Teaser Trailer
Activist theatre company Goblin Baby presents Claire Booker’s thought-provoking drama, inspired by Tolstoy’s short story The Devil:
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June 2014 at The Space (Isle of Dogs) &
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July 2014 at Ye Olde Rose & Crown (Walthamstow)
We are currently raising funds to help us bring to life this topical tale about injustice, deceit, passion and the search for the truth.
We hope you can support us by giving whatever you can (even £1 is awesome), or by spreading the word about our crowdfunding campaign, or by coming to one of the performances this June and July! Thank you!
★★★★ from Remotegoat & Exeunt Magazine!
What is this project?
The Devil & Stepashka
by Claire Booker, directed by Leigh-Anne Abela
Inspired by a Tolstoy short story
Can there be true justice in an unjust society?
Yeah, you already said that, tell me more!
Russian landowner, Zhenya, sows wild oats with one of his peasant girls, but puts it all behind him when he marries - or so he believes.
Inspired by a Tolstoy short story, the play follows Zhenya’s obsession and its murderous consequence, as he finds himself driven mad with desire for Stepashka. Desperate to end his guilty liaison and safeguard his marriage, he shoots her and stands trial for murder. But can there be true justice in an unjust society? And is it guilt, insanity or the supernatural that finally haunts him?
So when & where will this be performed?
We have a two week run at The Space (on the Isle of Dogs) from the 10th to the 20th of June and will then transfer for three additional performances on the 19th & 20th of July to Ye Olde Rose & Crown Theatre in Walthamstow.
And who are you people?
Founded in 2013, the Goblin Baby Theatre Co. is a London-based activist theatre ensemble not afraid to address taboos and set out to challenge the confines of conventional theatre. We focus on creating theatre that gives a voice to people and stories which are unknown, forgotten, repressed or ignored. Goblin Baby has a particular interest in working with new writing and, thus far, several original scripts have been commissioned for our productions. Furthermore, we are also interested in working with undiscovered and neglected scripts. Our aim is to create thought-provoking productions that have the potential to raise social awareness as well as to expose and question the world and society we live in.
Have you produced any other shows yet?
Yes, our first production premiered in June 2013 and we've had several projects since then, which were all well received and included some sell-out performances.
- June 2013: UNHEARD - A New Writing Festival exploring themes around sexual abuse and violence
- January 2014: RETOLD - A Fairytale Festival... without the 'happily ever after'
- March 2014: A one-night-only benefit production of Eve Ensler's THE VAGINA MONOLOGUES
So what do others say about you?
Remotegoat: ★★★★ "Goblin Baby Theatre Co. seems to have a knack for finding ways to address at times challenging or unusual topics through theatre."
A Younger Theatre: "undoubtedly succeeds in igniting discussions that should be had about stories that shouldn't be silenced"
The Public Reviews: "definitely a company to watch and it will be exciting to see them grow"
Selection of Audience Feedback:
- "LOVED the show - keep it comin'!! Brilliant!!"
- "I went in not really knowing what to expect, it was a real eye opener. I certainly wasn’t expecting to feel such an abundance of emotions. It was brilliantly funny, thought provoking and extremely touching. A wonderfully performed and directed show."
- "Amazing and so different, well done, I hope to see more of your projects!"
- "I thought the standard of acting was really high, was really impressed. I hadn’t seen it before but thought it covered a lot of ground and it was very engaging because of the fast pace. It was educational, funny, moving, empowering and thought provoking- a really good evening! I really enjoyed it."
And who are the artists involved in this?
Writer - Claire Booker
Claire is a playwright and poet with particular interest in social and ethical questions. Her plays have been performed in Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Romania, America and the UK, including the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. A number of her monologues have been published by Morgan's Eye Press. She has two unfinished full-length plays waiting on the conveyor belt: ‘The Devil wore Red Braces’ is a comedy set in Thatcher’s Britain, and ‘Red Harvest’ – a drama set during the Chinese Cultural Revolution in which a young cadre confronts her old master. Claire is also currently working on her first poetry collection. She has guested at spoken word events in London, Manchester, Maidenhead and Guildford and her poems have appeared in leading literary magazines such as Poetry News, The Rialto, Orbis, New Welsh Review and Magma.
Director - Leigh-Anne Abela
Leigh-Anne trained in Acting & Contemporary Theatre at East 15 Acting School & Performance Arts at Trinity College London. Leigh-Anne's recent theatrical credits, as a director, deviser and as a performer, include the French play, starring Juliette Binoche, 'Mademoiselle Julie,'which was performed at the Barbican Theatre, Sibling Production's 'Short Cuts' at The Hen & Chicken's Theatre Bar, and National Youth Theatre's 'Playing Up: Double Bill' at the Unicorn Theatre. Leigh-Anne is also involved in a number of self-devised contemporary performances and performance-based initiatives around Europe. She was invited to perform in Berlin in the EU Festivities commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Rome Treaty. She is also an Ambassador for the Barbican Centre in London.
Production Designer - Christopher Keech
Christopher is a London based Cross Platform Artist. His work fuses together a wide range of techniques and past experiences. Having graduated from The University of Huddersfield in 2011 with a BA (Hons) Degree in Technical Theatre, Christopher then went onto complete a MA by Research Degree, through practical and theoretical research into the application of Kinetic Screens (projection onto moving resources). Although his background is within a technical based arts environment, his interest and passion lays within design and visual arts. Christopher intends to further develop his practice and experience through taking on more exciting projects in the years to come.
