What's on
Performances, workshops, events and seminars are shown on this page, where they're of interest to Communications, Drama and Film students.
Please remember that coursework-related events may not appear until a week before the event, so please check back regularly.
Thu 15 May
Start time: 15:30T3 Festival
Theatre on Screen: Inferno: Romeo Castellucci and Societas Raffaello Sanzio
Made for the Avignon Festival in 2008, Inferno is the first part of three pieces Romeo Castellucci 'freely adapted' from Dante's Divine Comedy. As with all of Societas Raffaello Sanzio's work it can be categorised as 'postdramatic' – working outside of secure narrative or character, it is in turn visceral and meditative, both spectacular and unsettling, and often seeming to test the limits of theatre's materials and relationships. [Selected by Dr. Wendy Hubbard]
Thu 15 May
Start time: 18:00T3 Festival
Make Some Noise!
Location: RS3 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Inspired by the Dropout panel show of the same name, 'Make Some Noise!' is a panel show made for short form improv. Cast members, split into teams of 3, take turns doing short scenes based on the prompts given by the host. This show is perfect for those who want to try performing short form improv but don't quite know what to start!
This will be an extremely low-commitment show, since a lot of the show is (obviously) improvised on the day. For cast members, we will aim to have 2-3 rehearsals, in which we will go over the structure of the show and also practising improv skills so that you feel confident improv-ing on stage.
Fri 16 May
Start times are 16:00 and 18:15T3 Festival
The Southern Cross
Presented by: Mackenzie Gilmore
Director: Mackenzie Gilmore
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Noah and Casey meet one night under the stars, and they fall in love, until an upsetting piece of news means Noah has to leave forever. But who really was Noah? What was he like? And does it matter if your memories of a relationship are distorted if they are comforting?
Tue 20 May
Start times are 16:00 and 18:00T3 Festival
Dream Team
Director: Hannah Wycherley
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Comedic drama that follows a group of students working together to put on a performance of Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’. They struggle through the common group-work issues like: who’s in charge?, this person isn’t showing up, and oh no the show is in 1 week! Watch them attempt to work harmoniously and create the best performance of Macbeth ever seen.
Wed 21 May
Start time: 14:00T3 Festival
Employability Salon #3
2-4pm - Here’s a chance for you to have a 10-minute, 1-1 surgery with professional practitioners from the department, to discuss your future creative ideas, professional plans, or even to ask about who else you might talk to!
4-5pm - A presentation by a representative from Equity (the Actors’ Trades Union)
The session will cover an introduction to Equity, our student membership, and how students can protect and improve their working conditions. It will be open for questions throughout with time for discussion based on students’ prior experience of work and knowledge of trade unions.
There will be an opportunity to join Equity at our discounted student rate of £3.60 a month during the session and for students to choose a Student Deputy/Deputies to represent them in the union.
Wed 21 May
Start times are 16:00 and 18:00T3 Festival
Tip
Presented by: Emma Gibbon
Director: Emma Gibbon
Location: TS1 Alexander Building, Thornlea, New North Road, Postcode: EX4 4LA Show on Map
Through the exploration of movement we follow the story of a child adopted by gangsters. This piece has no dialogue but instead guided by music and soundscapes, focused on breath work. The audience follow as they get more and more involved with the family's life of crime. They meet lovers, rivals, success and death, all which is shown through the emotion in physicality.
Wed 21 May
Start times are 17:00 and 19:00T3 Festival
Mustard
Director: Gracie Purton
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
‘Mustard’ is a dark comedy, following Bennie, a man in his 40s, who is suddenly feeling unsatisfied and insecure in his relationship with his husband. As his suspicions grow, so does his desperation and he decides to take matters into his only hands, but finds he only makes things worse.
