Resident artists
The Residient Artist Program is designed to give young artists the space to create a new material, and feel creatively free in a safe and nurturing environment. They help us to run The Fly Pit, gain the experience of helping to manage a performance space, as well as merging and benefitting from a larger community of aritsts.
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In this ten week program we ask them to pitch and create a new peice, whilst attending shared work days so we are able to offer mentoring sessions both artistically and for artists looking to develop their company. Our Resident Artists are able to gain access to The Lab Collective's training sessions and assist on our workshops.
Joel Samuels
2018 brings brand new resident Joel Samuels and a company of super talented performers to develop an interactive exploration fo funerals, death and the myriad complexities that surround it.
Playwright and performer Joel Samuels is collaborating with a company of five devisor/performers - Ciarán Owens, Daniel Ward, Molly Small, Nathalie Law and Stella Taylor - Over the eight week residency, the company will devise a production based partly in scripted scenes and partly on input drawn from the audience.
The play explores the narrative of a female protagonist in her late twenties who is diagnosed with a terminal illness, and her decision to hold a "dress rehearsal" of her own funeral.
The show will attempt a discussion on the universality of death and commonality of funerals, by giving the audience power to create much of the content of the piece - from the name and background of the protagonist to which of the other performers will be playing the individuals around her. The aim of the residency is to create a piece of theatre that is different every night including an entirely improvised and unique to each audience, funeral "dress rehearsal".
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Pair Shaped Theatre
In 2017 we were delighted to welcome Pair Shaped Theatre to The Fly Pit, as they developed a brand new interactive performance Dr Kaplinsky:
Dr Kaplinsky provides couples’ therapy sessions that are second to none. The case of Rachel and Craig is proving a tough nut to crack. How will you fare in your interactions with this loving couple? If there’s one thing the doctor has learned when dealing with them, it's that they hate any form of change. Absolutely hate it. Whatever you do, don’t let them realise that anything is out of the ordinary.
Pair Shaped Theatre are an emerging theatre company, creating participatory theatre pieces that are intimate, challenging and playful. PairShaped currently consists of two core members: Rosaleen Burton and Chris Mawson. We make work that puts its audience in direct contact with the performers they're watching, presenting them with a challenge or two along the way. Don't worry though, we're mostly harmless.
After a ten week development process, Dr Kaplinsky will be transferring to Co Lab's exciting venue The Factory in March 2018.
IDA TAI WAG 2016
In 2016, Sam & Roisin of IDA TAI WAG joined us as Resident Artists. On the 11th July IDA TAI WAG presented a sharing of their first collaboration together.
A little more about the Company:
Sam Dunstan
Sam is a Yorkshire born director and performer and graduate of the European Theatre Arts course at Rose Bruford College from 2014. Since then he has worked as a performer and director in London, Oxford, Edinburgh and Barcelona.
Both in and out of training, Sam has also worked with many esteemed directors who have influenced his style of working such as Christopher Sivertsen, Colin Ellwood and Natalie Scott & Joe Thorpe.
As a director and performer Sam’s credits include: Arcane (Apocalypse Events, Whitechapel), Black Beauty in Irons (The Flying Dutchman, Camberwell), Against Nothingness (Summerhall, Edinburgh), Concrete Jungle (Studio Scanner, Barcelona) and multiple performance installations at Boomtown Festival in Winchester.
Sam also works as a producer developing work with companies such as Awake Projects, Deep Diving Ensemble and Blackout Creative Arts.
Mark Foster
Mark is a performer and director currently based in Oxford, but working and performing both nationally and internationally. Mark trained at Rose Bruford College on the BA European Theatre Arts Programme. During this time he also trained at Eesti Muusika Ja Teatriakadeem (Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre) studying Michal Chekhov Technique and Acrobatics.
After training he directed and produced a documentary and series of interviews in Kenya for the Mendip based charity Mend The Gap.
He is currently making his professional debut as Demetrius in Midsummer Night’s Dream with Leaning House in Oxford.
Mark’s directing work began at Rose Bruford where he directed Scenes from Simon Stephens’ Pornography’ and intends to develop this production further and stage the full play in 2017.
Roisin Walsh
Roisin is a half Irish performer-director predominantly working in London. Roisin trained at Rose Bruford College, graduating in 2015. During her time there she found she enjoyed crafting work focused in absurd comedy, and practically explored how the genre can underpin strong political themes and ideas.
Roisin’s latest credits include performing and co-directing Arcane – an immersive/interactive mystery performance - in collaboration with Apocalypse Events. She has also performed in political installations for Boomtown Festival with Dank Parish and The Lab Collective. Roisin has also worked as a workshop facilitator in Barcelona, France, London and Nottingham.
Roisin works closely with The Lab Collective and Battersea Arts Centre’s Creative project using performance techniques to empower those who are not in the arts.
Ali Wright
Ali is a performer from Gloucestershire, living in London. She trained with The Actors Class and National Theatre Young Studio. She also completed Meisner Training at The Salon:Collective (Cockpit Theatre)
Ali is a regular at the Arcola Theatre having worked on several projects including Clarion (Main House), Used Blood Junkyard (Studio 2), The Gemeenschap (Glastonbury Festival) and a series of rehearsed readings.
She also has credits with Tricycle Young Company, Boomtown Festival and National Youth Theatre.
She also is a founding member of Popinjay Productions, a children’s theatre company, whose latest production of The Flying Ship received full Arts Council Funding to perform at Edinburgh and Brighton Fringe Festival’s.