringe award, Flugelman Productions presents Jaswinder Blackwell-Pal’s touching new play.
In 2018 we performed the play for a week as part of the fabulous VAULT Festival 2018 in the Cavern at the Vaults. In 2017 The Poetry We Make was premiered at the Marlborough Theatre Brighton, part of Brighton Fringe 2017, for which we were shortlisted for The Reviews Hub 'Beyond The Fringe' Award. In June and July 2017 we performed sell-out shows in London at The Rosemary Branch Theatre, RADA Festival, The Old Red Lion Theatre and Library club, Covent Garden.
“The Poetry We Make shows a timely reality, made even more significant by Harris being himself a transgender actor…truly inspiring...compelling theatrical piece"
“The performer’s bring such a honest and heartfelt approach to the characters, letting us not only relate but also question ourselves in their situations.”
“A culturally significant piece of theatre.”
“Edwina Strobl’s production has warmth and there’s an endearing performance from Mia Hall as Dolly Parton”
Cast: Elena Voce, Elijah Harris, Mia Hall, Sam Thorpe-Spinks
Writer: Jaswinder Blackwell-Pal
Director: Edwina Strobl
Dramaturg: Lucinda Dale
Producers: Heather Ralph, Katherine Rigg
Designer: Alexandra Kapsala Greenwood
Lighting Designer: Jess Bernberg
Sound Designer: Davide Vox
Music Director: Ella Bellsz
Movement Director: Carissa Rickeard
(Photos by Oli Sones)
New Play 2020 (Run out short due to Covid-19); Developed 2018
By Mark Daniels
*** As our run was cut short we very quickly gathered all the recording devices we could find and filmed the final show. You can now watch the show anytime from the comfort of your home - and if you’re able to, donate to the go fund me which goes toward the cast, crew and company. Here’s the link you need, hope you enjoy! - N89 ***
N89 is a semi-immersive theatre experience, set on London night bus route.
“It feels like we have all been there on that bus...credit to the director (Strobl) for the amazingly engaging pace, smooth blocking and execution” ★★★★ Theatre-News
“Woven together with some fine direction from Edwina Strobl.” ★★★ TimeOut
The play deals with the issues that affect modern Londoners: race, gentrification, economic adversity, loneliness and what it means to be a Londoner. But… fear not, this isn’t a four-hour analysis of how awful London is.
It’s a 60-minute comedy full of classic drunken night bus characters we all recognise and may have been ourselves at times.
There’s the smooching couple clutching fried chicken; the aggressive partygoers on their way home from the club looking for a fight; the mother with a crying baby; the lonely girl with a bottle of wine in her bag; the suited professional on the way home from work drinks and the guy who REALLY overshares whilst talking too loudly on his phone.
The production was remounted by Matchstick Theatre Company in 2020. The first showing of the play was staged at the Matchstick Piehouse in 2018.
Starring Grace Boyle, Bradley Carpenter, Aneirin George, Ocean Harris, Aaron Peters and Natasha Vasandani
Sound design by Robin Cunningham
Video design by Oli Sones
Produced by MJ Ashton, Theo Cowan, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Adam Gerrett and Dom Spillane
Video edited by Oli Sones
We want to bring N89 to more audiences across London and beyond. To read the script you can contact us here: contact@flugelman.com
(Photographs: (c) ROH / Tristram Kenton)
New Production 2020 - Assistant Director to Anthony McDonald
By Samual Barber
Directed by Anthony McDonald
For The Royal Opera House, London, 4/4 programme curated by Ollie Mears
New Production 2017-18
by Daniel Keene
presented by Flugelman Productions
“Boxman is an utterly riveting monologue... a profound meditation on the meaning of home...This is my pick of the Fringe by a country mile. If I could give it six stars, I would.” ★★★★★ BroadwayBaby
There are more than 60 million displaced people on our planet... people who have no home.