Thu 22 May
Start times are 16:00 and 18:00T3 Festival
Our Flatmate
Presented by: Isabella Davies
Director: Isabella Davies and Liv Hodgson
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Our flatmate follows four second year students learning to live together after their flatmate Charlie passes away. As they navigate old memories and new emotions they are also stuck searching for the key to escaping the impending danger looming over them and times running out.
Thu 22 May
Start times are 17:00 and 18:45T3 Festival
God of Carnage
Presented by: Gemma Veal
Director: Gemma Veal
Location: RS3 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Four parents, Veronica, Micheal, Anette and Alan, two couples, meet to discuss the altercation between their sons.
'At 5.30 p.m. on the 3rd November, in Aspirant Dunant Gardens, following a verbal altercation, Ferdinand Reille, eleven, armed with a stick, struck our son, Bruno Vallon, in the face.'
Can they resolve it through reasonable discussions or are they more like their children than they think?
Fri 23 May
Start time: 18:00T3 Festival
The Pals
Director: Seamus Casey
Location: RS2 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
This is an adaptation of the powerful play ‘The Accrington Pals’ by Peter Whelan. The background of the play is reality; the ‘Accrington Pals’ battalion of Kitchener’s New Army was raised and completely destroyed during World War One. However, the action in this adaptation will take place in a non-specified time period, allowing us to focus more on the futility of all wars, and importantly how war devastates the lives of those left behind. The play follows the love/hate relationship between a strong-minded, rugged, individualist woman and a dreamy, Utopian idealist young man.
Mon 26 May
Start times are 16:00 and 18:00T3 Festival
Room 22 / Waiting Room
Presented by: Mackenzie Gilmore
Director: Mackenzie Gilmore
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
"A boy has been in a tragic accident - or has he? Whilst he lies responseless in a hospital bed, his family discuss the circumstances behind his injury, and fingers are pointed. Who hurt him, and what will happen to him now?
A boy has been in a tragic accident - or has he? In the reception area outside his room, his family gather and discuss the circumstances behind his injury, often in secret. Why was he hurt, and what will happen to him now?"
Tue 27 May
Start times are 15:00 and 17:00T3 Festival
The Blur
Location: TS3 Alexander Building, Thornlea, New North Road, Postcode: EX4 4LA Show on Map
The blur will be a visually and sonically explosive multi-art form piece that explores the human dependence on technology and how this warps the human perception of real life, including themes of body image, psychology, and the connection to physical matter. Our story will be communicated through music and sound (possibly an original score), colourful and effective lighting, projected film, and stylistic movement and dance. We hope for this show to be impactful on the senses for the audience and to be a visceral experience, as we were inspired by films such as ‘The Substance’, contemporary/hip hop/dancehall/commercial/Latin dance styles, visually striking cinematography from films/TV such as Anora and euphoria, and electronic/dance/electronica/house music.
Wed 28 May
Start time: 14:00Workshop Wednesday: Introduction to Stage Lighting
Location: TS3 Alexander Building, Thornlea, New North Road, Postcode: EX4 4LA Show on MapAimed at 3rd years and non-Drama students, this workshop will introduce you to the basics of stage lighting, and how, as a director or theatre-maker, you can use lighting to your advantage. The focus will be on how to communicate your ideas, and what the process involves.
Thu 29 May
Start times are 15:00 and 18:00T3 Festival
The Cove
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Set in a secluded coastal village, 'The Cove' is an intense and thought-provoking play that explores the lives of a group of young people trapped in a community with unyielding rules. It examines the themes of belonging, conformity, and the cost of challenging what we've always known. As forbidden desires and rebellious defiance ignite, will they escape conformity, or will the cove's suffocation drown them all?
Thu 29 May
Start time: 15:30T3 Festival
Theatre on Screen: Pierrot History : Performances in the Pandemic (Chin Up!)
