Table of contents for September 2022 in Ink Pellet

“People like poetry” says Allie Esiri whose anthologies have cornered 20% of the entire UK poetry market. “They hear a poem, say, at a wedding or funeral, and are moved so they want more. And I think the one-a-day format works very well for some people because it isn’t a huge commitment.” Allie, 55, and I are chatting over coffee in a congenial club in Notting Hill, not far from her home. The catalyst is the publication of her 2019 book Shakespeare for Every Day of the Year in paperback last month. So how to you get into anthologising? “I loved Shakespeare at school and did a lot at uni” she says, adding that she read French and Spanish at Cambridge. Always drawn by acting, she then went to Drama…

WHAT IS INSPIRING THE FUTURE OF THEATRE? Theatre and the performing arts are part of the creative industries, which are worth an estimated £101bn, and are growing at almost twice the rate of the economy. If the sector is to continue to thrive, it must draw on the talent base, and build audiences, from all areas of society. To achieve this ambitious project, SOLT, UK Theatre and Inspiring the Future (run by Education and Employers charity) launched a drive to sign up industry ambassadors who will be matched with schools across the UK, taking part in events to lay the groundwork for young people to later make informed and ambitious career decisions. Vice President of the Society of London Theatre, Kenny Wax, started the call for ambassadors: “Our goal is…

The Pirate, the Princess and the Platypus – Polka Theatre Written and directed by Potted Panto/Potted Potter duo, Daniel Clarkson and Richard Hurst, The Pirate the Princess and the Platypus is a witty, song-strewn send up of fairy tale conventions with a feminist twist – complete with a frog puppet demanding to be kissed. A Princess (Teegan Hurley – strong) does not need to sit about passively waiting for Prince Charming or one of his alteregos. She can be feisty and make her own decisions. Similarly there’s no reason why a pirate (Alex Stedman – nuanced) should be cruel, domineering and swashbuckling. And as for Josephine Starte’s Platypus, partly there, of course, for titular, alliterative reasons, she’s such an unlikely presence that she’s hilarious. Every child in the audience learns…

Some 15 years ago we ran a workshop for professional performers where we hired a nightclub for two days to make work inspired by the site. We invited people to apply with the idea we would accept 20 applicants. We had hundreds of women apply. We had only two men. This was not right. We knew from our workshops in schools that our approach connected with boys, but where were they now? Why were they not making the vocational leap? Where were those wanting to explore the potential of theatre through physicality? But then the penny dropped for Artistic Director and Co-founder Scott Graham. “I did not grow up wanting to be involved in any kind of theatre, let alone this ‘physical theatre.’ It was not on my radar. It…

Compton Verney is a good two-hour drive from home, and today in the lashing rain I find myself hoping that it’s going to be worth it. It’s a venue that I’ve been meaning to visit for years probably but there’s never quite been enough of a pull to get me there. I’m so glad I’ve made the effort today though, it’s wonderful and I already know I’ll return. What’s made the difference is the numerous exciting exhibitions and displays on offer this Summer. I’m lucky to grab them before they end. Most of the venues I looked into reviewing for this issue of IP had shows that were ending very soon into the autumn term, but given the lead times for planning school visits’ anyway I took the risk. Besides…

WHEN THE WORLD WAS OURS By Liz Kessler Published by Simon & Schuster Set initially in 1936 Vienna, this gripping tale, inspired by a true story, follows the lives of three young friends as war gradually engulfs their lives, pulling them in directions none of them could have imagined or anticipated. A chance encounter proves to be a lifeline and the reader is transported into the horrors of the Holocaust and how ordinary people were dragged into the brutality of a horrific regime. Each chapter is told from the perspective of one of the three friends, their individual stories are utterly compelling, as their lives take different directions, whilst impacted by the war. Leo, Elsa and Max imagine they will remain best friends forever. They spend a perfect day together,…

How did you get into drama? I’ve stammered since I was 4. When I was about 14 and a pupil at an all-boys’ boarding school in Hertfordshire, which wasn’t strong on drama, we were – always a dreaded thing – reading The Winslow Boy round the class in an English lesson. When my turn came, I put on an accent and found that it gave me complete fluency. After that I set out to find out what are these things called “plays” and how could I do more? Eventually I decided I didn’t want to be a doctor after all. I wanted to study playwriting and directing. So where did you go to do that? I did a degree in English and Creative Writing at Warwick and then an MA in…

As we embark on the season of mists, mellow fruitfulness and new pencils my thoughts turn to pantomime. Oh yes they do… I’ll say that before anyone else does and get it out of the way. When I was a child, the local pantomime opened on Boxing Day and ran through January and often February. This was the norm and one of the many ways in which conventions have changed. Today panto is all about the run-up to Christmas. And it matters a lot because, whether you’re a panto fan or not, the fact is that for many children it’s their first experience of live theatre. You still see families out together at Canterbury, Worthing. Hackney Empire or wherever who probably don’t share anything else in quite this way for…

You’re an actor and voice over artist as well as fight and intimacy director. Did you always want to work in the performance industries? Yes. As a child growing up in Japan, I always enjoyed performance and theatrical things. I see exactly the same trend today in my five-year-old daughter! When I was 16, one of the directors I knew though youth projects told me that if I was serious about a performing arts career then England is the place. Of course, I didn’t speak a word of English but with all the certainty of youth, I decided that was what I wanted to do so I came to boarding school in England to do A-levels. And you never left? That’s right. After leaving school I did University of Chichester’s…