Artistic Director / Actress - Tessa Hart
Tessa is a theatre activist who holds an MFA in Acting (International) from East 15 Acting School (2011) and a BA in Theatre Studies from the Free University of Berlin (2009). She has completed further performing arts work and training in Bali, London, Berlin, Brussels and Moscow and is fluent, as well as having worked, in English, German and French. In the past three years Tessa has worked as an actress, director and producer at fringe venues across London, including The Southwark Playhouse, The Park Theatre, The Space, The Hen & Chickens Theatre, The Old Red Lion Theatre, The New Diorama Theatre, The Tristan Bates Theatre, The Soho Theatre and The Bread & Roses, as well as at the Brighton and Camden Fringe. As an actress she has also appeared in independent feature films, short films, TV-series and various other screen projects. Besides the work with Goblin Baby, Tessa is a co-founder of The Bread & Roses Theatre Company as well as an associate director of Little Pieces of Gold. She also actively supports V-Day and One Billion Rising UK through theatre performances and other activities.
Artistic Associate / Actress - Lydia Lane
Lydia is a London based actress originally from Athens, Greece. She moved to London in 2009 to do her MA in Acting at East 15 Acting School and since graduating she has been working professionally in theatre, film/tv and voice overs. Between 2012-2013 she was actively involved with the acclaimed Short Cuts Festival starting at the Tristan Bates Theatre and then moving to the Hen and Chickens. Theatre credits include: The Enchantress in ‘As if by a Stair’ (The Space Theatre), Last Man in Watford (Southwark Playhouse), Nothing: A Tale of Two Zeros (Old Red Lion), Under The Skin (Tristan Bates/Hen and Chickens), Agamemnon (Courtyard Theatre), Cleopatra (Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre), Brecht's Jewish Wife, T. Williams' Willie in This property is Condemned, Nurse in Romeo and Juliet, Marlene in Top Girls, Quince in Midsummer's Night Dream (LAMDA), Sabina in The Skin of Our Teeth, and Miss Martin in The Bald Soprano. Film roles include the leads for the short film 'Alive' and for the documentary 'Happiness'. She is an active supporter of Eve Ensler's humanist work and she is very happy to be involved with Goblin Baby.
Actor - Paul Christian Rogers
In 2007 Paul Christian Rogers completed his BA with Drama and Performance Studies and in 2012, he moved to London to complete the MA in Acting from East 15 Acting School. During his training, his credits involved roles such as Laertes in Hamlet, Slim in Cowboy Mouth and Lopakhin in The Cherry Orchard. This culminated in the showcase at the Criterion, with Paul’s scene being well received by critics saying he has 'the comic timing under control and squeezes every ounce of humour from the situation.' (The Stage) His first role out of drama school was in Carl Heap's adaptation of a 'Pilgrims Progress' at The Yard Theatre, playing many eccentric characters, with the production receiving Time Out's 'pick of the month'. Paul also appeared in Immersion Theatre's 'Dorothy in Oz' (Waterloo East Theatre) a dark retelling of the classic tale, with Paul featuring as the re-imagined Tinman, a pierced biker suffering from anger issues. Most recently Paul appeared in Lazarus Theatre's 'The Merchant of Venice' (Brockley Jack Theatre) as the merchant Antonio, and in Kings Fool's original Irish drama 'Sitting Up For Michael' (White Bear Theatre). When Paul isn't treading the boards or in front of a camera, he is a keen writer and deviser, with several screenplays written.
Actor - Dimitri Shaw
Dimitri Shaw graduated from Drama Centre London in 2009. Recent theatre credits include Jean in 'The days of the commune' by Bertolt Brecht (The White Bear theatre), Leo in 'An insomniac's guide to ambulances' by Rachel Creeger (upstairs at the gatehouse), Philinte in 'The Misanthrope' by Moliere (South Hill Park theatre) and Henri Gouget in Grand Guignol by Francis Kobayashi (The space).
So where can I find out more?
Website: www.GoblinBaby.com/stepashka
Twitter: @GoblinBabyCo - #TheDevilandStepashka
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/GoblinBabyCo
We're also documenting our journey in a video diary!
Here's another episode:
And we also have another little teaser trailer for you:
The production has received two 4 star reviews! ★★★★ from Remotegoat and Exeunt Magazine.
We've had a fabulous opening night yesterday and performances are on for the next couple of weeks now at The Space, before we head to Ye Olde Rose & Crown in July.
Rehearsals are well under way now as we wrap up our third week and with just under two weeks to go until opening night! Check out our facebook for some pictures and updates www.facebook.com/GoblinBabyCo
With just under a month to go until our opening night, rehearsal have begun! Check out www.goblinbaby.com for regular updates as well!
We are excited to announce the complete cast of The Devil & Stepashka!
Paul Christian Rogers and Dimitri Shaw will be joining existing Goblin Babies Tessa Hart and Lydia Lane (see their bios on the main page),
Our transfer to a second venue, Ye Olde Rose & Crown Theatre, has been moved to Saturday, 19th & Sunday, 20th of July and has also been extended as it will now include three performances rather than just one!
We are thrilled to announce that Cross Platform Artist Christopher Keech has joined the Goblin Babies as our Production Designer for The Devil & Stepashka!
Check out his work at www.christopherkeech.co.uk.
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