My research and practice are wholly intertwined. These films trace a process that has evolved over the last 40 years, but the process of recording the work is also part of my pedagogic practice: sharing embodied knowledge of new formats and platforms alongside in-heritage transference provides a living archive of intangible cultural heritage, which raises the profile and understanding of popular forms which have acquired little cultural value and are often neglected by mainstream academia. My work and these films attempt to redress some of this imbalance! [Dr. Tony Lidington]
Thu 29 May
Start time: 18:00T3 Festival
The Relationship and the Claw
Apsara Iyengar's evocative monologue, "The Relationship and the Claw," brought to life by the nuanced performance of Shividhya Iyer of Applause Vadodara, offers a compelling exploration of profound emotional complexities and the arduous journey toward self-realization. Through the potent imagery of an unseen yet acutely felt "claw," the narrative delves into the internal battle between the perceived safety of confinement and the liberating, albeit daunting, prospect of embracing the unknown. It meticulously dissects the delicate equilibrium between the sacrifices demanded within intimate relationships and the fundamental human imperative for self-preservation. The piece poignantly examines the experience of feeling marginalized and unacknowledged within relational dynamics, while simultaneously illuminating the enduring human hope for validation. Ultimately, the narrative arc culminates in a powerful revelation: true liberation and inner peace are attainable only through the courageous act of relinquishing the past, symbolized by a decisive leap into the uncharted territory of self-discovery. The monologue, in essence, serves as a profound meditation on the bravery inherent in severing ties with that which restricts, even when such bonds possess the deceptive comfort of familiarity.
Fri 30 May
Start times are 14:00 and 17:00T3 Festival
Last Orders!
Presented by: Mackenzie Gilmore
Director: Mackenzie Gilmore/Harvey Temple/Sammy Till Vattier/Benjamin Davis
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
4 friends go to the pub for an evening of fun - but they’ll only be having one drink as they all have work tomorrow. Ok, maybe a few drinks. And a few shots? Ooh they have Sambuca...
A musical comedy centred around a pub crawl gone wrong, this show cannot promise it won’t give you flashbacks to your last disastrous night out.
Mon 02 Jun
Start times are 15:00 and 17:45T3 Festival
Kin
Director: Lily Vinall
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
In this darkly funny, unconventional exploration of familial relationships (or the lack of them), two estranged sisters reunite on their father’s deathbed to examine what really binds them together: love or obligation?
Mon 02 Jun
Start times are 16:30 and 19:30T3 Festival
Nesting Dolls
Presented by: Finn Ellison
Director: Finn Ellison
Location: RS3 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
After the recent death of their mother, three siblings agree to meet at the home where they grew up to scatter her ashes.
Tue 03 Jun
Start times are 14:00 and 17:00T3 Festival
Aliens?
Director: Laura Brian
Location: RS3 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Trump called immigrants "Criminal Aliens" but with the future of our planet in jeopardy, what if the human race become the aliens, immigrants on another planet...
Wed 04 Jun
Start times are 15:00 and 17:30T3 Festival
Murder! On the Dancefloor?
Presented by: Brooke Miller
Director: Brooke Miller
Location: RS3 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Murder! On the Dancfloor? A comedy murder mystery exploring motives and reasoning, is there any justification for murder? You decide! After seeing and understanding the events that led to the murderous party. should the killer face justice, or can this case go unanswered.
Wed 04 Jun
Start times are 16:00 and 18:30T3 Festival
DNA
Director: Joshua Shane Watts
Location: TS2 Alexander Building, Thornlea, New North Road, Postcode: EX4 4LA Show on Map
A group of friends do something bad – something really, really bad. But, when they rush to cover it up, they begin to wonder: since the incident brought them closer than ever before, was it really all that terrible? After all, there's nothing more unifying than a secret that must be taken to the grave.
Thu 05 Jun
Start times are 15:00 and 17:00T3 Festival
Ancient Meltdown
Presented by: Gustavo Chaidez Herrera
Director: Gustavo Chaidez Herrera
Location: RS3 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
A conference on ancient cultures is interrupted when a lecturer becomes possessed by an old curse. Chaos, disorientation, and misinformation turn an ordinary lecture into physical theatre, noise music, and absurd humour.