Ringo is one of them. He is a survivor, a child soldier displaced from his homeland, sheltering in a cardboard box in an inner city park. He lives in plain sight but is invisible to the city around him. But inside his makeshift ‘home’, Ringo lives a life rich with stories and songs of a childhood far away, a family tragically lost and the complicated promise of a new beginning.
‘Boxman’ uses storytelling, comedy and tears to challenge our understanding the idea of home in a way that responds to the crisis of displacement that the world faces, and celebrates the resilience of people who despite trauma must reframe their own sense of belonging.
Performed at The Other Place, Brighton Fringe, Blue Elephant Theatre - London, Exeter Phoenix- Exeter, The Other Place- Ventnor Fringe
The Team
Reice Weathers - Performer (Ringo)
Edwina Strobl - Director, Producer
Heather Ralph - Producer
Beth Duke - Sound Designer
Jo Wright - Set Designer
(Images by Oli Sones)
New Play 2019
By Mark Daniels
Where people come to grow some balls.
“a powerful commentary on toxic masculinity in modern society”
★★★★ The Spy in the Stalls
★★★★ Everything Theatre
Matchstick Piehouse proudly presents our second collaboration with Director-Writer team Edwina Strobl and Mark Daniels. This otherworldly dark comedy was part of Matchstick Theatre’s Spring Season showcasing emerging London playwrights in their innovative new performance space in Deptford/New Cross.
Welcome to The Institute of Nuts, a crazy school-cum-retreat-cum-prison where people’s names are letters and their reasons for being there are... well... mysterious. Here, E and M run the show and O, P and B do whatever they’re told. Until a rebellion begins.
B arrives for his first day, ready to learn how to be a success in the wider world. Gradually things go from funny to farcical, and the skills he learns, such as strength and bravery, go from important and desirable to ridiculous and even threatening. The students protest and discover what The Institute is really all about.
“I am strong. I am powerful. I am the best.”
This darkly comic play tackles toxic masculinity and whether even the most woke amongst us are calling it out in the best way. It questions our current narratives and societal setups and the unnecessary pressures placed on both men and women by the patriarchy. The fact that The Institute is really a training ground for masculinity won’t be revealed to the audience until the latter part of the play.
Matchstick Theatre have been producing new writing across London’s fringe scene since 2015. In July 2018, we created a full-time home, Matchstick Piehouse, a bar/restaurant and multi-use arts space in a converted railway arch. Off the back of their sell-out immersive comedy set on a London night bus N89, Strobl and Daniels (a South East Londoner himself) are two of our favourite up-and-coming innovative theatremakers.
Photos by Oli Sones
Written and produced during lockdown in 2020.
How to Survive Without Nando's
We can all live without pasta, we can all live without bog roll, but what we absolutely, categorically, canNOT live without... is Nando's.
But, fear not, Danny has found some Nando's sauce in Asda and he's gonna be sharing his recipes to keep your lockdown proper cheeky.
Written by Mark Daniels
Performed by Brad Carpenter
Directed and Edited by Edwina Strobl
New Production 2019
By Gaetano Donizetti
Conducted by Jane Anderson-Brown
South Devon based community opera company Red Earth Opera was formed in 2013 to involve locals in the making of beautiful opera and classical music. The 2019 Autumn production of Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’Amore featured emerging professional soloists and a community based chorus and orchestra.
Director’s Note for the production - “Boy meets girl. Boy falls hopelessly in love with girl. Girl isn’t convinced. Boy seeks Love potion…
Smart and beautiful, Adina is the most popular girl in the village. The girls all want to be her and the boys all want to be with her. Undeterred, and admittedly punching above his weight, our hero, Nemorino declares his undying love for Adina with questionable results.
To his credit and even when faced with some stiff competition in the form of a visiting tough guy Belcore, our hero doesn’t give up. He’s determined to win the girl! So blinded by love is Nemorino, that he throws away every last cent of the little money he has on phony promises, in the form of a love potion.
