And beer drinkers: the worst of the whole sorry lot, God help us, for we’re the only fools who know full well what we are and drink to forget it.
It’s five o’clock and rehearsal is over for the day. A silent janitor alone on stage discovers that within the abandoned props and costumes lie the spirits of Shakespearean characters unhappy with their lot in the original plays. Through him, they say all the things they couldn’t say before, leading the janitor to ever so briefly discover his own voice.
Two countrymen side by side
On the wide shore
the wide deserted shore
the wide deserted
the wide desert
On the desert of white bones and sand
Understudy No. 5 is a monologue cycle of possession and inversion. This Work in Progress showing takes you through four distinct Shakespearean stories rendered intimately unfamiliar, using various poetic forms to explore verse and character.
Not one half-turn before the son’s ascent
Our constellation pitches and revolts,
And dawn comes not, and light comes not, and all
The manners of the world are swathed in ash.
Written and performed by Hadrian Conyngham
Directed by Warren Rusher
Ticket Information
Performance Date: Sunday 30th August
Performance Time: 5pm
Run Time: 60 mins
Tickets: £6.50 (includes booking fee)