Thu 05 Jun
Start time: 15:30T3 Festival
Theatre on Screen: Kazuo Ohno: Beauty and Strength
A documentary on the life and work of one of butoh’s originators Kazuo Ohno. Compiled from a range of films, performances and interviews, as well as examples of Ohno's drawings and writings, this film was created by the Kazuo Ohno Dance Studio in 2000. It presents a comprehensive view into the world of Kazuo Ohno's dance and understanding of butoh, including original footage of old performances and behind-the-scene looks into Ohno's workshops and rehearsals. In the words of the Studio: 'Beauty and Strength is more than just entertainment. It is the means to preserve these precious materials and to make them available to the next generation.' [Selected by Dr. Bryan Brown]
Sat 07 Jun
Start times are 13:00 and 17:00T3 Festival
Threadbare
Presented by: Jithya Wijesinghe
Director: Jithya Wijesinghe and Thusharani Rubendra
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Laced with emotion,
Life’s experiences frozen.
All control slipped and stolen,
Left bare with emotions.
From trepidation to
Heartbreak revelation,
From childish jubilance,
To celestial inordinance.
Eight experiences,
Looped into one thread,
Freefalling into your senses,
Be careful where you tread.
Join us where poetry meets the stage and we let our imagination guide us around the tapestry of life.
Sun 08 Jun
Start times are 13:00 and 15:30T3 Festival
We're not allowed to talk about it...
Location: RS3 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Three strangers compete to be the most unhinged person in the room on this brain-rotting experience that combines absurdity, Gen Z dark humour, and randomness.
Sun 08 Jun
Start times are 14:00 and 16:30T3 Festival
Magpie
Presented by: Rudi Gibbs
Director: Rudi S. Carson
Location: RS1 Roborough Studios, Prince of Wales Road, Postcode: EX4 4SB Show on Map
Magpie follows Margot Winters, an actress in the midst of transitioning from stage to screen. As Margot continues to work on the movie, she begins to lose track of herself in the mass of all of her previous roles. Now unable to tell herself apart from iconic characters such as Blanche or Lady Macbeth, Margot descends into madness.
Mon 09 Jun
Start times are 13:30 and 14:00 and 14:30 and 15:00 and 15:30 and 16:00T3 Festival
My Toothpaste Prayers
Presented by: Dexter Meleisea
Director: Dexter Meleisea (Ew.)
Location: TS5 Alexander Building, Thornlea, New North Road, Postcode: EX4 4LA Show on Map
15-minute auditory play about living with ADHD.
Also, there's a projection involved.
Mon 09 Jun
Start times are 15:00 and 17:00T3 Festival
The Alphabet Wives
Presented by: Lucy Ma
Director: Holly Smith and Lucy Ma
Location: TS1 Alexander Building, Thornlea, New North Road, Postcode: EX4 4LA Show on Map
What is unconditional love? Is it enough to keep you safe? Menah is new to love, blind to realities. She sees life as a fairytale, a life far from the society she is entrapped in. Carwyn is looking for a new wife, another wife. The thirteenth.
Thu 12 Jun
Start time: 16:30T3 Festival
Theatre on Screen: Houses Slide
Houses Slide is a piece of music theatre for soprano and orchestra composed by Laura Bowler with a libretto by Cordelia Lynn, first performed by London Sinfonietta in 2021 in a production directed by Katie Mitchell. This piece musicalizes eco-anxiety, climate grief, and climate depression by presenting the emotional journey of an Everywoman character, performed by soprano Jessica Aszodi. A team of volunteer cyclists is present and visible onstage throughout and powers this off-grid performance; additionally, Aszodi sings while cycling in place. This performance provides insight into the ways in which contemporary classical musicians and theatre-makers are responding to the climate crisis and modelling environmentally sustainable practice. [Selected by Prof. Adrian Curtin]
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