The Elixir of Love is an opera full of charm and silliness, about the art of deception: mostly deception of oneself. Don’t we all know the ‘magical’ power of a placebo or a little bit of dutch courage? As Nemorino says…
“Wonderful drink! What extraordinary power you must conceal. I haven’t drunk a drop yet but feel so happy, the magic must be working!”
It may have been written over a hundred years ago but Donizetti’s opera still offers today’s audiences everything expected of a modern rom-com; unrequited longing, jealousy, rivalry, and of course romance. It also offers us an important insight: when it comes to a happy ending, only true - undeceived - love will do.
We welcome you to this performance of The Elixir of Love and hope you enjoy the Leavers Prom for the Class of ’19. Let the glorious music transport you and lighthearted joy of Donizetti’s Elixir of Love enchant you - no potion required!”
New Production 2018
By G. Rossini
Conducted by Jane Anderson-Brown
South Devon based community opera company Red Earth Opera was formed in 2013 to involve locals in the making of beautiful opera and classical music. The 2018 Autumn production of Rossini’s La Cenerentola featured emerging professional soloists and a community based chorus and orchestra.
Director’s Note for the production - “Once upon a time there was a girl named Cinderella. You may know her as Cendrillon, or Aschenputtel, The Cinder-Maid or just plain old Cinders. Hundreds of years old and with versions originating from all over the world, the Cinderella story is a truly timeless and universal tale.
Whatever her name and whichever version of this much loved fairytale is your favourite (Grimm, Disney or Perrault to name but three) the essence of the story remains the same – the telling of the unjust treatment of a young woman who is unexpectedly elevated to a position of power and prestige: the triumph of goodness over oppression. When Rossini wrote his dazzling opera buffa version in 1816 the story was already well known. He based his version on the then century-old Charles Perrault story, which included the pumpkin carriage, Cinderella’s fairy godmother and the glass slipper (Perhaps because of practicalities Rossini replaced the slipper with a pair of bracelets).
The world will always love a tale of “rags to riches”, a dreamer whose wishes come true, which means we don’t need to look far to identify the Cinderella story in our world today. This year 1.9 billion people around the world watched the making of a princess when Meaghan Markle married Prince Harry. A divorced, American, woman of colour, a politically outspoken feminist and humanitarian, Markle is the embodiment of a very modern Cinderella and the inspiration for ours.
We also quickly found the epitome of pride and vanity in our selfie obsessed sisters, their greedy father, and then our posh prince and laddish mate, Dandini, who both fall for the mysterious girl at the ball. Their story takes place before adoring fans desperate for a glimpse of the royalty and reminiscent of crowds outside Buckingham Palace, in rain ponchos clutching Union Jacks. Finally, no Cinderella 2018 would be complete without her very own fairy drag-mother, who provides the magic as well as the majesty.”
Feedback from the participants - “Just a short note to say a big 'thank you' for the opportunity to take part in the gorgeous opera. What a cast of principal singers! The audience seemed to be genuinely engaged and I couldn't fail to notice that a young lad sitting in the third row's gangway seat seemed to find all the piece's humour particularly to his liking, not least because of the extra zing resulting from Edwina's gifted stage direction. She and all the principals deserve to enjoy successful careers.”
New Play 2018
by Jess Palfrey
Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019 at C Venues
When The Friendship Has Sailed is a comedy about the near impossible task of making new friends as an adult.
Carrie, a young(ish) Geordie woman, has recently moved to London as all her friends are too busy birthing children and visiting photogenic resturants to spend time with her. Carrie so far has been fine on her own, until she is offered an international career-making oppurtunity which means she has to find someone to look after her pet goldfish, Christina. Carrie makes a pact with Christina to 'put herself out there' and find a new friend, although as it turns out, is a lot harder than it sounds.
Featuring original songs, bubbles, a goldfish and a swimming pool.
