The Observatory

About Snuffbox

Snuff Box Theatre is a company of artists in their graduating year on the Acting and Contemporary Theatre Course at East 15 Acting School.

Snuff Box is a new theatre company of multi-skilled actors: actor-musicians, actor-writers, actor-directors and devising specialists. There is a strong sense of ensemble inside the Snuff Box. We pride ourselves on creating new work from a blank page - the focus is on asking the right questions of our audience not dictating the right answers on stage. With our new piece The Observatory we seek to interrogate the motives behind modern conflict and open a dialogue for the audience.

The core Snuff Box creative team are about to embark on a national tour with critically acclaimed Bear Trap Theatre, who with their dynamic ensemble piece, Bound, snatched five awards at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2010 including a Scotsman Fringe First, a Herald Angel. They also headlined the Adelaide Fringe festival in Australia, as winners of the Holden Street Theatres award.

Our Project – The Observatory

What happens when a man finds the world he has defended with his life has moved on without him?

Two paths cross in the blistering heat of the desert. A father is killed and soldier is blamed.

The inquiry into the incident brutally raises more questions than answers, and as the morality of conflict comes under fire, the men and women involved struggle to find a path through the shifting sands. For the man who pulled the trigger, the choice is made clear: honour or shame.

Marching cadences sung in a desert war zone. A sand covered stage evokes the scorched earth of a faraway war.

‘Immediate, impassioned and lyrical...The Observatory is required viewing.’ – Jesse Briton – writer of Bound

Stories from the frontline are everywhere; on the television, on the Internet and spread across two-page articles. Not since the World Wars has there been such concentrated, active advertising (for want of a better word) of conflict. The Observatory pares back this over familiar format to simply tell the story of a soldier. 

Featuring a cast of eleven multi-skilled performers, The Observatory explores modern conflict from the perspective of those on the frontline. Using a blend of poetic dialogue and gallows humour, the fictional setting draws heavily from two real-life events: the Siege of Sangin, in the Helmand province of Afghanistan, and a separate incident involving the torture and murder of Iraqi civilians and its subsequent cover-up by the Royal Military Police. 

Press Quotes and Reviews

The core members of Snuffbox Theatre Company are also in critically acclaimed show ‘Bound’ by Bear Trap Theatre Company.

Reviews for Bound:

‘performed by graduates from East 15...at times you can almost feel the waves splashing around you’ **** Sally Stott, The Scotsman

‘With just six actors, five chairs and one table, Bear Trap Theatre manages to recreate the menace of the ocean.’ **** Louise Gray, The Telegraph

‘Bear Trap is a young company of real promise…a small but beautifully thought-out piece of work…told with passion and performed with real dynamism.’ *** Lyn Gardner, The Guardian

‘Bursting with fresh talent…confident performances’ *** The Times

Two members of the cast of Bound also performed a second show in Edinburgh, The Changeling. It was based on a short story by Rana Dasgupta and was devised in conjunction with designers from Wimbledon College of Art. Seth Rook Williams designed the lighting.

Reviews for The Changeling

'an impressive, wonderful and moving piece of theatre...an incredible offering from some amazingly talented actors, writers, and director. ' **** - The New Current

'theatre at its most innovative and intoxicating....an exceptionally strong devised piece...staged with brilliant inventiveness, and performed by a versatile and talented cast' **** - Three Weeks

'blends live music with puppetry, a minimalist set and an off-beat perspective...true poignancy' *** - The Scotsman

Sponsume Funding

The Observatory is going to be performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this summer at The Underbelly (Belly Button). We are seeking funding for our print and technical costs. To market the show effectively in Edinburgh we need 10,000 flyers and 600 posters.

In order to recreate a desert war zone we require specific lighting and stage requirements that Edinburgh venues do not provide as standard.

We have won two awards already – The Scottish Daily Mail Edinburgh Festival Fringe Award and The NSDF/IdeasTap Edinburgh Show Award.

We have experienced first hand what an incredible launch pad Edinburgh can be for young Theatre companies and therefore are going primarily to get the show seen by a wide audience. Our aim is to secure longevity for the piece and ultimately take The Observatory on tour. Due to the award opportunities and huge industry presence, Edinburgh is an ideal place to achieve this.