Their newest show aims to delve deeper, tackling loneliness, anxiety and the difficulties of making friends in the modern world. Naturally it is a comedy.
The cast is lead by Geordie actress Natalie Ann Jamieson who plays the friendless Carrie. Stage and screen veteran Elizabeth Edmonds shines as Carrie’s only friend, Christina the singing goldfish, while playwright Jess Palfrey plays the role of frenemy Serena.
This show features original songs by Australian composer Louis Peake. It also features puppetry, dancing, bubbles and scuba diving. Sound is designed by @Jo Diskett and Lighting is designed by Amy Daniels.
When The Friendship Has Sailed is directed by Edwina Strobl, Artistic Director of Flugelman Productions, whose recent show ‘Boxman’ by Daniel Keene received five star reviews at Brighton Fringe.
This show is supported by SOHO Theatre Young Company.
Photography by Nick Brittain.
New Production 2018 - Assistant Director
By G.F. Handel
Directed by Greg Eldridge
For Bury Court Opera, Surry UK
Photographs: (c) BCO / Simon John
New Production 2017 - Assistant Director
by Grace Passô
Directed by Ramiro Silveira
For Embassy of Brazil in London
New Play 2016 - Assistant Director
Written and Directed by Evi Stamatiou
Fanny Pack Theatre Company at Bread and Roses Theatre
“…first rate show that had me laughing and was thoroughly entertaining from the start.” ★★★★ LondonTheatre1
Assistant Director
New Play for Zeitgeist Chorus
Performed at RADA Festival 2016
Directed by Kalki Aporia
Written by Vivien Von Abendorff & Kalki Aporos
I AM NOT ANTIGONE was first created by four RADA MA T&P graduates, as a co-production with the National Theatre ‘Sterija’ in Vrsac, Serbia. Since, it has toured Serbia and performed at the Fringe Festivals of Amsterdam, Brighton and Prague, where we were funded by the Amsterdam Art Fund, the European Cultural Foundation and the Netherlands Embassy.
In 2016 it was performed at the RADA Festival, London, UK and Catford Broadway Theatre.
I AM NOT ANTIGONE was a multimedia show which brings the 2,500 year-old classic bang up to date, with three performers, an iPhone, a projector, a MacBook and Twitter. It's a playful tragedy about a generation of revolutionaries who prefer to rebel via social media than actually do something. In this era where so many of us are guilty of expressing political opinions with the click of a mouse and little more, it's a relevant and intriguing look at the world today, where politicians twist the truth and stories and images are created for our consumption online.
With original live music, created especially for the show and performed by the actors.
Three performers directly address the audience and slip in and out of different characters. The style of the show moves from open storytelling form to serious drama and engages the audience with it’s fast paced stylised dialogue and resonating political issues.
We use the story of Antigone to innovatively and sincerely face our internet-saturated culture, and asks questions about how it might affect our thoughts and actions on social change.
New Production 2016
By Robert Luxford
Perform and Give Theatre Company
Etcetera Theatre, Camden Fringe
New Production 2015
by G. Macropedius
Production for 10th anniversary Latin play for History Scholars at King’s College London
New Production 2015
By Hayley Ricketson
Flugelman Productions presents a dining experience like no other…
SEASON TO TASTE
Hayley Ricketson’s series of monologues explores how food guides how we think and talk about our lives. 6 women living in London share dinner party conversation in a uniquely honest and hilarious way, intimately inviting you to eat and discuss what matters most: love, loneliness, sex and growing up. Delicious, outrageous and very, very honest. Join us for a sublime dinner theatre experience that brings together music, spoken word and storytelling.
Written, directed and featuring recent RADA graduates, Starring Emma Delius, Laura Franek and Hayley Ricketson. Directed by Edwina Strobl.
Monday 30th November and Tuesday 1st December, 7:30pm at Cafe 56 E17.
Tickets £16.75 includes a delicious 3 course dinner and a glass of Prosecco!
